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Bangkok comedy today: how the scene developed

 

Looking at the Bangkok comedy scene today in 2026, it’s easy to forget - or simply never have known - how gradually it developed into its current form. Like comedy scenes elsewhere, Bangkok comedy grew through a combination of international touring performers and locally based comedians, evolving over time rather than emerging fully formed.

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Early professional touring stand-up comedy in Bangkok

 

One of the earliest examples of professionally produced stand-up comedy in Bangkok came through Punchline Comedy in the 2000s, which regularly flew in international comedians - often from the UK - to perform above The Bull’s Head pub, now The Royal Oak. These shows focused exclusively on visiting professional talent and ran for several years, forming an important early chapter in the city’s live comedy history.

 

While these productions demonstrated that Bangkok audiences would attend and support stand-up comedy, they did not yet represent a locally rooted scene. That development would come later, from the ground up.

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Early on-the-ground growth of English-language comedy in Bangkok

 

At ground level, English-language stand-up comedy in Bangkok began to take shape through a small group of expats experimenting with performance in bars and informal venues. Also in the 2000s, comedians including Cameron Pearson, Jonathan Samson, Matt, and Eric were part of this early phase, performing and helping to establish stand-up as something that could exist locally rather than only through visiting touring shows. 

 

Jonathan Samson, in particular, would go on to remain a significant presence in the Bangkok comedy scene for many years and continues to be associated with its development to this day.

 

Thai-language stand-up comedy in Bangkok

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Alongside the development of English-language comedy, Thai-language stand-up comedy in Bangkok has its own distinct history. As early as 1995, Udom Taephanich aka Note Udom, was producing and performing stand-up comedy shows and recordings in Thai. His work reached a mass audience and helped establish stand-up comedy as a recognisable form of entertainment in Thailand long before a broader local scene existed.

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For many years, Thai stand-up comedy remained closely associated with Udom’s solo productions rather than a wider ecosystem of performers. More recently, however, this has begun to change. From the mid-2010s onwards, a new generation of Thai comedians has contributed to the growth of a broader Thai-language stand-up scene in Bangkok, with multiple performers, formats, and venues emerging. This newer wave has been notably associated with comedians such as Kattanyu and Gap, among others, helping to expand Thai-language stand-up beyond a single figure and toward a more diverse and evolving scene.

 

The one-off 2011 open mic that helped shape the local scene

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One notable early moment came in 2011, when a one-off open mic was held at The Bull’s Head pub - not in the upstairs room used for touring shows, but on the ground floor. The event was produced by Nelson Pires and hosted by Jonathan Samson. Importantly, the winner and runner-up received tickets to see a Punchline Comedy show upstairs.

 

While the winner turned out to be a regular seventy-year-old audience member telling a classic joke on her birthday, the event proved formative for several performers who took part. Among them was Chris Wegoda, who finished second and attended the Punchline show with a notebook, closely observing the emceeing and structure of a professional stand-up performance.

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Building a regular local stand-up scene (2011–2014)

 

Following this experience, Wegoda went on to attend another open mic and decided to try building something more regular. Later in 2011, he began running a recurring open mic at The Londoner pub on the corner of Sukhumvit 33, initially once a month and later twice monthly.

 

This open mic ran from 2011 until 2014 and became one of the most consistent platforms for local stand-up comedy in Bangkok during that period, helping performers develop and audiences form regular habits around live comedy.

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Parallel growth of improv comedy in Bangkok

 

In parallel with stand-up, improv comedy was also developing. Wegoda had first encountered live comedy through improv, having met Jonathan Samson in 2008 at a Comedy Film Festival. Samson led weekly improv meet-ups at Damian Mavis’s dojo, which eventually led to the formation of Improv Bangkok, where Wegoda, Samson, and others would perform shows.

 

Improv played an important role in broadening the local comedy ecosystem and introducing new performers and audiences to live comedy formats beyond stand-up.

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From open mics to a permanent comedy venue

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In 2014, when The Londoner pub closed and relocated, the regular open mic lost its home. This prompted the search for a new permanent venue, which led to the opening of The Comedy Club Bangkok later that year.

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The club’s first show drew an audience of around 170 people and featured a mix of improv and stand-up comedy, reflecting the dual roots of the local scene. From the outset, the club combined community development, workshops, and regular shows with the booking of international touring comedians.

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Expansion of touring comedy and larger venues

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Over the following years, the scale of comedy in Bangkok expanded significantly. With the support of long-established figures in the Asian comedy circuit, international touring increased, and larger venues became viable.

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It is also worth noting that large-scale international comedy reached Bangkok earlier through occasional one-off productions. From around 2012, BEC-Tero presented arena and theatre shows featuring major international comedians, most notably Russell Peters. These productions demonstrated that Bangkok could support large audiences for stand-up comedy, even before a sustained local club-based touring circuit had fully developed.

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By the mid-to-late 2010s, The Comedy Club Bangkok was hosting major touring acts and selling out large theatre and ballroom shows, such as Jimmy Carr, Jim Jefferies, Jim Gaffiigan and Eddie Izzard, marking a shift from small experimental rooms to large-scale professional productions.

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Bangkok comedy clearly extends well beyond a single venue. The Comedy Club Bangkok regularly tours across Thailand and has done since 2015, including Phuket, Hua Hin, Chiang Mai, and other cities, while new clubs, rooms, and improv groups continue to emerge.

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More than just English language shows

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While English-language comedy remains central to the scene, Bangkok’s international makeup has increasingly been reflected on stage. Alongside English-language shows, The Comedy Club Bangkok has produced and hosted comedy performances in a range of other languages, including Hindi, Gujarati, Danish, French, Japanese, and Thai, as well as multilingual and culturally specific comedy events.

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Bangkok comedy today: a funny future

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Bangkok’s comedy scene has grown in size and diversity, encompassing everything from professional touring productions to informal rooms, experimental shows, and grassroots open mics. It didn’t arrive overnight, and it hasn’t followed a straight line. Instead, it developed in fits and starts - through touring acts passing through, locals figuring things out room by room, and audiences gradually learning what live comedy could be in the city.

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What’s changed is consistency. Regular venues, touring routes, and returning audiences now mean comedy in Bangkok isn’t just something that happens occasionally - it’s something people can rely on. Bangkok comedy is no longer new, but it’s far from finished. Like the city itself, it keeps evolving - sometimes messy, sometimes surprising, and still very much alive.

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One notable example is that in more recent years, comedy in Bangkok has also been used as a platform for community and charitable initiatives, reflecting the broader social role live comedy can play.

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Within the ever-changing Bangkok comedy landscape, The Comedy Club Bangkok plays a grounding role, connecting international touring comedians with locally based performers and helping to maintain professional standards while preserving the character of the scene. Taken together, these elements point to a comedy culture with real momentum and a solid foundation for its next phase of growth. Here’s to Bangkok comedy’s funny future.