Scotland is one of comedy's great homes. Every August the Edinburgh Festival Fringe fills the capital's stages — in 2027 for its 80th edition — and the Edinburgh Comedy Awards have been given there since 1981. Glasgow has run its International Comedy Festival for two decades, Aberdeen's comedy festival ran over three autumn weekends in 2026, and the comedy rooms below keep the stages lit the rest of the year, from Edinburgh's Old Town and Glasgow's West End to Aberdeen, Dundee and Inverness.
The short answer
D.O.C. lists 8 comedy rooms and nights in Scotland, in 5 cities — Edinburgh (3), Glasgow (2), Aberdeen, Dundee and Inverness — each with a dated show on its own listings when read on 4 October 2026. The festivals ahead: Glasgow International Comedy Festival, Wednesday 10 March to Sunday 28 March 2027 and Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Friday 6 August to Monday 30 August 2027. Below: each room's nights, its open mic and how comics get on, tickets and the age rule; the comedy on the road; the festivals and awards; and the 5 comedians SUCDb holds who came up in Scotland.
This page is D.O.C.'s first beyond the United States: the rooms, the nights, the festivals and the awards, each from its own website, with the comedians SUCDb holds who came up in Scotland.
Stand-up comedy in Edinburgh
The three rooms below run the year round, and in August The Stand and Monkey Barrel host Fringe shows too.
ShowsSeven nights a week across The Stand's three clubs: mixed bills such as The Sunday Night Laugh-In and The Friday Show, touring headliners, improv, and Red Raw for new acts on Mondays. source ↗
ListedThe Friday Show — Friday 9 October 2026, 8pm, on its own listings when read on 4 October 2026 source ↗
Open micRed Raw, every Monday: up to ten new acts a night, by application. source ↗
Getting bookedNew acts apply for Red Raw, which usually offers two five-minute slots and feedback on request. The latest application window closed on 28 June 2026; its page says to check back for the next one. source ↗
TicketsUnreserved seating and standing room; weekend and special shows often sell out, and most weeknight shows sell on the door. source ↗
AgeMost evening shows are 18 and over, with a Challenge 25 ID policy; daytime and festival shows vary. source ↗
AlsoA free improv comedy show every Sunday afternoon. source ↗
ShowsThe Comedy Show, every Friday at 8.30pm: a mixed bill hosted by a resident compère, in the Gilded Balloon's year-round pub and venue just off Bristo Square. source ↗
ListedThe Comedy Show — Friday 9 October 2026, 8.30pm, on its own listings when read on 4 October 2026 source ↗
Open micNot advertised on its site
Getting bookedIts site publishes no submission route; ask the club in person.
ShowsSeven nights a week across The Stand's clubs: touring comedians, weekend mixed bills, improv and Red Raw, in the old Lansdowne Church building on Great Western Road. source ↗
ListedThe Thursday Show — Thursday 8 October 2026, 8pm, on its own listings when read on 4 October 2026 source ↗
Open micRed Raw, every Tuesday: up to ten new acts a night, by application. source ↗
Getting bookedNew acts apply for Red Raw; the latest application window closed on 28 June 2026, and its page says to check back for the next one. source ↗
TicketsUnreserved seating and standing room; the Glasgow club opens at each show's door time and has no daytime box office. source ↗
AgeMost evening shows are 18 and over, with a Challenge 25 ID policy. source ↗
ShowsWeekend Comedy every Friday and Saturday night: four stand-up comedians from the national and international circuit; touring shows on other nights. source ↗
ListedFriday Night Comedy — Friday 9 October 2026, on its own listings when read on 4 October 2026 source ↗
Open micNot advertised on its site
Getting bookedIts site publishes no submission route; ask the club in person.
TicketsFriday Night Comedy from £10 (early bird) to £16.50 in advance; Saturday from £15 to £22; seats allocated. source ↗
AgeWeekend Comedy is 18 and over; each show lists its own age rule, with a Challenge 25 ID policy. source ↗
ShowsFriday and Saturday shows on its October 2026 listings, with a resident compère; Breakneck also takes its shows to towns across Scotland. source ↗
ListedRyan Cullen, with Pearse O'Halloran and Scott Forbes — Friday 9 October 2026, 7.30pm, on its own listings when read on 4 October 2026 source ↗
Open micNot advertised on its site
Getting bookedIts site publishes no submission route; ask the club in person.
TicketsFrom £15, booking fee included, on its October 2026 listings. source ↗
Gilded Balloon's touring night: TV names and up-and-coming comedians on one bill, in theatres and town halls across Scotland. source ↗
Thursday 15 October 2026 — Eastwood Park, Giffnock
Friday 16 October 2026 — Corn Exchange, Haddington
Saturday 17 October 2026 — Dundee Rep, Dundee
Sunday 18 October 2026 — Tron Theatre, Glasgow
Wednesday 4 November 2026 — Tivoli, Aberdeen
Thursday 5 November 2026 — Theatre Royal, Dumfries
Friday 6 November 2026 — Town Hall, Portobello
Saturday 7 November 2026 — Webster Memorial Theatre, Arbroath
These nights have gone by; its own site has what is next.
October 2026: Jack Skipper, Gareth Mutch, Alison Spittle, Tamsyn Kelly and Raymond Mearns. November 2026: Chloe Petts, Ayo Adenekan, Ian Smith, Samira Banks and Jay Lafferty.
Beyond its Aberdeen club, Breakneck Comedy takes shows to towns across Scotland; its October 2026 listings include Rutherglen and Kilmarnock on 8 October and Thurso and Dunfermline on 9 October. source ↗
Two decades of comedy in Glasgow: established names alongside Scottish talent and new comedians from around the world, in stand-up, improv, sketch and alternative comedy. The 2027 festival is launched on Thursday 7 January 2027. source ↗
Given at the Edinburgh Fringe since 1981. The 2026 winners: Best Comedy Show, Chris Cantrill for Rewilding; Best Newcomer, Marty Gleeson for Dog Ear; the Panel Prize, One Joke — sixty comedians telling one joke each, for charity. source ↗
A Fringe award launched in 2026 by The Stand with The List and The Comedy Unit, for the most outstanding show by a Scottish or Scotland-based act: £2,500, a Fringe run or tour in The Stand's clubs, and development mentoring. It is named for Paul Sneddon, known on stage as Vladimir McTavish, who championed Scottish talent over a forty-year career. source ↗
The Glasgow International Comedy Festival's only official award, launched in 2023 with Sir Billy Connolly, for someone at the festival who embodies the spirit of Glasgow. Past winners: Janey Godley (2023), Susie McCabe (2024) and Rosco McClelland (2025). source ↗
For comics: getting on stage in Scotland
The routes to the stage the rooms and festivals publish themselves.
The Stand's weekly showcase for new acts — Mondays in Edinburgh, Tuesdays in Glasgow — by application. The latest window closed on 28 June 2026; the page says when the next one opens. source ↗
Shows for the 2027 festival register from Wednesday 16 September to Friday 20 November 2026 to be in the printed brochure; web-only registration runs from Wednesday 9 December 2026 to Friday 8 January 2027. source ↗
Gilded Balloon's competition for new comedians; Fern Brady reached its final in 2011. source ↗
Each room's line above says whether it runs an open mic and how it books. At home in the United States,
Stage Time has open mics by night and the Gig Board has calls for comics.
Scotland comedians in SUCDb
The comedians SUCDb holds who came up in Scotland, each with their record — and their next date when the Comedy Calendar has one.
From Glasgow: a shipyard welder and folk singer with the Humblebums before stand-up, known for albums such as Solo Concert (1974) and films including Mrs Brown and Brave; knighted in 2017. Glasgow's comedy festival gives an award in his name.
From Glasgow: host of The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson on CBS from 2005 to 2014, with stand-up specials from A Wee Bit o' Revolution (2009) to I'm So Happy (2024).
Next on the Comedy Calendar: Friday 9 October 2026 · Helium Comedy Club, Alpharetta, GA
From Bathgate, West Lothian: on stage since 2010, a So You Think You're Funny? finalist in 2011 and a Taskmaster contestant in 2022; her memoir Strong Female Character won the non-fiction prize at the first Nero Book Awards.
Next on the Comedy Calendar: Sunday 4 October 2026 · Peckham Playground, London, United Kingdom
Winner of the Edinburgh Comedy Award for Best Comedy Show in 2016, for Monkey See Monkey Do; his stage show Baby Reindeer became the Emmy-winning Netflix series, and Half Man followed on the BBC and HBO in 2026.
No date on the Comedy Calendar just now · their record →
Questions about stand-up comedy in Scotland
Where can I see stand-up comedy in Scotland?
In Edinburgh, The Stand Edinburgh, Monkey Barrel Comedy and The Gilded Saloon; in Glasgow, The Stand Glasgow and The Glee Club Glasgow; in Aberdeen, Breakneck Comedy Club; in Dundee, Comedy Dundee at Number 57; in Inverness, Eden Court. Each had a dated show on its own listings when read on 4 October 2026; its line above has the address, the nights and the age rule.
When is the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2027?
Friday 6 August to Monday 30 August 2027, per the Fringe's own site. It is the Fringe’s 80th edition.
When is the Glasgow International Comedy Festival 2027?
Wednesday 10 March to Sunday 28 March 2027, per the festival's own site. Acts register from Wednesday 16 September to Friday 20 November 2026 for the printed brochure, and online only from Wednesday 9 December 2026 to Friday 8 January 2027.
Who won the 2026 Edinburgh Comedy Awards?
Chris Cantrill won Best Comedy Show for Rewilding, and Marty Gleeson won Best Newcomer for Dog Ear; the Panel Prize went to One Joke, per the awards’ own announcement.
Are comedy clubs in Scotland 18 and over?
6 of the 8 rooms listed here say 18 and over for their evening comedy, but the rule is each room's own: The Stand Edinburgh: most evening shows are 18 and over, with a Challenge 25 ID policy; daytime and festival shows vary; Monkey Barrel Comedy: recommended for 16 and over; guests aged 16 and 17 must be with an adult and may stay until 11pm; The Gilded Saloon: 18 and over; The Stand Glasgow: most evening shows are 18 and over, with a Challenge 25 ID policy; The Glee Club Glasgow: weekend Comedy is 18 and over; each show lists its own age rule, with a Challenge 25 ID policy; Breakneck Comedy Club: 18 and over; Comedy Dundee at Number 57: 18 and over; ID may be asked for; Eden Court: set show by show: Rich Hall's is strictly 14 and over.
How do new comedians get on stage in Scotland?
Red Raw at The Stand — The Stand's weekly showcase for new acts — Mondays in Edinburgh, Tuesdays in Glasgow — by application. The latest window closed on 28 June 2026; the page says when the next one opens. Glasgow International Comedy Festival: act registration — Shows for the 2027 festival register from Wednesday 16 September to Friday 20 November 2026 to be in the printed brochure; web-only registration runs from Wednesday 9 December 2026 to Friday 8 January 2027. So You Think You're Funny? — Gilded Balloon's competition for new comedians; Fern Brady reached its final in 2011.
Which Scotland comedians are in SUCDb?
Billy Connolly, Craig Ferguson, Daniel Sloss, Fern Brady and Richard Gadd — each with a record of their career and its sources.
Sources
Each fact on this page is from the room's, festival's or award's own website, read on 4 October 2026; the
comedians' lines are from their SUCDb records, which carry their own sources. 16 sites, 38 pages:
