• Greg Davies, Peter Richardson, Shaparak Khorsandi and Helen Lederer are just some of the household names already confirmed for the first Rik Mayall Comedy Festival in Droitwich Spa in Worcestershire.
• The community-run festival is taking place from Sat 31 May to Sat 7 June and tickets for the headline acts at the Norbury Theatre in Droitwich Spa go on general release on Sun 9 March.
• Rik Mayall, star of the ‘Young Ones’ and ‘Bottom’, grew up in the Spa town and the festival aims to celebrate Mayall and continue his legacy by supporting youth programmes at the Norbury theatre.

Comedy fans will soon be able to buy tickets for the initial shows to be released as part of the very first Rik Mayall Comedy Festival in Droitwich Spa.

The eight day event is set to host well known comedians and friends of Mayall such as Greg Davies who acted alongside him in TV sitcom Man Down, Peter Richardson, founding member of The Comic Strip Presents, of which Mayall was an original cast member and Helen Lederer who worked with Mayall on shows such as The Young Ones, Happy Families and Bottom.

Other performers include Shaparak Khorsandi, Red Richardson, Paul Foot and Laura Smyth, who are booked to appear throughout the week at the Norbury Theatre.

The curated programme will also feature theatre, comedy for children and parents, panels and screenings. Free activities suitable for families will take place around the town during the weekends, and a pop-up museum will feature memorabilia, costumes and photography from Mayall’s career.

The festival will feature the world premiere of ‘Serious About Comedy’, a film produced in collaboration with the University of Birmingham’s Shakespeare Institute and the Birmingham Rep, with a panel after the screening including the director of West End productions of Dr Strangelove and Upstart Crow, Sean Foley.

Other venues across town are part of an open Fringe, and applications are open on the festival website to perform throughout the town. The Fringe will feature a variety of shows, with a large proportion of free and ‘pay what you want’ performances including stand-up, improv, theatre and live music. The festival team will be announcing more events  in the run up to the festival.

Chris Broad, Chair of the festival committee said: “We are so excited to welcome these fantastic comedians, actors and writers to our debut festival. It’s a rare opportunity to see these big names in such an intimate setting as the Norbury. Tickets are very limited so we wanted to give our local community the opportunity to buy this initial release of tickets before we open them up nationally on our website.”

The idea for a comedy festival came about through a discussion with Mayall’s family and local Councillor Richard Morris who was keen to celebrate the iconic comedian and his connection to Droitwich Spa. The family suggested that a celebration in the town where we found his feet in entertainment was a fitting tribute to his legacy.

Richard said: “Growing up, Rik was regularly involved in productions at the Norbury Theatre and in many plays that his parents had written, and I believe this is where he found his love of performing. Supporting young people discovering acting and comedy is a key part of why we wanted to hold a festival and the family has given us their blessing.”

The Bottom comedian known for his extrovert characters moved to Droitwich with his parents when he was three, taking part in plays at the Norbury throughout his childhood and teenage years. The festival aims to capture his distinct spirit by offering a diverse range of performances, screenings, and workshops suitable for both adults  and young people, as well as family friendly events, in celebration of his remarkable life and career.

The comedy festival which has been set up and run by a dedicated group of local volunteers runs from Saturday 31 May to Saturday 7 June 2025 in Droitwich Spa, Worcestershire.

Tickets are available to local residents from 8 March and on general release from 9 March at www.rikmayallcomedyfestival.com.

Look out for more information on acts and performers on social media which will be released in the next few weeks.