New Year’s Eve comedy in London

Erstwhile Daily Show legend Trevor Noah returns to London for a comparitively ‘intimate’ string of dates at the Apollo after playing The O2 last time in 2023. We’re promised the South African stand-up will be performing all new material: this may even be the show’s name, although the poster for these dates features Noah standing in front of the postcode for the Apollo (W6 9QH) which would be a fun name. He’s only got the odd North American date scheduled for the rest of the year, so expect this run to be fairly significant to him. We don’t know exactly what’s on offer, but expect humourous storytelling with a politicial edge.

London has the biggest and best comedy scene in the world, so if you love a good laugh (or a good heckle) you're in the right place. From tiny basements and rooms above pubs to boats to huge venues, there’s comedy in the capital for comedians (and audiences) of all shapes and sizes. But not all spaces are created equal. Avoid getting sucked into a rip-off joint with a vibe that's deader than Monty Python's notorious parrot with our list of London’s liveliest and best comedy nights and clubs. Whether you're up for try-out nights at pocket money prices or massive gigs from names off the telly, here's where to look for your next comedy night out. RECOMMENDED: Here are the very best cinemas in London.

June 2025 is a typically eclectic month for London comedy: it’s fair to say that no other city on the planet can boast a dizzyingly broad festival of modern clowning and a residence for ex Daily Show host Trevor Noah running side by side. Toss in the chance to see the brilliant Kieran Hodgson’s new show two months before Edinburgh gets it and fun from Stewart Lee and Wanda Sykes, and you’ve got yourself a solid month of chuckles. There are far, far too many one-off, multi-performer comedy nights in London for us to compile a single coherent page with our favouites on, which is entirely to London’s credit. So do check individual bills of comedy clubs online for that sort of thing. But if you’re looking for an individual comedian with a full headline show then this page is here to compile the Time Out editorial team’s top choices, often with our reviews from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The best comedy clubs in London.The best new theatre shows to book for in London.

Whether you’ve been a fan since the days of That Peter Kay Thing or you’ve recently discovered his sketches on TikTok, the chances are you’re familiar with Peter Kay, one of the UK’s most beloved comedians. And that’s shown by the sheer number of gigs he’s playing this year – in fact, Kay is the first ever artist to perform a monthly residency at Greenwich’s massive O2 Arena. A heck of a lot of Londoners are going to get to see Peter Kay live over the next 12 months, and those gigs continue this weekend. This Saturday (January 6), Kay takes to the O2 as part of his first tour in 12 years. Here’s everything you need to know about the show – and all the ones after that. RECOMMENDED: How to get tickets for Peter Kay’s 2023 tour  When is Peter Kay at London’s O2 Arena? Peter Kay’s next show at the O2 is on Saturday, January 6 2024. After that, he’ll play loads more dates. Here are those in full: February 24, 2024 March 23, 2024 April 20, 2024 May 4, 2024 June 2, 2024 July 13, 2024 August 10, 2024 September 7, 2024 October 8, 2024 November 16, 2024 December 5. 2024 January 25, 2025 February 22, 2025 March 20, 2025 April 4, 2025 What time will he come on stage? Kay is set to take to the stage at 8pm. What time do doors open at the London O2? Doors will open at 6:30pm and it should end by the O2’s curfew, which is 11pm.  Are there any tickets left? According to ticketing platform AXS, there are still some tickets left for the January 6 show. How much are tickets?  You can...

It’s my first visit to London’s newest theatre, and the press officer says she wants to hang about for a bit: ‘just until I see the look on your face when you see the auditorium for the first time’.  I immediately start worrying that I’ll offend everyone by not looking impressed enough, but it’s all good: my jaw duly thuds to the floor when I step into the main house of Soho Theatre Walthamstow.  The ‘original’ Soho Theatre on Dean Street in central London is a truly wonderful comedy, cabaret and theatre venue, but the building is not what you’d call architecturally noteworthy. Soho Theatre Walthamstow is a different matter entirely.  Photo: David Levene It has a long and complicated history, but the short version is that it opened in 1930 as The Granada, a 2,700-seat cinema on busy Hoe Street. It eventually fell into disrepair. Now it’s been born again as a 1,000-seat comedy and theatre venue. And it looks incredible. While the exterior has been given a clean, white, unobtrusive paint job that brings it somewhat in line with the Dean Street venue, the inside is like stepping back in time – a ravishing art deco masterpiece so instantly iconic that I feel a twinge of frustration that it’s just been sitting here unused for decades.  The slide into dereliction The original Granada cinema was a special place: built by prolific London theatre architect Cecil Masey and with interiors by the great stage designer Theodore Komisarjevsky, it was beloved by noted Leytonstone...

A new high-concept show from the wondrous Kieran Hodgson. Having made shows exploring his relationship with Scotland (Big in Scotland) and the EU (’75), now he turns his sights on the US. In it, Hodgson explores how the country he was fascinated with as a child stacked up to the real thing when he auditioned for Hollywood, and what actual Americans thought of the accent he’d always assumed was flawless (spoiler: he has a small role in The Flash and his accent isn’t bad).

In his latest dizzyingly high concept show, avant comedy legend Stewart Lee bemoans his irrelevance – something he’s been been bemoaning for decades, often with zeitgeisty results – in a new show in which he promises to unleash a new, callously offensive stage persona to compete with the likes of Ricky Gervais and Dave Chappelle. The Man-Wulf is, apparently, ‘a tough-talking werewolf comedian from the dark forests of the subconscious who hates humanity’. Expect nuclear levels of irony. 

As the unofficial comedy capital of the world, London's comedy circuit doesn't take a break. There are stand-up shows seven days a week, from early evening through to the small hours. To help you plan your week of witticisms, here's a nifty calendar of regular comedy shows in London.

Neon Nights is the gorgeous Soho Theatre Walthamstow’s monthly showcase spectactular and typiclaly features a big name headliner with stars ion various degrees of rising in support.  Upcoming shows include Phil Wang (June 27) with Catherine Bohart as host and Olga Koch, Jin Hao Li, Josh Pugh and Fatiha El-Ghorri supporting. On July 25 it’s Sam Campbell with Ania Magliano as host and support from Desiree Burch, Jessica Fostekew, Slim and Urooj Ashfaq. On Sep 26 it’s Bridget Christie with Kemah Bob as host plus Sindhu Vee, Jen Brister, Rhys James and Amy Gledhill.

The Emmy-winning US comedy legend – and longterm Curb Your Enthusiasm co-star – calls in at the Southbank Centre as part of a short tour of England and Europe. We’re promised laughs aplenty and ‘a smattering of manners’, with the versatile veteran offering a mix of physical humour, goofy anecdotes and more political stuff.