Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds will appear at Just For Laughs at the O2 in London next year.
Just for Laughs, the comedy festival that began in Canada in 1983, will celebrate its 40th anniversary next year with its first ever London show that includes a series of shows in partnership with Comic Relief.
The star-studded 4-day comedy festival will also see Graham Norton, Katherine Ryan and Friends, Reggie Watts, Richard Curtis and Rob Delaney .
Taking place in various venues covering the full campus of The O2 – from club shows at indigo at The O2 to London’s largest cinema, Cineworld to the installation of Fortuna, an intimate wood and mirror Spiegeltent as an additional performance space as well as the world-famous arena – and featuring a mix of notable headliners, multi-comic shows, live podcast recordings, ‘In Conversations’, cast panels and more, Just for Laughs LONDON promises to deliver larger-than-life laughs as it unites today’s funniest UK and international comedy stars.
In an event entitled Maximum Effort (named after his production company), Ryan Reynolds will look back on a career that has taken him from sitcom and romcom star to Marvel superhero and Wrexham AFC co-owner. He will be in conversation with his Deadpool 2 co-star, standup Rob Delaney.
Other events at the festival include a variety gala hosted by Graham Norton, an evening with Katherine Ryan and friends, and performances by Reggie Watts, Aisling Bea, The Horne Section, Shaparak Khorsandi and Jessica Fostekew. Kemah Bob will host an edition of the FOC It Up! comedy club, Adam Buxton will present his music video show Bug, standup Craig Robinson will appear with his band the Nasty Delicious and there will be live podcast recordings and panel events.
The festival is produced by Just For Laughs, in collaboration with leading live entertainment company, AEG Presents, and The O2.
Bruce Hills, President of Just For Laughs: “Every year, without a doubt, the British contingent of comedians at JFL MONTRÉAL are one of the highlights of our event, which I credit to the comedians’ distinctiveness, originality and a point of view unlike any other. Now is the perfect time for us to bring our festival to shine the international spotlight on the incredible UK scene, while also bringing global comedy stars to join forces in producing one epic comedy celebration”.
Steve Homer, CEO of AEG Presents: “AEG Presents are hugely excited to be building what’s set to be London’s biggest ever comedy festival with the fantastic JFL and The O2 teams. We can’t wait to celebrate everything that’s so unique, quirky and world-renowned about British comedy along with some of the world’s biggest international stars – all gracing The O2’s hallowed stages together next March”.
Emma Bownes, VP of Venue Programming (Europe) at The O2: “We’re thrilled to be partnering with JFL and AEG Presents to bring the very first Just For Laughs LONDON to The O2 in March 2023. From Hollywood royalty with the legendary Ryan Reynolds, to the unstoppable Katherine Ryan, Just For Laughs LONDON will feature the best in stand-up, podcasts, and even wrestling across seven venues all within The O2’s campus. We look forward to hosting Just for Laughs LONDON for many years to come.”
Richard Curtis: “At Comic Relief, we believe in the power of comedy and entertainment to drive positive change across the world. That’s why I’m delighted to be hosting this special show at the very first Just For Laughs festival in the UK, with AEG and The 02. I am incredibly excited about sharing the stage with some of the superstars who’ve helped us raise more than £1.5billion in the last 35 years…and dropping some juicy morsels of backstage gossip into the open mouths – and/or ears – of our lovely audience of diehard comedy fans.”
Graham Norton: “I can’t wait to be a part of this amazing comedy event. I can guarantee people a night of big names and even bigger laughs. London in 2023 just got a whole lot funnier!!”
Just For Laughs Programme Schedule
| Day | Date | Artist | Venue | Showtime |
| Thursday | 2 March 2023 | Adam Buxton “Best of Bug” | indigo at The O2 | 7:00PM |
| Thursday | 2 March 2023 | Luisa Omielan “Ten” | Screen 16, Cineworld at The O2 | 8:30PM |
| Thursday | 2 March 2023 | Katherine Ryan and Friends | indigo at The O2 | 9:30PM |
| Friday | 3 March 2023 | Randy Feltface | Screen 16, Cineworld at The O2 | 6:00PM |
| Friday | 3 March 2023 | Stamptown hosted by Zach Zucker | Fortuna Spiegeltent | 9:00PM |
| Friday | 3 March 2023 | Craig Robinson and The Nasty Delicious | indigo at The O2 | 11:00PM |
| Friday | 3 March 2023 | The Horne Section | indigo at The O2 | 7:30PM |
| Saturday | 4 March 2023 | Shaparak Khorsandi: “It Was The 90s!” | O2 Blueroom | 4:00PM |
| Saturday | 4 March 2023 | FOC It Up! Comedy Club | O2 Blueroom | 2:00 PM |
| Saturday | 4 March 2023 | Craig Robinson In Conversation | Screen 16, Cineworld at The O2 | 4:00PM |
| Saturday | 4 March 2023 | The Receipts Podcast – Live | indigo at The O2 | 5:00PM |
| Saturday | 4 March 2023 | Springleaf: James Acaster & Nish Kumar | Screen 16, Cineworld at The O2 | 6:00PM |
| Saturday | 4 March 2023 | Jessica Fostekew “Wench” | All Bar One at The O2 | 6:00PM |
| Saturday | 4 March 2023 | All Killa No Filla Podcast | Superscreen, Cineworld at The O2 | 7:00PM |
| Saturday | 4 March 2023 | Aisling Bea and Friends | indigo at The O2 | 8:00PM |
| Saturday | 4 March 2023 | Ryan Reynolds “Maximum Effort” moderated by Rob Delaney | The O2 arena | 8:30PM |
| Saturday | 4 March 2023 | Reggie Watts | indigo at The O2 | 11:00PM |
| Sunday | 5 March 2023 | A Gay and A NonGay Podcast | Screen 16, Cineworld at The O2 | 4:00 PM |
| Sunday | 5 March 2023 | Comic Relief – The Truth & Everything Except the Truth, Hosted by Richard Curtis | indigo at The O2 | 4:00 PM |
| Sunday | 5 March 2023 | Elis James and John Robins Live | Superscreen, Cineworld at The O2 | 7:00PM |
| Sunday | 5 March 2023 | Max and Ivan “The Wrestling” | indigo at The O2 | 8:00PM |
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