Have a laugh with Jonathan’s Comedy Club!

He may have been quiet of late, but since his breakthrough on The Last Resort, way back in 1987, ‘Wossy’ has become one of the nation’s best loved entertainment hosts.

One Hour with Jonathan Ross, the BBC’s Film programme, Friday Night with Jonathan Ross, the ITV’s The Jonathan Ross Show and his Sony Award-winning Radio 2 show, are among the hits on the St Pancras-born star’s CV.

And as well as his interests in movies, sci-fi, comic books and the music of David Bowie, Jonathan is also a passionate promotor of comedy.

He has regularly hosted Comic Relief, appeared on Channel 4’s Comedy Gala, and perennially presented the annual British Comedy Awards.

The broadcaster, who turns 60 in November, takes pride in championing up-and-coming talent, and this series sees him get behind new comedians on the cusp of their big break and offer them a stage upon which to make people laugh. The experience of enjoying live comedy in an intimate space is unbeatable.

However, the circuit has been hit incredibly hard by the coronavirus pandemic, with most stand-up venues remaining closed.

In an attempt to make up for this shortfall, Jonathan Ross’ Comedy Club will showcase new talent destined to be household names in the future, as well as recreating the vibe and atmosphere of a small comedy venue. In addition to the newcomers, some of the country’s established comedy names will also be seizing the opportunity to try out their new material in front of the nation.

Jonathan says: “Apart from the excuse to wear make-up, my favourite part of this job has always been giving exciting new talent a platform to show off their skills. The excitement and joy in seeing a new face come out and deliver memorable comedy is a wonderful feeling, and we want to make sure as many people as possible get to experience it. There’s so much incredible comedy talent around at the moment with all too few opportunities to do what they do best.

“I’m very much looking forward to giving these acts the exposure they deserve, having a good laugh and finally leaving my front room.”

Pakistani-born comic Mawaan Rizwan, who recently starred as the hapless Nicky in Sky’s survival comedy Two Weeks To Live, is co-presenting the stand-up showcase with Jonathan.

Katherine Ryan, Tom Allen, Kerry Godliman, Kemah Bob, Adam Rowe and Fern Brady are all booked to appear throughout the series, but first up tonight are British-Kurdish stand-up Kae Kurd, music act Flo & Joan and comedian and writer Sophie Duker.

Plus, ‘veteran’ Rob Beckett (who is actually still only 34) is also popping into the club to test out some of his new gags.

Alongside this new Comedy Club venture, Jonathan is also set to return as a judge on the second season of The Masked Singer UK very soon. And there’s also a new run of The Jonathan Ross Show in the pipeline, which despite the rumours and poor ratings, has ‘not been axed’.

Therefore, it’s not just the up-and-coming comedians who will have a point to prove in the Club over the next few weeks – Wossy will be hoping to get his own career back on track.

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