Melbourne International Comedy Festival Announces 2026 Award Nominees for Outstanding Show and Newcomer
The 2026 Melbourne International Comedy Festival has revealed nominees for its prestigious awards, marking the event's 40th anniversary. Ten comedians are competing for the Most Outstanding Show Award, while seven are shortlisted for Best Newcomer. Nominees include Abby Wambaugh, Cassie Workman, Celia Pacquola, Dan Tiernan, Emmanuel Sonubi, Frankie McNair, Kitty Flanagan, Lara Ricote, Reuben Kaye, and Sam Nicoresti. Among newcomers, Caitlin Duff, Barney Pollock, Dana Mitchell, Elliot Wood, Jo Gowda, Nathan Chin, and Tarsh Jago received nominations. Several additional honors will be presented on Saturday 18 April, including the Piece of Wood Award, Director's Choice Award, Funny Tonne award, and the Golden Gibbo Award. The festival continues until Sunday 19 April.
Key facts
- Ten comedians nominated for Most Outstanding Show Award
- Seven comedians nominated for Best Newcomer Award
- Melbourne International Comedy Festival celebrating 40th year
- Awards ceremony scheduled for Saturday 18 April
- Festival runs until Sunday 19 April
- Golden Gibbo Award nominees announced Monday 13 April
- New VicScreen Greenlight Award created for 2026
- Frankie McNair won Best Newcomer Award in 2022
Entities
Artists
- Abby Wambaugh
- Cassie Workman
- Celia Pacquola
- Dan Tiernan
- Emmanuel Sonubi
- Frankie McNair
- Kitty Flanagan
- Lara Ricote
- Reuben Kaye
- Sam Nicoresti
- Caitlin Duff
- Barney Pollock
- Dana Mitchell
- Elliot Wood
- Jo Gowda
- Nathan Chin
- Tarsh Jago
- Andy Balloch
- Kate Denhart
- Katrina Mathers
- Laura Davis
- Sunny Youngsmith
- Susan Provan
- Lynda Gibson
- Richard Watts
- Alex Ward
- Gillian Cosgriff
- Hannah Camilleri
- Mel McGlensey
- Olga Koch
- Dan Rath
- Grace Jarvis
- Kate Dehnert
- Kate Dolan
- Sanaz Toossi
- Sting
Institutions
- Melbourne International Comedy Festival
- ArtsHub
- ScreenHub
- Melbourne Town Hall
- Edinburgh Festival Fringe
- VicScreen
- Melbourne Queer Film Festival
- Melbourne Fringe Festival
- Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards
- Green Room Awards Association
- Seymour Centre
- Three Triple R FM
Locations
- Melbourne
- Australia
- USA
- Denmark
- UK
- Mexico
- New Zealand
- India
- Tasmania
- Sydney
- Brisbane