Comedy line-up revealed for Leeds Festival's Alternative Stage

Top names in comedy are the latest to be added to the line-up for this year's Leeds Festival taking place at Bramham Park over the August Bank Holiday.
Bill Bailey, appearing at the Leeds Festival.Bill Bailey, appearing at the Leeds Festival.
Bill Bailey, appearing at the Leeds Festival.

Bill Bailey, Simon Amstell and Katherine Ryan are the headline acts set to bring the laughs to the Alternative Stage at the three-day festival alongside a host of established stand-ups, comedy acts and up and comers.

Having found fame as the host of Popworld and Never Mind The Buzzcocks, Simon Amstell has continued his storied career writing and starring in the critically acclaimed television series, Grandma’s House, and writing and directing his feature film Carnage, which premiered on BBC iPlayer in March.

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He is making a return to stand-up with a tour this autumn and his set at the Leeds Festival will no doubt be as thought provoking as it will be funny.

Following his festival stealing performance last year, multi-award winning stand-up Bill Bailey will be returning to The Alternative Stage.

With musical virtuosity, surreal tangents, and trademark intelligence, Bill tackles politics, philosophy and the pursuit of happiness. At Leeds this August, hear Irish reels, hardcore metal, Tom Waits’ style re-workings of nursery rhymes and Beethoven’s’ Für Elise as you’ve never heard it before, plus a timely reworking of the Stars and Stripes in a more apocalyptic style.

Katherine Ryan will set out to entertain the festival audiences with her pop culture critique. Originally from Canada and star of BBC’s Live at the Apollo, QI, ITV’s The Jonathan Ross Show and Channel 4’s 8 Out of 10 Cats, Katherine is a writer/performer and stand-up who is seemingly never off British television these days.

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Joining them over the weekend are Tape Face with his unique prop-led performance, viral political sensation Jonathan Pie, Iain Stirling, who will arrive fresh from a third series narrating TV ratings hit Love Island, and the spectacular sight of the one and only Piff The Magic Dragon.

Further Alternative Stage appearances will come from long-standing panel show favourite Josie Long and Irish hip-hop jokers The Rubberbandits - along with performances from the likes of Joe Lycett, Tiff Stevenson, Daniel Sloss, Ivo Graham, Suzi Ruffell, Elliot Steel, Sean Mcloughlin, Kiri Pritchard-Mclean, Lloyd Griffith, Fin Taylor and Lauren Pattison.

MCs for the weekend are Pierre Novellie, Mark Olver and James Gill.

Renowned indie club night Propaganda will provide a late night euphoric disco soundtrack on the Alternative Stage with special guest appearances lined up from breakthrough Main Stage blazers Blossoms, who will be delving into their record collection for a DJ set not to be missed.

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The unique WiFi Wars will be heading to the festival this summer, bringing the interactive comedy show to the forefront of festival-goers for a night of comedy, quizzes and challenges like no other.

With the time-travelling thrills of the Hot Dub Time Machine lining up the heavy-hitters in Leeds and Rave Karaoke providing the perfect Leeds moment to sing-along to all your late-night dance favourites - the Alternative Stage is once again set to confirm Leeds as the biggest festival party of the summer.

More music acts, meanwhile have been added to the weekend line-up, including breakthrough UK pop-punks Neck Deep who will celebrate the release of their eagerly anticipated third album as they take to the Lock Up Stage for a landmark headline performance.

The ever-growing popstar Sigrid delivers a remarkable insight into the beats and hooks thousands have already fallen for. Expect the ‘Don’t Kill My Vibe’ star to truly seize the moment at Leeds this August.

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Beloved Scottish indie kings The View will touch down at the festival, with an unmistakable trip down memory lane with their catalogue of sing-along favourites, while El Clasico grime stormer Fekky will return to the fields with a full-throttle set of crowd-pleasing hits.

The stage is also set for the likes of dirty pop weavers Get Inuit, the unrivalled South London drill rhymes of 67, and Mancunion risers PINS who’ve all been added to the bill.

Further appearances will come from the likes of London via Berlin duo Lea Porcelain, alt-indie blenders Fizzy Blood, live juggernauts Otherkin, rap-rock morphers The LaFontaines, Irish favourites All Tvvin, Danish riff-rippers Baby In Vain, Toronto force K.I.D and Atlanta hip-hop swayer Father.

Tickets for the Leeds Festival, which features main stage headliners Kasabian, Eminem and Muse, are on sale from www.leedsfestival.com

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