Competition's 2015 final approaches

The Funny Women award has quietly dropped its controversial charge for comedians to enter.

Organiser Lynne Parker was blasted for creating an 'exploitative business model' after introducing a £15 pay-to-play fee in 2011. And the charge ‘to cover essential administration and promotional costs' continued even after securing sponsorship from Benefit cosmetics the following year.

But a publicist for the competition now says: 'We can confirm that there was no entry fee for this year's Funny Women Awards and as part of Benefit's role in sponsoring the event, the monies raised from the entry charge for last year's award were donated to the charity Refuge.'

The final of this year's award will be held in Kings Place, London, on September 23, hosted by Kerry Godliman. Finalists are Desiree Burch, Helen Monks, Jane Postlethwaite, Julie Ann Meaney, Kate Kennedy, Maggy Whitehouse, Rosana Bosanac, Sarah Keyworth, Sophie Duker and Tamar Broadbent.

The winner receives £2,000 cash and £500 of cosmetics.

The finalists

Name:Desiree Leah Burch
Hometown:  Diamond Bar, California
Comedy Inspiration:  Bill Hicks, Eddie Izzard. Carol Burnett. Living in cities, people watching and reckoning with the absurdity of being an animal in a weird cement maze.
How long have you been performing comedy?  I did my first ever stand-up set in college in 2001, but I’ve only taken it seriously for the past 4 years.

Name:  Helen Monks
Hometown:  Birmingham
Comedy Inspiration:  I want Stewart Lee and Isy Suttie to have a baby and then I want to be that baby and be the best human being in the world.
How long have you been performing comedy?  I am really new to the live comedy scene. My main job is being an actor. So my plan is to just ACT being good at stand-up.

Name:  Jane Postlethwaite
Hometown:  Cumbrian living in Brighton & Hove
Comedy Inspiration:  I was exposed to comedy from a very young age. My main comedy inspiration is Julia Davis as I love her dark sense of humour. I am also a fan of League of Gentlemen team, Julie Walters, Victoria Wood, Maria Bamford and Chris Lilley.
How long have you been performing comedy?  I have been performing my own comedy writing for just over 2 years.

Name:  Julie-Anne Meaney
Hometown:   Ennis, Country Clare, Ireland
Comedy Inspiration:  Graham Linehan, Malena Pichot and Cualca, and the consummate storyteller, my dad, Tom.
How long have you been performing comedy?  Since the tender age of 29
Quote: : Getting into the final makes me feel like I've eaten a lot of curry - my stomach feels strange but the rest of me is thrilled. Meeting women, supporting them and collaborating with them is what this competition is about so I'm really looking forward to meeting the other Funny Women, laughing a lot, and maybe gaining another writing partner!

Name:  Kate Kennedy
Hometown:  Marlow
Comedy Inspiration:  You can’t beat Stewart Lee. But I love Sharon Horgan and Julia Davis.
How long have you been performing comedy?  I’ve performed stand-up a handful of times - started around March this year

Name:  Maggy Whitehouse
Hometown:  South Zeal, Devon
Comedy Inspiration:  Dave Allen and Eddie Izzard
How long have you been performing comedy?  First did comedy three years ago but had to take nine months off for chemo when I couldn’t perform so it’s essentially two and a quarter years. First heat of Funny Women Awards was my second gig back on the circuit after being ill.
Quote: : Ecclefechan brilliant! A vicar in a comedy final? My mother will be turning in her grave…just as soon as we bury her

Name:  Rosana Bosanac
Hometown:  London (originally Copenhagen)
Comedy Inspiration:  I used to watch Stewart Lee every day, and he's probably extended my life expectancy. I'm in awe of the way he re-defines and raises the bars for what stand up could be. Liam Williams is another favourite - he makes existentialism and self-despair seem more authentic than anyone else I've seen.
How long have you been performing comedy?  It's been 8 electrifying months.

Name:  Sarah Keyworth
Hometown:  Nottingham
Comedy Inspiration:  Monty Python, Absolutely Fabulous, Diane Spencer and many more!
How long have you been performing comedy?  I have been performing comedy regularly for 18 months. 

Name:  Sophie Duker
Hometown:  London ‘til I die/ move elsewhere
Comedy Inspiration:  If I could create a hideous, hilarious Frankenstein’s monster of comics - Megan Amram, Daniel Kitson, Julia Davis, Luisa Omielan, Nick Mohammed, Chris Rock, Dylan Moran and the little lamb that lost its way (off the YouTube) would all be in there somewhere. That lamb has the most perfect comic timing I’ve ever witnessed. I hope in a few years I can be half as good as her.
How long have you been performing comedy?  Improv found me as a fresher at university in 2008 and I’ve been clamouring for the love and approval of strangers ever sine in various wacky and wonderful troupes. I started doing stand-up in February 2015.

Name:  Tamar Broadbent
Hometown:  Ashtead, Surrey
Comedy Inspiration:  A bit of South Park, a bit of Python, various life events, and my Mum and Dad.
How long have you been performing comedy?  Two years. My first ever gig was at Brighton Funny Women.

Published: 10 Sep 2015