Who needs love when you've got comedy? Have a laugh with these lot.

So February, the month of hearts and flowers, roses and chocolate, indigestion and misguided one night stands. But every month in Manchester is the month for comedy lovers so here's some of best funny events around in the next four weeks.

John Shuttleworth, The Lowry, Sun Feb 1, £19
The Shuttleworth juggernaut continues on tour. An unfortunate typo sees the Sheffield security guard recalling a 'Wee Ken To Remember'. His neighbour and manager Ken Worthington is surely to blame.

Laugh Local, Chorlton Irish Club, Sat Feb 6, £12/£10
The ever unpredictable Phil Ellis pops Justin Moorhouse's compering shoes on for the evening to introduce a great bill of comedians. Headlining is one of Manchester's best acts, Mick Ferry. Ferry performs a fine line in the observational as well as not being adverse to a touch of the surreal. Plus seasoned comedian Eddy Brimson and support in the form of Laura Lexx.

Group Therapy @ The Deaf Institute - Brendon Burns, Sat Feb 7, £10/£8
The quality monthly comedy night moves to the Deaf Institute for their first show of 2015. The club plays host to the visceral talents of Burns and his latest one man show 'Outside the Box.' Always challenging and probing, and unafraid of a little controversy Burns is definitely one of those comedians you really must see at least once.

Trapdoor Comedy @ The Old Monkey, Sun Feb 8, £3
The award nominated comedy night kicks off a four night run of gigs in Greater Manchester. Here in town, see sets from the mischievous Carey Marx and fine local talent Tony Burgess. Also find Trapdoor in Didsbury on Mon 9, and new clubs in Stockport on Tue 10 and Heald Green on Wed 11.

Comedy Playground, Contact Theatre, Mon Feb 9, £13/£7
A pretty impressive line up of acts at this mixed bill night at Contact. The acclaimed Margaret Queen of Soho - who was a big hit at the Fringe last year - Pakistani descent Brummie comic Shazia Mirza, Joe Lycett - who started out here on the local circuit - the innovative Rachel Mars and Laughing Cows' Kerry Leigh.

The Bradshaws in 'Goosed,' The Lowry, Thu Feb 12, £19
Invented in 1983 when Buzz Hawkins was working as a musician on Piccadilly Radio, The Bradshaws subsequently spawned many more radio outings, a TV series and lots of live tours. The latest sees little Billy Bradshaw temporarily stop asking for a budgie when his Dad brings something bigger home – a goose.

Sham Bodie, Kraak Gallery, Thu Feb 12, £5
Having moved from the quaint but teeny Castle pub, the award nominated Sham Bodie can now squeeze more people in to see its comedic oddities. A mixture of straight stand up and bizarre goings on, this month the stand ups are Canadian Allyson June Smith and the sometimes seen performing with her mum - Jana Kennedy.

David O'Doherty Has Checked Everything, The Dancehouse, Fri Feb 13, £16/£14
The Irish comedian with a fine line in simple ditties played out on his Bontempi, O'Doherty's shows are a deliciously low key affair. 'The forgotten Sugababe' is a beautifully whimsical and somewhat random presence, he's won the hearts of many a competition judge over the years garnering awards and acclaim along the way.

Stewart Lee – 'A Room With A Stew,' The Lowry, Fri 13 & Sat 14, Feb, £22
One of the finest comedians around who's unafraid of awkward silences, repeating himself or offending those UKIPs. He sprang to fame in the 1990s with his partnership with Richard Herring in Fist of Fun and This Morning With Richard But Not Judy then disappearing from live stand up for a while. He returned to the circuit to critical acclaim resulting in, despite his mock-moaning about a lack of telly success, his BBC series Comedy Vehicle. And he's playing the Lowry's big room, that'll really annoy him.

Count Arthur Strong- 'Somebody Up There Licks Me!', The Lowry, Sat Feb 14, £18.50-£15.50
The malapropping, confused old luvvie with delusions of grandeur is fresh from his BBC 1 sitcom. Minus the extraneous TV characters the crumbling old Count is even funnier in the flesh. Often accompanied by the hapless Malcolm, he can procrastinate and pontificate for England doddering about the stage, the lovable stuffed shirt he is.

Simon Amstell, The Lowry, Sun Feb 15, £19-£22
Though he's probably better known to a generation as the one-time presenter of Never Mind the Buzzcocks as well as a presenter Amstell has always been a stand up. This is a cerebral and thought out affair musing on freedom amongst many other things. Supported by House of Fools' Daniel Simonsen – an acclaimed stand up in his own right.

Ross Noble, The Lowry, Thu Feb 19, £27
One of the most inventive comedians around. Geordie Noble has made a career out of making it up as he goes along riffing off anyone or anything in the room. No two shows are ever the same and if you're lucky enough to catch a show at the beginning and one at end of his tour you're almost guaranteed an entirely different performance.

Antwerp Mansion, Sun Feb 22, £5
Tom Binns provides most of the comedy tonight with both his acclaimed demon creations - hospital radio DJ Ivan Brackenbury and mind reader and medium Ian D Montfort. If anyone can find the most inappropriate track to play for an ailing hospital patient Brackenbury can. Meanwhile Montfort employs some genuinely skilled clairvoyant tricks of the trade that Binns has learnt to perfection.

Jonny Pelham and Peter Brush Edinburgh Preview Shows, The Kings Arms, Sun Feb 22, Price TBC
It's pretty early in the year for Edinburgh preview shows but these pair are right to be quick off the mark practising their debuts early. A double header of fledgling shows from two of the most promising new talents on the circuit, self confessed social oddity Pelham and sharp gags from an obtuse perspective from Brush.

Laughing Cows, Bethany Black, Sun Feb 22, £10/£7
'Britain’s only Goth, transsexual, lesbian comedian' Black has been occupying her niche for some years now. Currently seen as Helen in Russell T Davies' Cucumber and Banana – the first transsexual woman to be cast as a transsexual woman – Black has plenty of amusing stories to tell about her life as well as plenty of other comedic observations to mine for funny.

Tanyalee Davies, XSMalarkey, Tue Feb 24, £5/£3 The CityLife
Award winner for best comedy club this week presents Las Vegas comedian Davies. A chunk of Davies' material consists of sharply witty observations on what it's like to have dwarfism – particularly when you have a tall husband. Tack sharp and smart she's got plenty more in the comedy bag too.

Mark Thomas – 'Cuckooed,' The Lowry, Wed Feb 25, £19
In the second of his shows to return to the theatre of his Uni drama schooling, 'Cuckooed' is a poignant, angry, emotional and ultimately witty tale of Thomas', and his fellow anti-arms trade activists, betrayal by a man once thought on as a friend who turned out to be a corporate spy on the pay roll for BAE systems.

Lucy Porter – 'Me Time,' The Lowry, Wed Feb 25, £12-£14
Don't be fooled by the sweetly diminutive, pretty exterior, she has a deceptively potty mouth and a tongue as sharp as sherbet. Here she brings last year's Edinburgh Fringe show to Salford where she tries to figure out which era of history she really should have been born in.

Richard Herring – 'Lord of the Dance Settee,' The Lowry, Sat Feb 28, £18
Stewart Lee's former partner in comedy temporarily leaves behind hefty topics such as religion, death and penises, as he returns with a show about daftness and bouncing up and down on the sofa.

Manford's Comedy Club, Tiger Tiger, Sat Feb 28, £12.50
Jason Manford's mission to bring quality comedy to all nooks of the country takes it to another level as he produces his first weekly club. This week it's Canadian live wire and former Corky and the Juice Pig Phil Nichol, oh boy will he entertain.

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