Comedy / Sponsored Feature
Slapstick Festival fundraiser
Sarah Millican, the double BAFTA nominee whose many other awards include being named the Queen of Comedy in a public vote, has joined the line-up of an extra special fundraiser at Colston Hall on Thursday, June 11 to help secure the future of the city’s annual Slapstick Festival.
The night is being hosted by stand-up star Al Murray, who will be joined by an equally stellar cast of other top entertainers when he hosts.
Harry Hill, making his only live appearance of this year, Omid Djalili, Dr Phil Hammond and Pippa Evans are among those who have already agreed to join Al for the latest Stand Up for Slapstick benefit night, with more guests expected to be added to the bill soon.
is needed now More than ever
The show is being put on to help with the almost £100,000 costs of staging each Slapstick Festival – held in Bristol every January since 2005 and now rated as the world’s biggest celebration of silent and vintage screen comedy.
Slapstick Festival director Chris Daniels says: “Although the festival is much loved by audiences and gets tremendous free support from many individuals and companies, we still have to pay out ever-increasing sums for film rights, venue hire, equipment and so on. And with public funding where it is, we rely on the kindness of our celebrity fans, including Al, Harry, Pippa and Phil, to help us to bring in the money that will allow us to keep on saluting the comedy greats of the past and bringing laughter to Bristol.”
Harry Hill added: “I’m delighted to be appearing at Stand Up 4 Slapstick in June in support of Bristol’s Slapstick Festival. It’s the hardest of all comedy to get right, but when it works it crosses generations and reduces all ages to happy, helpless laughter – slapstick is worth celebrating and saving.”
Tickets for Stand Up 4 Slapstick are on sale now, at £32 each including booking fee from the Colston Hall box office, Colston Street, Bristol, BS1 5AR, over the phone on 0844 887 1500, or online via www.colstonhall.org/stand-up-4-slapstick.
All profits will go towards the funding of the 12th annual Slapstick Festival, taking place from Thursday, January 21 to Sunday, January 24.
To find out more about the performers and keep up to date with other Slapstick news, please sign-up for the free e-bulletin at www.slapstick.org.uk. You can also find Slapstick Festival on Facebook or follow @SlapstickFest on Twitter.