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.

Emma Doran
Smash hit Irish comedian, best-selling author, podcast host and viral online star Emma Doran is bringing her brand-new stand-up show Emmaculate to Galway Comedy Festival.

There’s no such thing as a perfect family, but she wouldn’t want one anyway…

The many trials and tribulations of Emma’s blended family are laid bare, womanhood examined, and relationships put to the test in this witty, rambunctious show from one of Ireland’s most beloved stand-ups. Strap in for a night to remember, jam-packed with razor-sharp observations, riotous on-stage antics and conspiratorial gossipmongering.

As seen and heard on No Worries If Not! (RTÉ 2), The Tommy Tiernan Show (RTÉ 1), LOL: Last One Laughing (Prime Video) hosted by Graham Norton, The Late Late Show (RTÉ), Celebrity Gogglebox (Virgin Media One), Modern Love(Prime Video) alongside Kit Harington, The Deirdre O’Kane Show (SKY), Bridget and Eamon (RTÉ), Callan Kicks(RTÉ), Republic Of Telly (RTÉ) and Irelands Fittest Family (RTÉ), while her podcast credits include: You’re Groundedwith daughter Ella, And Another Thing! with Muireann O’ Connell and the four-part series Mischief Makers.

Emma currently co-hosts the podcast Keep It Tight alongside fellow stand-up and LOL: Last One Laughing contestant Deirdre O’Kane. Emma is also author of best-selling book, Mad, Isn’t It? (published in 2024).

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.

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.

Andrew Maxwell
Maxwell’s comedic mix of the personal and the political has long made him a hit in his native Ireland, as well as in Britain, where he is now based. He has appeared on Live At The Apollo, Have I Got News For You, Mock The Week, QI and Comedy Central’s Roast Battle. His brilliant podcast Eejits of the World co-hosted with Glen Wool is essential listening.

SHOW: 20:00 | Age 16+