Galway Comedy Festival is bursting at the seams with comedy brilliance, all part of a 70-strong line-up of international stars, homegrown comedy greats, and emerging talent, playing 69 shows across 16 venues over 7 days and nights. You’d best start planning your week of ‘carefully curated craic’.

Deirdre O’Kane
What can you say about someone who is arguably the First Lady of Irish Comedy who has done it all and then some? Well, quite a lot actually. Deirdre is “Ireland’s number one funny woman” as Extra.ie declared, who possesses a “unique star quality” (The Guardian) and as soon as she steps on stage, she “dazzles the audience from start to finish” (The List). When the show’s over, “applause follows her all the way down the street” (The Scotsman). Need we say more? We could, but by now you’re already booking your ticket to see her at #GCF25.

Aoife Dunne
Fresh off her sell-out success at Edinburgh Fringe, Aoife Dunne is rightly regarded as Ireland’s most exciting new comedy voice. This Galwegian is a comedian, poet, storyteller, and by her own admission, an “absolute dose”. Aoife’s smash hit debut solo show Good Grief has alerted audiences at home and abroad to her razorsharp stand-up, and her painfully relatable storytelling has received the raviest of rave reviews.

Diederik Zuurmond
The Dutch know a thing or two about being able to speak foreign languages and Amsterdam-based, British-born, stand-up Diederik Zuurmond is a shining example. He clinched both the audience and jury prizes at the 2023 English Comedy Talent Awards and has toured extensively across Britain and the Netherlands.

Danny O’Brien
Want to know how good a comedian Danny O’Brien is? One of the biggest comics on the planet, Bill Burr, had this to say about him: “He opened for me at the 3Arena and f*cking murdered it!” High praise indeed, and it’s well deserved as Danny is one of the most in-demand comics on the circuit, having played every major comedy festival in Ireland and abroad, including the Edinburgh, Melbourne and Adelaide Fringe Festivals, and even the Download Heavy Metal Festival.

Paddy McDonnell
From his days as a taximan in West Belfast, Paddy has amassed an array of stories that have fuelled his comedy and delighted audiences across Ireland and Britain. Fresh off the success of three sold-out SSE Arenas in 2023 and 2024, Paddy McDonnell is back with his brand-new show, DAGGER, coming to Galway Comedy Festival this October. DAGGER dives into the hilarious chaos of Paddy’s legendary stag do in Spain, with stories so outrageous they’ve already gone viral on podcasts and social media.

Karl Spain
There is no better MC in Ireland than Karl Spain, and often no better night of comedy than Galway Comedy Festival’s Late Night KARLnival! The show, where comedians perform their darker, edgier material – and you never know who will turn up on the night – in front of Galway’s hardcore comedy fans is both institution and unmissable event.

Karl has worked with some of the world’s greatest comedians, including a massive 2022 tour with Kevin Bridges. Over the last decade or so, he has often written for so many comedians, so you’ve been laughing at his jokes without even realising it!

DOORS: 22:30 | SHOW: 23:00 | Age 18+