If you spent the first half of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival planning to see a bunch of shows and then not actually booking in any, don’t stress. There’s still time to crawl out while it's not too cold and catch some truly excellent comedy before the lights go down on 2026’s funniest month.
I asked a handful of very funny people for their recommendations. From clowning to multimedia mayhem, here is your definitive guide for the last nine days of the 2026 Melbourne International Comedy Festival.
Jenna Suffern’s picks:
Jenna Suffern is a comedian, producer, and Real Housewives enthusiast whose crowd work and gloriously self-aware humour made them a festival essential. When asked who they're loving at the moment, they told me:
- Frankie McNair — Frankie's show bio reads: "A chaotic love letter to resilience, delusional optimism and trying to become the ass you want to see in the world", and I've never wanted to watch something more.
- Kate Dehnert — If your life also blew up recently, this is the show for you!
- Lauren Bonner — Sydney comic whose brutally funny observations always land close to home.
- David Correos — This Kiwi powerhouse says he's "leaning into all the fun stuff that makes a room feel alive", and you kow what? Hell yeah!
- Dana Mitchell — Stand-up, satire, sketch and wigs from a playwright, poet and comedian. What more could you ask for??
Unfortunately, you have missed Jenna's run in the festival with their show Lobster In A Glass, but lucky for you they are continuing their run in Sydney and Brisbane. Find more deets HERE.
Mates Rates Comedy’s picks:
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If you’ve spent any amount of time scrolling TikTok, chances are you’ve already met Kristo, Sammy and Tom — three besties better known as Mates Rates, the trio behind some of Australia’s funniest sketch videos and podcast. Here are their reccs:
- George Zacharopoulos — “Stand out from Adelaide Fringe a classic Mates Rates pick,” said the boys.
- Dane Simpson — “He’s got a mural in Wagga Wagga, need we say anymore.” Regional legend, full of charm and chaotic dad energy.
- Elliot Ulm — “A combination of jokes and graphic design that had the Creative Cloud cowering in the corner.” For everyone who says graphic design is your passion, this is your chance to prove it.
- Adults Only Magic Show — “The similarity between this show and our lives is uncanny.” Comedy meets illusion meets late-night bad decisions.
- Jess Fuchs — “Jess is hilarious and is gonna tear down the haus (house).”
Mates Rates themselves are taking their energy off-screen and onto the stage with their debut show at the festival, The Mates Rates Golden Age Begins. Don't miss it!
Louis Hanson’s picks
You already know Louis Hanson: writer, presenter, podcaster and certified sad-gay-comedy prince known for turning life’s overshares into surprisingly beautiful stand-up.
When we chatted about the best of the festival, Louis' recommendations included:
- Lizzy Hoo — “Amazing, amazing, amazing.”
- Lou Wall — “Incredible multimedia comedy, kind of in a similar vein to the way that I'm using multimedia in my shows as well. They have a lot of visual elements and a song and a dance which is always amazing. But yes, Lou Wall is incredible."
- Rove McManus — “I have heard incredible things about the show, so I'm so excited to see Rove McManus relive his glory days on Rove Live, can’t f*cking wait.”
- Sez — “Wondrous icon that is Sez. I can’t wait to see Sez’s show as well.”
And don’t miss Good Boy, his own festival show: “Good Boy could be seen as a double entendre, there are many meanings to a Good Boy,” Louis told me. “Am I a Good Boy? I don’t know. You’ll have to wait and find out yourself.”
Ryan Hamilton's picks:
Look, I know I said I was asking funny people for their recommendations. But, although Ryan Hamilton is in fact not a comedian themself, they are a reviewer currently deep in the trenches of trying to see 55 shows across the festival (and writing a daily newsletter about it), so I'd thought I's ask him for his top picks we can still watch:
- Elf Lyons — “British clown, Gaulier trained (one of the worlds most famous clown schools, it’s a big deal), a stupidly hilarious reenactment of Swan Lake which skewers the patriarchal expectations placed on women artists.”
- Tarsh Jago — “A solo debut from Palawa comedian Tarsh Jago explores the intersections of queerness and race in a cheeky hour through the mess of identity.”
- Alex Hines and Sarah Stafford — “A runaway success from Melbourne Fringe, this grotesque farce of a two-hander follows a couple of rich divas watching the world burn. A sun-baked Trude and Prue for the end of the world!! Unmissable!”
Ryan’s taste leans into chaotic feminist clowns, post-apocalyptic satire and identity-driven storytelling. Basically: the shows you brag about seeing before everyone else does.
My own festival picks: (since Mum swears I’m funny too)
Okay fine, I’m not a comedian (though I’ve dabbled — attention is a hell of a drug). But the shows I’ve seen and adored so far (and want to see) deserve a shout:
- Sharul Channa — A Singaporean powerhouse who made my mum laugh so much she thought she was going to pee. You can catch her solo show or as part of the Brown Women Comedy lineup.
- Comedy Roulette — If you, like me, choose to laugh instead of cry about being broke, this is the ultimate bang-for-buck gig with multiple comedians committing to the bit each show.
- Deadly Funny National Grand Final — Australia’s best First Nations comics all in one showcase.
- RAW Comedy National Grand Final — The future of Aussie comedy, live and possibly sweating under stage lights.
Whether you’re into feminist clowning, musical self-deprication, or the sheer joy of watching strangers publicly overshare for laughs there’s still time to do so at the festival before you crawl back to your regular programming of watching the world burn.
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