Leeds comedy festival presents an impressive line-up of big names and newcomers

I mean not the diminutive British actor who most recently was seen in the new Indiana Jones movie, but Toby Jones the Leeds comedy promoter.

The definite article is deserved; Jones has been ‘the’ comedy promoter in the city for 24 years now.

He was there when the arena wasn’t even a dream, he was there when The Comedy Store arrived in the city and promptly left a few years later, and he’s still here as the arena prepares to welcome arguably Britain’s biggest comic, Peter Kay.

The fact that Kay is coming to Leeds with his arena tour owes something, I would argue, to the work Jones has done in promoting the artform for over two decades.

“I just love it. I love that moment when you see an act who’s starting out and you see they’ve got a different take on things, a new way of telling a joke, of baking the comedy cake, that’s what gets me excited,” says Jones. Still? After all this time? “Oh yes, definitely.”

While Jones is a promoter, what he is ultimately is, when it comes to comedy, is a fan. He just happens to be also very good at the game of bringing comedians to his city.

Audiences have the opportunity to see just how good as we hit the middle of week one of a two week festival of comedy created by the promoter back in 2016.

Jones dreamt up Leeds Comedy Festival as a way of bringing a critical mass of comedians together in what feels like a perfect moment.

“July is a really good month for this, because most comedians are preparing for the Edinburgh Festival,” says Jones.

Around this time of year Jones has historically found comedians – big names among them – getting in touch asking if they could do an unannounced guest slot for him at one of the regular comedy nights he runs in the city.

They are all keen to be match fit ahead of the important Edinburgh runs, are wary of publicity at this stage but know that Jones will provide an audience for them even without their names as a draw on the door.

It means, in this two-week period, Jones is bringing to the Leeds Comedy Festival, all based around The Wardrobe venue in Leeds, an impressive array of comedians. The festival opened on Monday with newcomer Louise Young, preparing for her first Edinburgh show, and was followed that evening by Robin Ince. Tonight Simon Brodkin, more famous for his creation Lee Nelson, followed by relative newcomer Hayley Ellis.

Next Wednesday sees the highly rated Spencer Jones, followed by crowd favourite Daliso Chaponda. Over the coming week-and-a-half audiences will be able to see Simon Evans, Richard Herring, Paul Foot, Seann Walsh, Olga Koch and Sooz Kempner.

Jones runs the regular comedy nights at Hi Fi, Original Oak and several other touring shows and venues.

“We were doing about 300 shows a year at one point, so it was nice to create this festival where we could bring a lot of acts together,” says Jones.

It creates – or is currently in the midst of creating – the feel of a mini Edinburgh Fringe, says Jones, where different comedians are all hanging out together.

Over the past two-and-a-half decades, Jones has fine tuned his comedic eye. He gave Jack Whitehall one of his first gigs, he gave Alan Carr his first paid gig, he spotted Jason Manford early on and gave him gigs.

“I can just see it. Someone could be 20 gigs in, but I can tell if they have what it takes, if they’re going to be good,” says Jones.

“I don’t always get it right. I have championed acts that have ended up not going on to do much and I was always surprised by John Bishop.

“He just didn’t seem to have any comedy knowledge, he says himself that he thinks of himself as ‘your funny mate down the pub’.”You can guarantee, though, that if John Bishop ever needs to try out material, he’ll be calling Jones for a spot.

Runs until July 15. Details leedscomedyfestival.co.uk