Scottish Comedy Highlights: October 2024
October’s a jam-packed month for comedy fans across the Central Belt with comedy celebrating Black History Month, some alt comedy legends and a spooky standout for the whole family
First we want to shoutout some excellent Black comics coming to Scotland this month. COBO: Comedy Shutdown showcases four comics at the top of their game – Nabil Abdulrashid, Kat B, Michael Akadiri and Kazeem Jamal on 6 October (Monkey Barrel, 6pm / Glasgow Glee, 8pm, £18). Sam Jay and Travis Jay (no relation) are also in town. Known to UK audiences from her NAACP-nommed HBO special and roasting NFL star Tom Brady on Netflix, Sam’s at The Stand in Edinburgh on 8 October (8.30pm, £25). UK act Travis Jay, who came to the Fringe in 2019 and currently stars in Netflix’s Supacell, brings his first tour to both Scottish Stand venues (Edinburgh, 9 Oct / Glasgow, 10 Oct, 8pm, £15).
Alt comic fans, we’ve a couple of treats for you. Greasy anti-comedy creation Neil Hamburger makes a rare appearance in Edinburgh (Monkey Barrel, 14 Oct, 8pm, £25), while two-time Edinburgh Comedy Award nominee Spencer Jones goes on his (well overdue) debut tour (The Stand, Glasgow, 19 Oct, 4pm, £16 / Monkey Barrel, Edinburgh, 21 Oct, 8pm, £17.60). Promising best bits from his previous shows, expect prop-based, loop-pedal silliness and sentiment in a night of joyful chaos. Read more about it in the October issue, out this week.
One of our faves from Fringe 2023, Priya Hall returns to Monkey Barrel with a WIP of a new show (19 Oct, 8pm, £7). If you didn’t catch her then, she’s definitely one to put on your radar and is fresh off supporting Nish Kumar on his current tour.
Local lad Larry Dean brings his latest hour Dodger, about the relationship with his granny, to Edinburgh (30 Oct, Monkey Barrel, 7.30pm and 9pm, £16) and Dundee (31 Oct, Whitehall Theatre, 8pm, £16-£18) this month. One of the top 20 best-reviewed shows this Fringe, Dean also takes the show elsewhere in Scotland at the beginning of November.
Finally, there’s spine-chilling chuckles for the whole family this Halloween at Glasgow Stand (The Big Halloween Kids Comedy Show, 26 Oct, 2pm, £6-£8). Best for kids aged 5-11 and their grown-ups, it’ll be an afternoon of super, spooky stand-up and mayhem.