DETAILS OF the 15th annual Smithwick's Cat Laughs Comedy Festival were announced in Dublin yesterday.
Over 45 comic acts will descend on Kilkenny during the June bank holiday weekend (May 29th - June 2nd) to perform in 15 venues to some 25,000 people.
Topping the bill this year are Irish favourites Tommy Tiernan, Ardal O'Hanlon and Barry Murphy, as well as a range of well-regarded international comics such as Adam Hills, Russell Howard, Arj Baker and the Anglo-Iranian comedienne, Shappi Khorsandi.
Recently described by the Guardian newspaper as "one of the top five comedy festivals in the world", the Cats Laughs festival is renowned for its laid-back feel and its lack of a competitive element - unlike other comedy festivals, there are no prizes or awards.
Regular favourites returning to Kilkenny this year include the US comics Rich Hall and Dom Irrera; there are festival debuts for the Australian Greg Fleet, the Canadian Tim Nutt and two British comics, Robin Ince and Andrew Lawrence. A strong Irish contingent also includes performances by Maeve Higgins, Des Bishop and David O'Doherty.
An innovation this year is an event called "The Dark Show".
Hosted by Adam Hills, the show allows comics to give voice to material that reflects an edgier approach to comedy.
"A lot of people often come with something that they think is really funny but there is no way they could get away with it on stage" says Adam Hills. "This is a chance for them to express those dark thoughts."
Tickets for all the shows go on sale today, and are available from the website www.smithwickscatlaughs.com.
