josh widdicombe | We Are Cardiff

Every year (at least for the past seven years), the sleepy, teeny-tiny town of Machynlleth gets taken over on the May Day bank holiday with Mach Comedy Festival. It’s a weekend of comedy, theatre, music and performance (mostly comedy) in the heart of Wales, and a really lovely weekend getaway.

Here’s the festie’s own blurb about themselves:

“When we first talked about starting Machynlleth Comedy Festival above of all we wanted to create somewhere where people came to have fun, and get away from it all, whether this be the attendees, the comedians or the festival team. It was all about taking a different approach with an aim of creating a spirit of experimentation and intimacy. We’re passionate about the thrill of seeing live comedy in intimate places, and the glorious, picturesque and enchanting town of Machynlleth gave us a wealth of interesting and unique performance spaces in which to do this.”

There was a BBC Radio 4 programme about Mach, with Henry and Josh Widdicombe, broadcast a couple of weeks ago. You can hear that here: Radio 4 at the Machynlleth Comedy Festival with Elis James

This year, we went along and caught some brilliant stuff from: Goose, Bridget Christie, Richard Gadd, Joe Lycett, George Orange, Stuart Goldsmith, Spencer Jones, Aisling Bea, Mike Bubbins, Mary Bijou Cabaret, Sparkles Hoop Troop, and on and on and on.

Best parts of the weekend? Nick Helm doing an impression of Josh Widdicombe (who couldn’t make the festival because he was recording a sitcom in London). Also Ed Gamble comparing the showcase that wouldn’t end.

No spoilers – go see their Edinburgh shows! But in the meantime, here’s our photo essay from this year: