Welcome to the Etties 2025: the awards that care about the shows everyone else misses. We’ve worked with our reviewers to curate a list of gems that prove size isn’t everything. This isn’t a popularity contest; it’s a celebration of the art.
Our Best Comedy award is the ultimate tribute to London’s grassroots scene. To keep it exclusive, we’ve applied our strictest criteria: only venues with a 100-seat capacity or fewer are eligible. While the “big players” get their flowers elsewhere, we’re dedicated to the tiny rooms making the loudest noise. This is fringe at its most authentic.
You can read more about The Etties here. Details of how the winners are to be announced will be shared soon.
Our nominations for Best Comedy are:
The Screen Test @ Seven Dials Playhouse
To kick off our nominations for Best Comedy, we’re heading to 1930s Hollywood by way of the Seven Dials Playhouse. Our first nominee is the riotously sharp The Screen Test. Written and performed by the magnetic Bebe Cave, this one-woman powerhouse perfectly balances biting satire with absurd hilarity. From botched accents to Cary Grant-worship and a ‘throw-everything-at-the-wall’ approach that sticks every single time, it is a masterclass in comic timing and a quintessential example of the bold, high-energy work that makes the fringe so vital. This is grassroots comedy at its absolute finest.
Trestle @ Jack Studio Theatre
For our second nomination, we turn to a show that proves comedy doesn’t always need a punchline to be profoundly funny, it just needs a human heart and a very stubborn piece of furniture.
Our second nominee for Best Comedy is the beautifully bittersweet Trestle at the Jack Studio Theatre. Set in a Yorkshire village hall, this revival of Stewart Pringle’s award-winning play is a masterclass in the “comedy of the everyday.” Centered on the shifting relationship between the buttoned-up Harry and the vibrant, Zumba-leading Denise, the show finds its humor in the awkward, the understated, and the quintessentially British. With standout performances from Timothy Harker and Jilly Bond, Trestle manages to be both riotously relatable and deeply moving, reminding us that some of the best comic timing happens in the quiet moments between folding up chairs and putting the world to rights.
Big Shoes @ The Hope Theatre
For our third nomination, we celebrate a debut that is as heartbreaking as it is hilarious.
Our next nominee for Best Comedy is the wonderfully raw and inventive Big Shoes at The Hope Theatre. Written by Rowan Williams and performed alongside Luke Sumner, this show is a masterclass in the “laugh-until-you-cry” genre. Centered on two brothers, both aspiring comedians, navigating the messy aftermath of their father’s death, it brilliantly weaves together traditional dialogue with live stand-up and a truly unique “palette cleanser” that invites the audience into their chaotic world. By turns absurd, vulnerable, and bitingly funny, Big Shoes captures the grit of the comedy circuit and the complexity of sibling bonds, proving that even in the wake of grief, the show must, and will, go on.
Needy @ Golden Goose Theatre
Our fourth nominee takes us into a world of obsession and absurdity that perfectly captures the “anything goes” spirit of the fringe.
We are thrilled to nominate Needy at the Golden Goose Theatre. A “fizzing” debut from James Malam and the Disaster Class company, this play is a delightfully wacky masterclass in dark, surrealist humor. Starting with a bizarre request for five cucumbers at a service station and spiralling into a tale of obsessive connection, Needy finds the hilarity in the uncomfortable. It is a bold, high-energy production that balances “wackiness and truth” with effortless comic timing, proving that the most unexpected premise, and the smallest venues, often yield the most unforgettable theatrical gems.
Fool’s Gold @ Old Red Lion Theatre
Our fifth nomination takes us to the legendary upstairs room of the Old Red Lion Theatre for a pitch-black comedy that finds hilarity in the most macabre of places.
We are thrilled to nominate Fool’s Gold. Written by Malcolm Webb (who also delivers a standout, “preposterous” comedic performance), this show turns a disastrous grave-robbing expedition into a masterclass of escalating absurdity. From 90s nostalgia and Take That references to chaotic chase sequences set to the Benny Hill theme, Fool’s Gold balances grotesque dark depths with pure, ridiculous joy. It is a deft, high-energy production that keeps the audience laughing even as the dirt, and the stakes, begin to pile up. A true testament to the bold, twisted, and unapologetically funny work that thrives in London’s smallest spaces.
Doughnut Drive @ Drayton Arms Theatre
Our final nomination brings us to the intimate Drayton Arms Theatre for a production that is as sweet as its title suggests, but with a wonderfully sharp comedic bite.
We are delighted to nominate Doughnut Drive. A triumphant ‘holy trinity’ for Finella Waddilove, who wrote, directed, and stars in the piece, this fast-paced buddy comedy-thriller is a masterclass in making the most of a small stage. Following the chaotic journey of Bex and Yaz after a late-night drive goes spectacularly wrong, the show delivers a consistent stream of laughter through its witty dialogue and impeccably choreographed physical comedy. With standout performances from Waddilove and Sarah Parkins that find the perfect balance between ‘stupendously stupid’ humor and genuine heart, Doughnut Drive is a joyous celebration of friendship and the high-energy storytelling that defines the very best of the London fringe.
