Here in Brighton, we celebrate Pride in a huge way every August with the main celebrations. Sometimes, interesting gems that celebrate Pride throughout the year pop up and remind us that love is universal. Funny Women: Pre-Pride Special was one of those events. Funny Women as a group supports and celebrates those who identify as female through comedy and creative outlets, whether in business, performing arts, or life in general, so it felt very apt that a night dedicated to inclusivity and joy was on the creative circuit.
As with any comedy night, anything can happen depending on who is in the audience at the time, so of course you need a vibrant and strong compere. We got this in spades with Ali Jay, who led the whole event in a way that brought a warm and engaging approach to the proceedings, whilst playfully bantering with the audience in between her set material. A special congratulations has to go to Jay here for handling a sensitive audience member well who had a bad day at the time of review. As it turned out, that person was at the wrong event, but even if he had stayed, Jay had the perfect balance of mindful sensitivity and a subtle, cutting sense of Northern humour to enable further inclusion into the material on offer to her.
She led a strong team of women who delivered a wide variety of comedy styles that lifted everyone’s spirits and celebrated individual paths of sexuality. Kicking everything off was Fran Longstaff, who brought a sense of honest observations to the table. Longstaff was inspired by material that was close to home, such as becoming a mother for the first time and having a wife who was the complete opposite to her. Having this kind of material on offer was a refreshing approach to observational comedy, due to her open and friendly approach that set a strong, positive tone for the evening ahead, as well as introducing us to comedic puns that seemed to come out of nowhere.
Following her was Jodi Wheeler. A newcomer to the comedy circuit, who has been making a stir in a good way. Wheeler’s approach was a lively set dedicated to being authentic in a way that highlighted race and family generations in a way that influenced her as a person, as well as her becoming bisexual. There were times when some of her quips reminded me of Lenny Henry’s style of comedy, due to the sharpness of the observations made and I hope that we see more of Wheeler on the circuit.
Character comedy followed suit with Barbara Brownskirt, the alter ego of Karen Mcloud. Character-based comedy is always an interesting one to try on a comedy sketch night, as the risk can be that if you don’t know the comic behind the character, the assumption is that they really are that person. Whilst it was already set up through the way Jay introduced Brownskirt, some of the audience reactions observed seemed to feel this was a real person they were watching. Even if just a simple line were to be added from either compere or comic as a throwaway, either at the end or beginning to reassure that it is a character, with the real name included, it might help with those who are unsure what they are watching. Aside from that little tweak, Brownskirt was feisty, loved Dame Judy Dench in a way that blurred the lines between fantasy and reality and brought a angry approach to her comedy that heightened a fantastic portrayal of a control freak against the machine of the world and had us all on the edge of our seats as to what she was going to say next.
Finally, we had our main headliner Leigh Douglas, who finished the show with a style that used the art of subverting what we normally view as compliments and what we expect from a partner, fused with her Irish roots in history as well as now. The way in which Douglas used subversion to deflect what we would usually view as positive was handled with sarcastic wit and charm that made us feel part of her world. It was so inclusive that it was interesting to see self-depreciation being taken to a new, vulnerable level that defied the masks being presented. A strong way to finish an extremely entertaining evening.
Funny Women: Pre Pride Special had the right ingredients for an inclusive and entertaining evening that provided a safe space for those who needed to express themselves freely, whether on stage or in the audience. Make sure you check them out every month as the line-up is different each time, but one thing is certain. You are guaranteed full-blown fun, entertainment and lots of sparkling energy.
Reviewed by Sascha Cooper
Our longest-standing and most successful comedy night, Funny Women Live in Brighton, takes place at Komedia Brighton, showcasing the very best in new female-identifying and non-binary comedy talent. Featuring acts from the Funny Women Awards, the professional circuit and nurturing new and upcoming talent.
Funny Women returns with a brand new line-up on Saturday, 25th July!
Meet your MC for the evening…
Ali Jay is a comedian, producer, and laughter yoga teacher, specialising in LGBTQ+ and under-represented comedy. She is the regional producer of Funny Women in Brighton and runs affordable stand-up comedy courses for LGBTQIA+ women and non-binary individuals.
Headlined by…
Leigh Douglas is a queer Irish comedian. Her sitcom pilot script, Queer Jig, won the Female Writer’s Initiative with UKTV and Female Pilot Club. Her short film, You’re Alright Hun, has won numerous awards including Best Comedy at London Rocks Film Festival and Outstanding Comedy at Short & Sweet Film Festival. Leigh also enjoyed a 5-star sold-out run at the Edinburgh Fringe 2025 with her solo show, ROTUS.
Also featuring in the line-up:
Barbara Brownskirt
Poet-in-Residence at the 197 bus stop on Croydon Road in Penge, punk poet, and Judi Dench groupie, Barbara Brownskirt is anorak-wearing and unlucky-in-love.
Fran Longstaff
A northern gay mum living in Brighton, Fran Longstaff spends most of her time bemused by her daughter and the choice of party nibbles served in Brighton.
Jodi Wheeler: a new talent making big waves on the comedy circuit.
Funny Women was created in 2002 by Lynne Parker and now has a programme of community events in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Paris, Basel, Brussels, Dublin, Montreal and London. The organisation is at the vanguard of nurturing and promoting female comedy talent, from finding and mentoring new acts through to the annual Funny Women Awards. Come and find out for yourself!