The Funny Women Awards created in 2003, have become the leading platform for talented female performers, writers, creators and short film makers.
Last month Izzy Askwith was announced as the winner of the prestigious and most visible Stage Award in the final of the 2020 Funny Women Awards hosted by 2014 winner, Jayde Adams. Izzy Askwith competed with seven other acts live on stage at the world-famous Comedy Store London to take the title. Eryn Tett and Mary O’Connell were awarded second and third place respectively.
Previous winners include Katherine Ryan, Zoe Lyons, Jayde Adams, Desiree Burch, Sara Pascoe, Sarah Millican, Susan Calman, Rachel Parris, Bridget Christie, Kerry Godliman, Diane Morgan and Roisin Conaty.
Although the Stage Award winner was announced in September the award ceremony for the other prestigious categories took place in London’s Groucho Club on Wednesday and, such are the times in which we live, it was streamed live. Hosted by 2019 Funny Women Awards winner Laura Smyth with celebrities from the comedy industry announcing the winners via Zoom.
Vicki Pepperdine announced the winner of the 2020 Funny Women Comedy Writing Award, Kate Elmer with her script Mulch Wanted.
BBC Comedy Commissioner, Sarah Asante, announced the winner of Comedy Web Series, which received over 3500 submissions, this year’s winner, Sophie McCartney AKA Tired and Tested with her series Planet Birth. The 2019 winner Laura Seixas’s Dreaming Whilst Black has now been commissioned for a pilot by the BBC.
Andi Osho, 2010 Funny Women Awards winner, actor and author, announced Nikola McMurtrie and her film Karaoke: Behind the Lyrics as the winner of this year’s Comedy Shorts.
A brand new award Best Comedy Writer with Comedy 50:50 Industry Award to recognise the female writers of unscripted comedy. Comedy 50:50 was founded in 2019 by Saskia Schuster to achieve 50:50 gender equality in TV. Emma Barnard and Rachel Parris announced Christine Rose as the first winner of this new Awards category.
Izzy Askwith performed her winning set before being joined by Funny Women Matron Jo Brand who congratulated all those who “took a leap of faith” and entered the competition categories and encouraging the finalists and winners to “stick at it” ending the socially distanced night on the perfect note.