Leicester Comedy Festival is yet to pay some of its performers followings its February event, with comedians complaining that they’re owed thousands.
The annual comedy festival runs for almost three weeks every February, welcoming around 100,000 customers to see the likes of Sara Pascoe, Maisie Adam, Chris McCausland and Sir Stephen Fry.
However, hundreds of acts are yet to receive payment after performing at the festival. They were expecting to have been paid on 19 April but instead received an email informing them that their pay would be delayed. It is unknown which stars are among those who are yet to be paid.
Comedian Benjamin Alborough told BBC News that he’s owed “just short of £2,000” by the festival. “It’s very frustrating. I’ve got bills to pay like everyone else.”
He added that while he “wants the Leicester Comedy Festival to succeed”, owing his career to the event, “everyone needs to get paid”. “Artists need to be paid money,” he said.
According to Chortle, the organisers paid 22 per cent of performing comedians on time.
Michael Harris-Wakelam, who is the CEO of the festival’s organiser Big Difference, said that the company plans to pay its performers but that it is dealing with a “cashflow problem”.
“What we're trying to communicate with [the artists] is this is a case of a small delay rather than ‘you won’t be paid’,” he said. “We’re still waiting for money that’s owed to us for our activities during the festival. That comes from a number of sources, sponsorship, commission shows, ticket sales through third parties.”
He added that the festival is looking at “alternative sources of finance to bridge that gap” and that it is “prioritising those artists”. Harris-Wakelam said: “The way that we run that settlement process is to make sure that as many people as possible are being paid.”
The Independent has contacted Big Difference for further comment.
Despite the issues with paying performers, the festival is set to return in 2027. The company told Leicestershire Live this month: “While completing the settlement remains our urgent focus, we want to assure all that Big Difference Company is continuing to trade, and as such, you will see our usual fundraising activities taking place, building confidence in the future of the festival.
“To confirm, the 2027 festival is going ahead, with planning already underway.”
It also appears to be moving forward with its upcoming event, LCF in the Park, which takes place on Leicestershire’s Abbey Park Road in June. The day festival will see Lou Sanders, Tom Rosenthal, Kiri Pritchard-McClean, Nabil Abdulrashid and Phil Ellis perform.
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