Tullamore-born comedian makes it to finals of major competition in England

An Offaly-born comedian, now based in Dublin, Jonathan Sheehan, has made it to the finals of a major comedy competition in England.

The “not so new comedian of the year” competition gives an opportunity to comedians who started stand-up comedy later.

Jonathan explained, “Most stand-ups usually start around college age, and the competitions are geared towards that. The nice thing about this is you must be 35 and over to enter. So, it’s great for people like me who started doing stand-up later in life.”

The winner will win a cash prize of 2,500 pounds, paid gigs at major comedy venues and the honour of taking home the title.

Jonathan explained what the win would mean: “Well, obviously the money would be nice, but I spend my time doing comedy in the U.K. and Ireland and winning something like this helps get your foot in the door over there.”

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When asked if he likes to play at home sometimes soon, he responded, “It would be great. I recently did my own sold-out solo show as part of the Five Lamps Art Festival. I would love to bring that to a venue in the midlands, and especially Tullamore.”

The final takes place on June 1 at Leicester Square Theatre.