A COMEDY festival is making its return to Chester this summer following a successful run in 2018.

The CH1 Chester Comedy Festival, with names including Daliso Chaponda from Britain’s Got Talent, The Chase’s Sinnerman – Paul Sinha and star of Mock The Week Gary Delaney leading the line-up to provide a week of entertainment for Cestrians.

Star of the popular 80s sitcom The Young Ones Alexei Sayle, now known as the Godfather of British alternative comedy, will close the festival in style with his Emmy award-winning brand of humour at Chester’s Town Hall. This is one of only two planned UK stand-up dates in 2019, so offers a unique opportunity to see a legend in comedy.

Organised by CH1ChesterBID, the eight-day event will see 23 acclaimed comedians take to the stage in 15 of Chester’s most prestigious venues. Taking place between Sunday, June 30, and Sunday, July 7, the festival features stand-up shows, comedy specials and a free film screening event for children at The Grosvenor Museum.

Returning favourites from last year include The Chase’s Sinnerman – Paul Sinha and star of Have I Got News For You Jo Caulfield, who both return with brand new shows.

They will join award-winning character comedian Tom Binns, Irish comedian and TV star Neil Delamere, alongside Jonny Awsum, Jamie Sutherland, Allyson June Smith and Troy Hawke.

Carl Critchlow, BID manager at CH1ChesterBID, said: “We’re thrilled to be bringing the CH1 Chester Comedy Festival back to the city following a superb first year with great feedback from our businesses and visitors.

“Our work as a Business Improvement District (BID) is to drive people into the city centre and support the local economy, so initiatives such as this are crucial to attracting more visitors from local areas and further afield.

“This city is known for its night-time economy and with our Purple Flag status recently renewed, it’s great to be bringing these nationally recognised comedians to the city centre.”

Brendan Riley is part of the husband and wife team helping to organise the CH1 Chester Comedy Festival again in 2019, building on the success of the Southport Comedy Festival, which was established in 2010 and now attracts more than 6,000 spectators every year.

Brendan will not only support CH1ChesterBID with the co-ordination of the event but is also the main comedian for a Comedy Bingo evening at Chester Cathedral, which is a new addition for 2019.

He said: “The comedians had a great time at the first event last year, which is why so many are returning to perform again.

“The festival provides a great platform for the comedians to trial their rousing new material, which they’ll likely debut at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. This is a wonderful opportunity for people to be among the first to watch these exciting performances and enjoy gigs which are brand new to the comedy circuit.”

The much-loved comedy crawls will also return to the city as part of the festival. The two evenings will see comedians take groups of people on a tour of some of Chester's famous pubs and bars, with stand-up performances along the way.

  • To see the full line-up or to book tickets, visit www.ch1chestercomedyfestival.com.