The UK Pun Championships - 2026 Review

Review by Sarah

The ticket was gifted in return for an honest review.

The UK Pun Championships are one of the highlights of the Leicester Comedy Festival, always being a sell-out success. Hosted annually by the Irish comic Jason Byrne, he establishes his relationship with the audience, refining this to individuals in readiness for various ongoing gags and voluntary participation. With his drum pad to hand, Byrne adds to the atmosphere with a sporadic ‘ba boom’ or ‘Ca-ching’ whilst the audience chuckles or groans with disbelief at the puns.

left to right: Richard Woolford, Mary Cross, Jason Byrne, Adam Ernest Pickard, Richard Stott, Nayim Ali, Louie Falls, Katie Pritchard, Paggy Gacheva. Credit: Tyler Bartlam

As with all comedy shows, brace yourself if you book a front row ticket. It brings with it a great view, great atmosphere and a certain expected participation. Taking place in a boxing ring, surrounded by the audience, each competitive round is marked by a procession of selected audience members called out by Byrne, handbell ringing included. It seems that anyone can join this procession, should they wish, just get to the end of the line!

The 2026 finalists, bringing out the laughter and cheers from the audience through a variety of topics including tapas, running, and furniture, included Katie Pritchard, Adam Earnest Pickard, Mary Cross, Louie Falls, Nayim Ali, Paggy Gacheva, Richard Stott and Richard Woolford. These contestants fought through a selection process of audience whoops and groans, until the ultimate punner was announced in a head-to-head of puns.  There is sheer joy in the selection process, being “Who did the crowd cheer for the loudest?”.

Photo by Tyler Bartlam

This year’s victorious winner, Adam Ernest Pickard, claimed the crowning glory and the legendary Championship Belt, with Louie Falls placing as runner-up. Adam’s winning puns included;

"The song Greensleeves was composed by Henry VIII. I'd play some of it here, but it's not royalty-free".

"Only women can use the herbal dumbbells. Thyme weights for no man".

"My friend and I paid a wizard to cast a spell so that Giorgio Armani would live forever. So when he died, we went back to the wizard and said, 'We'd like Armani back.'"

Is it about stage presence, the pun delivery, the outfit, the likeability of the contestant? All these things possibly count and it appears that there are no rules about what makes a legitimate pun. This show is about having some daft fun, don’t take yourself too seriously and laugh your way through the evening.

The Leicester Comedy Festival continues until 22nd February 2026. For listings visit https://www.comedy-festival.co.uk/