Slapstick Festival
Slapstick Festival 2022: This year (Jan 26th – Jan 30th) the Slapstick Festival of visual comedy is pleased to announce a fantastic line up of comedy and comedy writing talent from the likes of Stephen Mangan, David Mitchell, Sally Phillips, Ronni Ancona, Richard Herring, Armando Iannucci, Arthur Smith, Lucy Porter and many more.
We also have significant contributions from a number of film biographers, writers and historians such as James Curtis, Sian Norris, David Robinson, Ben Model, Steve Massa.
We are particularly honoured to have the granddaughters of Harold Lloyd and WC Fields introduce their Grandfather’s work.
Also watch out for Rob Brydon, Harry Hill, Robin Ince, Chris Serle, Paul McGann and a plethora celebrities joining us throughout the festival.
On top of all this, we have some very special ‘post-festival’ events which include an evening with Tim Vine, Lee Mack and comedy legend Barry Cryer.
To find out more download our 2022 festival guide

Barry Cryer: A Slapstick Tribute
On 25 January 2022, we lost a comedy legend and festival friend, Chris Daniels pays a tribute…
About Slapstick Festival
About us: Slapstick Festival is a cultural, not-for-profit limited company.
Our aim is to keep silent, visual and classic onscreen comedy alive for future generations, through raising awareness, interest and appreciation of this unique art form, developing new audiences for archive cinema.
Our Slapstick 2022 Season Concludes
Tiswas: The Reunion, marked the end of our 2022 Slapstick season. If you missed it you can see some pictures from the event below. There are also some pictures from our events in February and March 2022.
We are now planning our next season, so put the 16th – 19th of February 2023 in your diary – if next year’s events are as good as 2022, you won’t want to miss it!
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Legacy award for the Tiswas team
The Tiswas Team receive their Legacy Awards, given in recognition of creating significant new work in the medium of silent and visual comedy

Tiswas Stars Reunite for One-Off Reunion
Tiswas Stars Reunite for One-Off Reunion Our slapstick season finished on an absolute high, with the stars of the classic children’s TV series Tiswas reuniting for an evening of fun and mayhem. Chris Tarrant, Sally James, John Gorman and Bob Carolgees, along with Spit the Dog, were among those that took to the stage on […]

Slapstick Sunday
Slapstick Sunday Our last full day of festival events began with Paddington (2014), introduced by Andy Day, and concluded with Lee Mack’s hilarious Desert Island Comedy Flicks. In between there was a moving tribute to the late great Barry Cryer hosted by his friend and long-time comic collaborator Les Dennis, with Barry’s Son Bob Cryer […]
Past Events – Slapstick 2022

Slapstick Live Online
19th – 30th January

Slapstick Conversations: W.C.Fields
Live Online, Pre-Festival, Event: Wed Jan 19th
8.00pm

Ben Model & Steve Massa Live from New York
Tuesday 25th January 2022
5.30pm
Ben Model and Steve Massa join us live from New York as they live-stream their latest discoveries in silent comedy

Silent Ozu: Days Of Youth (1929)
Wednesday 26th January 2022
10:30am
The oldest known surviving film by legendary Japanese director Yasujirô Ozu, introduction by film historian David Robinson.

Max Linder: Be My Wife (1921)
Wednesday 26th January 2022
1:20pm
Max Linder writes, directs and stars in the second of his three American films (Be My Wife

My Grandmother (1929)
Wednesday 26th January 2022
3:30pm
introduction from actor and early Russian cinema enthusiast Paul McGann, My Grandmother is an avant-garde gem of early filmmaking

Chaplin: The Circus (1928)
Wednesday 26th January 2022
5.20pm EVENT SOLD OUT

An Old Gangster Molls (1927)
Thursday 27th January 2022,
10:00am
This Czechoslovakian silent comedy ‘An Old Gangster Molls’ stars Anny Ondra, who later became one of Hitchcock’s leads in ‘Blackmail’

First Women in Comedy
Thursday 27th January 2022
1:00pm
Lucy Porter and Sian Norris present a series of short films celebrating pioneering women in film comedy

Lloyd: The Kid Brother (1927)
Thursday 27th January 2022
3:00pm
Introduced by Suzanne Lloyd (Lloyd’s granddaughter) Harold Lloyd stars in one of the greatest ever silent comedies

David Mitchell’s Top Comedy Moments
Thursday 27th January 2022
6pm EVENT SOLD OUT

Slapstick Divas: Hosted by Sally Phillips and Ronni Ancona
Thursday 27th January 2022
8.30pm
Actor and comedian Sally Phillips is joined by Actor and Impressionist Ronni Ancona as they host this fascinating evening celebrating three silent comedy deities.

W.C. Fields: Sally of the Sawdust
Friday 28th January 2022
10:00am
With an introduction from presenter Chris Serle and a personal message from Dr Harriet Fields (Fields’ granddaughter)

The Patsy (1928)
Friday 28th January 2022
1:00pm
the iconic Marion Davies shines in one of the best of her many collaborations with director King Vidor.

Slapstick Conversations: Buster Keaton
Friday 28th January 2022
3.30pm
James Curtis, admired biographer of Preston Sturges, W.C.Fields and Spencer Tracy, gives us the richest, most comprehensive life story

Silent Comedy Gala 2022
Hosted by Stephen Mangan: Friday 28th January 2022
8pm EVENT SOLD OUT

The Real Charlie Chaplin (2021)
Saturday 29th January 2022
9.20am
We are honoured to be hosting a screening of the brand new documentary

Richard Herring’s Desert Island Comedy Flicks
Sat 29th January 2022
12:30pm
Pioneer of comedy Podcasting, legendary stand-up and writer Richard Herring joins Infinite Monkey Cage co-host Robin Ince

Animation Fanatics
Sunday 30th January 2022
9:30am
Peter Lord (co-founder of Aardman Animations) has had a passion for early animation, both stop motion and classical drawing.

Richard Herring’s The Sunday Chat
With Jon Culshaw
Sun 30th January 2022
12.00pm
Join comedian and writer Richard Herring and guest – award-winning comedian, actor and impressionist Jon Culshaw.

Armando Iannucci: A Life in Satire
Sunday 30 January 2022
2.30pm
Armando Iannucci has been a major force in satirical TV/film comedy for more than three decades EVENT SOLD OUT

Arthur Smith: Laughs, Stories, a Song and a Poem
Sunday 30 January 2022
5.30pm
Settle down for a laughter-filled evening of off-the-wall humour with comedian, writer and broadcaster ARTHUR SMITH

Paddington (2014): Introduced by Andy Day
Sun 27th March 2022
12:30pm

BARRY CRYER: A Tribute With a Little Help from His Friends
Sun 27th March 2022
3:30pm
Barry Cryer: A Tribute

In The Best Possible Taste! Tim Vine salutes Kenny Everett
Sun 27th March 2022
6:30pm
Tim Vine adores Kenny Everett and wants to tell the world why

Lee Mack’s Desert Island Comedy Flicks
Sun 27th March 2022
8:30pm
Lee Mack teams up with Slapstick Festival as part our Slapstick Sunday’s series of events at the Redgrave Theatre

The Goodies Forever
Saturday 29th January 2022
2:20pm
Robin Ince, comedian and host of infinite monkey cage, will be celebrating the work of those super chaps EVENT SOLD OUT

Tati Day: Pass to all 3 films
Sat 2nd April 2022, 11:15 – 20:20

Mon Oncle (1958)
Sat 2nd April 2022, 11.15am

Playtime (1967)
Sat 2nd April 2022, 2.15pm
Watch
Slapstick Awards
Festival Archives

Slapstick Festival 2020
The 16th edition of Bristol’s own Slapstick Festival celebrates comedy in all its aspects

Slapstick Festival 2019
Slapstick Festival 2019 Slapstick 2019 – In Photos Here is a selection of photos from the 15th edition of Slapstick Festival taken by our regular photographers, Paul Lippiatt and David Betteridge. Check out more work by Paul and David at their websites, which can be found here (for Paul) and here (for David). More photos from Slapstick 2019 […]

Slapstick Festival 2018
Slapstick Festival 2018 Welcome to Slapstick 2018 To an increasingly crazy world, comedy brings solace and sanity and Bristol’s SLAPSTICK now stands as Europe’s biggest and best festival of comedy, bringing together classic screen clowning with today’s fnest living laughter-makers from British stage and television. This year is the 14th and our biggest edition yet. […]
Archives (Events)

Legacy award for the Tiswas team
The Tiswas Team receive their Legacy Awards, given in recognition of creating significant new work in the medium of silent and visual comedy

Tiswas Stars Reunite for One-Off Reunion
Tiswas Stars Reunite for One-Off Reunion Our slapstick season finished on an absolute high, with the stars of the classic children’s TV series Tiswas reuniting for an evening of fun and mayhem. Chris Tarrant, Sally James, John Gorman and Bob Carolgees, along with Spit the Dog, were among those that took to the stage on […]

Slapstick Sunday
Slapstick Sunday Our last full day of festival events began with Paddington (2014), introduced by Andy Day, and concluded with Lee Mack’s hilarious Desert Island Comedy Flicks. In between there was a moving tribute to the late great Barry Cryer hosted by his friend and long-time comic collaborator Les Dennis, with Barry’s Son Bob Cryer […]