You’ll be entertained by some of the capital’s top comedians at a new monthly club night.

Barking and Dagenham Post: Paul RickettsPaul Ricketts (Image: Archant)

Barking Comedy Club follows hot on the footsteps of Fresh Funnies which brought big names to preview new material at the Broadway Theatre last year.

This time round, the shows will mix household names with newcomers.

“We started off [last year] with a mix of comics who were doing previews of shows for Edinburgh and for shows that they were going to be taking on tour,” organiser Paul Ricketts explained.

“We were trying to see if there was an audience for comedy in Barking and what we found was that there was a lovely audience for it, and by the end of the run we were playing to a full house.

“They liked all sorts of comedy as well, not just your mainstream stuff.”

An award-winning comic himself, Paul started organising Barking Comedy Club as soon as Fresh Funnies came to an end.

He says he liked the “warm atmosphere” that the Broadway fostered.

“It’s quite nice for me, as I get to bring some of my friends here to do shows,” Paul said. “They’re not getting massive amounts of money, but they’re here to support a new club in this part of east London.”

The inaugural gig will be headlined by Steve Gribbin with support from Danny Ward and newcomers Wilson and Bob Monroe, with future dates including sets from Patrick Monahan.

“It will be hard work as I will have to make up new material for every show, as everyone already knows all my stuff,” Paul, who will be MC at the shows, admitted.

The comedy club has shows set up throughout 2017, but Paul is hoping that it will continue to run for years to come.

“We want to continue and there is no better entertainment than live comedy because it’s so simple,” he said. “People are allowed to join in as well – as long as they don’t heckle!”

The first show will take place on January 22 from 7.30pm. Tickets cost £3. Call 020 8507 5607 to book.