Tickets Still Available

Tony Dunn joins Tickets Still Available to talk about the data behind stand-up comedy and what it tells us about the industry.

Tony is the creator of Comedy IQ, a platform analysing comedians' social media, touring, podcasts and more. We discuss how comedy has changed over the years, why television is struggling to introduce audiences to new comedians, and whether going viral online actually translates into selling tickets.

We also get into the rise of comedy podcasts, the success of Finn vs History, the challenges facing working-class comedians, and whether the industry is becoming harder to break into. Plus, we discuss AI, the future of comedy, and why having financial security might be the biggest advantage an aspiring comedian can have.

If you're interested in how comedians build an audience, what makes a career successful, or what the numbers reveal about the comedy industry, this one's for you.

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This week, I’m chatting with the wonderful North Belfast comedian Ciaran Franco about the highs, lows and general madness of trying to make a living in comedy.

We get into his experience of the Edinburgh Fringe, the friendships that keep comedians going, and why he thinks the Northern Irish comedy scene needs more support. Ciaran also talks about how stand-up helped him channel his anxiety into something creative, why he’s worried about AI, and what happens when comedians start getting a bit too comfortable with success.

Plus, we chat about the reality of selling tickets, the importance of giving up-and-coming comedians a chance, and his plans to take the leap into comedy full-time.

Ciaran also runs No Joke, bringing comedians together for live shows. If you’re in Dublin, check out the upcoming No Joke: November 12 Dublin Takeover and go along to support the comedy scene.

🎟️ Tickets for No Joke: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/no-joke-november-12-dublin-takeover-tickets-2003205911807

If you enjoy the episode, give No Tickets Available a follow, and remember to support live comedy by getting out to see a show. You might just discover your new favourite comedian before everyone else does.

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Andrew Ryan joins Ruairi on Tickets Still Available—and no, not the BioShock villain.

Fresh from finishing three and a half years on breakfast radio, Andrew talks about choosing comedy, life on tour, becoming a dad, his love of documentaries, and living as a Southerner in Northern Ireland. There’s also chat about podcasting, politics, true crime, jury duty, and the strange reality of sharing a name with a video-game megalomaniac.

A warm, funny conversation with one of Ireland’s best-loved comics—and an absolute gent throughout, despite a few technical gremlins.

Follow Andrew Ryan online and catch him live if he’s coming your way. Subscribe to Tickets Still Available for more conversations with comedians, creators and interesting people.

Under appreciated comics

⁠Mark McCarney⁠

⁠Josh Pugh⁠

⁠Paul McCaffrey⁠

⁠Zoe Lyons⁠

⁠Sarah Keyworth⁠

Andrew's links

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my power is waning bottom text gang.

Australian comedian Rao Morusupalli joins Tickets Still Available to chat about his journey from astrophysics into stand-up, his first Edinburgh Fringe, and the challenges of balancing comedy with a day job. We get into everything from aliens and the mysteries of the universe to medical trials, dodgy housing and the realities of trying to make a living as a comedian. Rao also talks about his upcoming shows and the never-ending process of developing new material. A conversation about comedy, science and the wonderfully strange things in between.

Rao's Links

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we meet again bottom text gang

Tickets Still Available: Edinburgh Fringe 2026

After spending the year talking to comedians about their upcoming gigs, Ruairi finally makes it to the Edinburgh Fringe.

For three days, he attempts to see as many shows as possible, track down comedians he has previously interviewed, and figure out how on earth the Edinburgh Fringe actually works.

Along the way, he discovers just how enormous the Fringe really is — from children's clown shows and Free Fringe to tiny rooms hidden inside pubs, temporary venues, packed queues, endless flyers and the seemingly impossible task of getting anywhere on time.

Ruairi also gets to meet some of the comedians who have appeared on Tickets Still Available, including Jennifer Jane, Dan Stevens, Jeremiah Dettow, Alberto Soto, Robin Perkins and Guy Barnum, while discovering a few new favourites along the way.

There are missed shows, mixed-up times, terrible internet, accidental networking, questionable seating, a lot of walking, and one particularly awkward attempt to hug a comedian while he's wearing elaborate headgear.

It's a slightly chaotic look at the Edinburgh Fringe from the perspective of someone experiencing it for the first time — and an attempt to answer the question: is the Fringe really as good as everyone says it is?

Spoiler: Ruairi absolutely loved it.

Thanks for listening to Tickets Still Available. 🎙️

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I’m joined by comedian Dan Stephens to talk about the realities of taking a solo show to the Edinburgh Fringe.

Dan talks about his first experience running his own show, the brutal competition for audiences, spending hours flyering, cancelling shows when nobody turns up, and learning how to stay resilient when things don't quite go to plan. We also get into the strange relationship between going viral online and actually getting people through the door — including the story behind Dan’s now hugely popular “Mega Pint” video.

We chat about his approach to comedy, why he prefers self-deprecating and personal storytelling over chasing topical jokes, how he’s developed his comedy over the last few years, and his thoughts on building an audience through social media.

Dan also talks about his own podcast, The Dan Stephens Show, how it has evolved over time, and why sometimes the best thing you can do with a creative project is change direction rather than let it go stagnant.

And, of course, there’s plenty of Edinburgh Fringe chat, including flyering disasters, awkward networking, custard, pigeons, viral videos, and the wonderfully bizarre world of Fringe shows.

Dan is performing One Man, One Mullet: The Dan Stephens Show at the Edinburgh Fringe — a chance to see the comedian behind the mullet live, doing the storytelling, observations and personal comedy that we discuss throughout the episode.

If you're at the Fringe, go and see Dan's show. And if you're not, this episode is a good introduction to the man behind the mullet.

One Man, One Mullet: The Dan Stephens Show – Edinburgh Fringe

Dan's Links

• Edinburgh fringe tickets One Man One Mullet: The Dan Stephens Show
• Instagram
• The Dan Stephens Show podcast

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hello bottom of the description gang

I’m joined by English comedian, writer and filmmaker Jennifer Jane, who has spent the last 16 years living and working in America.

Jennifer is Edinburgh for the first with Happy Tea, a wildly honest and surprisingly uplifting storytelling show about relationships, caregiving, recovery and the extraordinary circumstances behind the multi-award-winning documentary Charged: The Eduardo Garcia Story.

We talk about how Jennifer ended up working on a billionaire’s yacht, meeting celebrity chef Eduardo Garcia, and becoming his caregiver after a freak electrical accident left him with life-changing injuries. We also get into the fact that she discovered he had been cheating on her, somehow ended up signing off on the removal of one of his testicles, and turned a collection of 1980s Playboy magazines into a floor to help save their house from financial disaster.

We also chat about moving between America and the UK, the differences between British and American audiences, surviving the Edinburgh Fringe, tea, and why Jennifer decided that an incredibly dark chapter of her life could actually make for a very funny show.

Happy Tea is on at 7:15pm at The Mash House throughout the Fringe.

If you like extraordinary true stories, dark comedy, ridiculous anecdotes and stories that somehow manage to be both heartbreaking and hilarious, give this episode a listen — and go see Jennifer's show while you're in Edinburgh.

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Jilberto Soto is heading to Edinburgh with his show ¡Ay! Papi — an hour of stand-up about fathers, family, identity and the complicated relationship he has with his dad.

In this episode of Tickets Still Available, Jilberto talks about growing up Mexican-American, working as a farm worker as a teenager, living in London, and eventually finding his way into the New York comedy scene.

We chat about the differences between American and British comedy, why New York might be the best place in the world to become a better comedian, his podcasts I Hope This Ages Well and Together We’re Straight, and why he thinks Edinburgh can be both incredibly exciting and surprisingly lonely for performers.

Jilberto also explains how his dad not showing up to his wedding became the starting point for ¡Ay! Papi, why he built the show around photographs, and how he’s trying to balance some genuinely emotional material with the fact that, ultimately, he is there to make people laugh.

We also discuss dyslexia, TikTok, Target, Brexit, apple picking, and why Jilberto has been given some very important homework before arriving in Scotland.

¡Ay! Papi: Jilberto Soto runs at the Edinburgh Fringe from 20 August.

Tickets Still Available is a podcast about comedians, their shows and the stories behind the people performing at the Edinburgh Fringe.

Jilberto Soto's Links

¡Ay! Papi

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On this episode of Tickets Still Available, I'm joined by multilingual comedian Erica Jean, whose Edinburgh Fringe show Mistranslated celebrates the funny side of language learning and cultural misunderstandings.

We chat about learning languages from around the world, why Indonesian might be the perfect global language, travelling for an international career, accidentally taking the slow bus across Myanmar, the joys of making mistakes in another language, and why speaking even a few words of someone's language can create an instant connection.

Erica also shares what audiences can expect from Mistranslated at the Edinburgh Fringe—a fast-paced, interactive show full of linguistic mishaps, audience participation and stories from her life learning languages across the globe.

If you're fascinated by languages, travel, stand-up comedy or just enjoy hearing incredible stories from someone who's lived all over the world, this is an episode you won't want to miss.

If you're heading to the Edinburgh Fringe, be sure to check out Mistranslated and experience a comedy show where getting lost in translation is all part of the fun.

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In this episode of Tickets Still Available, I’m joined by comedians Robyn Perkins and Elaine Fellows, the duo behind Curious Creatures Comedy, to chat about their Edinburgh Fringe shows Battle of the Reefs and Quest for the Coolest F*cking Animal (A Kids Show for Adults).

We talk about how a family-friendly science comedy show evolved into an adults-only version, the weird and wonderful world of the animal kingdom, writing interactive comedy, audience participation, comedy competitions, and what it's really like performing multiple shows a day at the Edinburgh Fringe.

Robyn also shares stories from her career as a former marine biologist, explains why science and comedy make the perfect combination, and discusses her live psychology show Shrinkwrapped. Along the way we cover Australian vs Edinburgh Fringe festivals, true crime, conspiracy theories, Zoom comedy during lockdown, and plenty of bizarre animal facts.

If you're looking for Edinburgh Fringe recommendations or want to discover two of the festival's most inventive comedy performers, this is the episode for you.

🎟️ Battle of the Reefs – an interactive comedy adventure for families.

🎟️ Quest for the Coolest F*cking Animal (A Kids Show for Adults) – the grown-up, gloriously silly spin-off packed with outrageous animal facts, songs and games.

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