The ministerial roundtable on comedy is happening!
The ministerial roundtable on comedy is happening! I’m delighted to announce the Department for Culture, Media and Sport will be hosting a dedicated meeting to discuss the comedy sector and how the Government can support its ambitions.
Invitations are direct from The Rt Hon. Ian Murray MP and made up of comedy talent (emerging, circuit, well-known), producers, agents/managers, technologists, streaming platforms, broadcasters, and academics. Arts Council England are also attending.
I feel privileged to work alongside many policymakers and their teams to help make this happen—special thanks to our roundtable host Minister Ian Murray and the DCMS, Howard Dawber OBE, Rachel Blake MP, Samantha Niblett MP, and Dr Simon Opher MP. I would also like to thank Sir Chris Bryant MP and Jo Gideon, who were early supporters; and more recently the policy teams at Amazon, BBC, Greater London Authority, London & Partners, Mayor of London, and Sky Media UK.
It takes a village: This meeting also builds upon decades of work by people in comedy: an industry of individuals often working in isolation, who ultimately want to make the world a happier place. I look forward to collaborating with comedy colleagues and the Government, to help transform the comedy sector through better policies and systems.
Photos were taken at the following key meetings at the UK Parliament:
💫 March 2025: Meeting with Sir Chris Bryant to request a comedy roundtable. This was followed by the first comedy roundtable, "Comedy-on-Prescription".
• Meeting with / roundtable co-hosted by Dr Simon Opher MP and me.
• How can we integrate comedy into NHS policy
• Review of Craic Health's pilot trial (~44% uplift in participant mood)
💫 October 2025: "London Comedy Business and Growth Meeting"
• Co-hosted by Rachel Blake, Howard Dawber, Simon Opher and me.
• Attended by MP teams, Samantha Niblett's team, DCMS, GLA, Westminster Council, and the comedy industry.
• Policymaker request for me to present one Top 10 comedy priority list to Government, on behalf of industry.
💫 Jan 2026: Executive briefing by me to Ian Murray, Samantha Niblett, Simon Opher, and DMCS
• Top 10 comedy priority list presented
• Request to urgently appoint comedy representative/s to the Creative Industries Council
• Progress update on Craic Health's comedy's integration towards NHS policy
• Discussed ongoing discussions with ACE, re comedy being made a distinct artform
• The comedy roundtable was approved
💫 Not in photos—key Culture, Media and Sport select committee meeting in April 2025, also contributing to the ministerial roundtable: Hosted by Dame Caroline Dinenage MP DBE with comedy talents Kate Cheka and Matt Forde, Brunel University of London, Frog and Bucket Comedy Club, Funny Women CIC, and Live Comedy Association.
