Comedy Stars set for 2008 Festival

Paddy McGuinness, Franke Boyle, Pete Firman and Russel Kane are amongst tp comedians that will be bringing laughs to Hull's second ever comedy festival this Autumn

Having enjoyed a good first festival in 2007, Hull Comedy Festival is back for more great laughs. Aware of the potential to fall foul of the 'difficult second festival syndrome' the organisers at Hull Comedy Festival  aim to put together a good quality festival programme that brings great acts to the city and gives chance to try out some new things in 2008.

Hull Comedy Festival promises over two weeks of tail wagging, belly bouncing, cheek pinching entertainment by local talent  and big names form the wonderful world of comedy from Thursday 23rd October and run until Friday 7th November

The Headliners

Paddy McGuinness

www.patrickmcguiness.co.uk

Paddy McGuinness, otherwise known as the incompetant, sex obsessed bouncer armed with dodgy chat up lines in Peter Kays,' Phoenix Nights'.

After aspiring careers in various hum-drum jobs, Paddys acting debut was in a one-off Peter Kay mocumentary in which he had about three lines.

His character Paddy the doorman first appeared in, 'That Peter Kay Thing' in 2000 and returned as a regular character in Phoenix Nights. He reprised the role again in Max and Paddy: The Road to Nowhere, a spin-off series that he co-wrote with Peter Kay.

See Paddy McGuinness at Hull City Hall on Thursday 30th October

Franke Boyle

www.frankeboyle.com

Frankie Boyle is comedy's hot property at the moment  with over 100 sold out tour dates already to his name. In the last three years, Frankie has propelled himself ito the premier league with a host of brilliant performances, both on stage and on screen, including every episode of, 'Mock the Week', '8 out of 10 Cats', 'Have I got news for you', 'Would I lie to you', and 'They think it's all over' to name a few.

Alongside his work in front of the camera, Frankie is also a highly regarded writer. He has written for several series including, '8 out of 10 Cats', the UK version of Live floor show, 2DTV and 29 minutes of fame.

See Frankie Boyle at Hull City Hall on Monday 3rd November

Pete Firman

www.petefirman.co.uk

Pete Firman is regarded as a uniquely gifted magic entertainer, glefully injecting the genre with his anarchic, off-beat humour and dazzling array of skills.

In 2002 he made, 'Monkey Magic' for FIVE. It was a radical new form of magic show, with a team of 4 magicians each with their own style and personality. It was shortlisted for a British Comedy Award and nominated for Golden Rose of Montreux. The show was a hit and FIVE quickly commmisioned Pete and the other guys to make  the fantasically names, 'Greatest Magic Tricks in the Universe.....Ever', which proved to be one of FIVES highest rating shows.

In 2004 Pete, along with Ali Cook, travelled the world and met his heroes in magic. 'The Secret world of Magic' was aired in May 2005 on Shy One.

See Pete Firman at The Quality Royal Hotel on Friday 24th October

Russell Howard

www.russell-howard.co.uk

Russell Howard will be bringing his show, 'Dingledodies' to this years Hull Comedy Festival. Russell opened Hull's first Comedy festival in October of last year to a sell-out audience at The Quality Royal Hotel and returns to a larger venue this year to give more fans a chance to see him in action. On top of this he has been busy cementing his place as one of the hottest properties in comedy on BBC2, Would I lie to you? and Live at the Apollo on BBC1, law of the playground on Channel 4 and tough Gig, The Brits and the British Comedy Awards on ITV. Festival director, John Gilbert said: 'Last time round Russell got the festival off to a storming start and we arel ooking forward to him doing it again this year. I think its a good sign for his popularity and of course the festival itself and this time round he'll be opening the festival at one of the cities largest venues'.

See Russell Howard at the Hull City Hall on Thursday 23rd October to kick-start Hull's 2nd comedy festival