Did you know that Galway is home to an array of fascinatingly funny characters? This vibrant city is full of unique personalities, and we’re giving you the chance to meet some of them. Join us as we say Howya! to some of Galway's most funniest figures. This month, we had the pleasure of chatting with the rising star comedian from Kinvara, Aoife Dunne. Check it out here.
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. If you want to see her in action check out when she's performing during Galway Comedy Festival 2025 and get your tickets HERE.
Q. Tell us about yourself. - Who are you & what do you do?
I have no idea who I am, still figuring that bit out, and I hate telling people I am a comedian because the next thing they ask you to do is tell a joke, so I usually tell folks I am Aoife, and I am a bit of a dose, but I am also a comedian, poet and content creator online.
Q. What do you love about your job?
I love being on stage (she's never off it, as my mum used to say) and feeling like a conductor of people's energy and mood when I am up there. I lost my mum when I was 23 years old, and honestly, the thing I have learnt that has saved me through years of grieving is laughter - and not only laughter, but silliness, acting the maggot, all of that: the ability to face the heaviest, most serious thing life can throw at you, and still roll around on the floor laughing with your best friend because you woke up to a pigeon trapped in your bedroom. This is what my show 'Good Grief' is all about - the ability to find the laughter no matter what. And I love helping folks find theirs.
Q. What's your favourite thing to do in Galway?
I think Galway was made for slow days - for slow days with no plans, and people-watching. I love going to Neachtains on one of those slow days (after a coffee from Coffeewerk + Press and a wander around the Galway markets) and sitting outside with my pint and a book from Charlie Byrne's, and watching the world go by.
Q. Favourite piece of Galway slang?
I do love the slang 'arra'. I thought it was universal until I moved to Dublin and used it on dates with some Dublin lads (first mistake, in fairness), and after a few messages, and dates, one lad was like, “What the hell does arra mean?” - I knew then I should never date a Dublin man again.
Q. Who and what makes you laugh the most?
I love goofy, silly, ridiculous, naughty humour - like when you're on day three of a festival, and you're exhausted and giddy, and everything is making you laugh, and you're in the tent with your friends rolling around laughing at your friend dividing tissues out to strangers outside the portaloos like a tissue Jesus. I think Irish girls, when they are together, are the naughtiest, funniest beings on planet Earth.
Q. Tell us about your new solo show, Good Grief.
It is a one-woman comedy and storytelling show that blends stand-up, storytelling, and poetic reflections. The heart of the show is about grief, family, resilience, and joy - how life can fall apart, how you find humour in the darkest moments, and how laughter can hold space even in loss. It is my debut show, and I am so rarely proud of myself, but I am really proud of this show.
Q. Who are you most excited to see at this year’s Galway Comedy Festival?
I have always been a massive fan of Dylan Moran, and his show ‘Monster’ I used to watch on repeat when I lived in Spain in my early 20s, when I was homesick and lonely and wanted to remember funny people. But I am probably most excited to see my fellow female comedians, my amazingly talented friends - Anna Clifford, Rachel Galvo, Sophia Wren, Síomha Hennessy, Sinéad Quinlan, etc.
Q. Tell us a joke!
Housing in Ireland. Lol. I'll get my coat.
Photos by Sinéad Murphy.
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