How to be an amazing comedy MC

Designed for stand-up comedians who have been gigging regularly for at least a year, this is an intensive three-hour workshop that will equip you with a full toolkit for MCing stand-up comedy gigs, looking specifically at how being a great MC can often differ from being a great act.

👉 The workshop will be online on Sunday 5th January 2025 at 10am GMT 👈

London: 10am | Paris: 11am | Singapore: 6pm | Sydney: 9pm

Feedback from participants

I've done this workshop dozens of times around the world, to participants who had never MCd before all the way to resident MCs looking to take their skills to the next level. Many of the participants went on to their first paid MC gig within weeks of completing the workshop.

“Amazing experience. Ollie's workshop was really interesting and useful in building my confidence on stage as a presenter. Fun and clear, dynamic and with practical examples. Highly recommended!" — Wendy

“I've been to a few different workshops for MC's and definitely feel that Ollie's was the best. I love the relaxed presentation style and most importantly the highly actionable information that he gives. His thoughts on crowd work and triangulating are worth the price of admission on their own. Whether you've been hosting events for a couple years or just thinking about doing it in the near future, you'd be a fucking moron to miss this class.” — Harris

"Ollie’s advice about bucket speeches for free shows was a game changer. Our local shows doubled the amount we were making by following his tips. You'll make your money back taking this workshop from this advice alone" — Anna

"I left the workshop feeling funnier and more confident. I've seen Ollie MC before, and it's obvious that he's the real deal. He's sharp, present, and really quick on his feet. He explains the techniques he uses to keep control of a crowd, and put them at ease, and shared some common pitfalls that we might make." — Michelle

"I can highly recommend Ollie’s workshop! Mad Cow Comedy arranged a workshop in the Netherlands with Ollie last year and it was so valuable! The participants learned so much and the reactions were so positive. Ollie draws on his own experiences to provide very useful advice and gives personalised feedback during the practical aspect of the workshop, which is extremely helpful!" — Rachel

“I participated in a workshop on hosting comedy shows with Ollie a couple of years ago. It was very well structured, he shared his own experience and insights, we practiced during the class, he provided personal feedback to everyone and also some support afterwards. Highly recommend it to anyone who has just started or wants to finesse their skills.” — Mila

"I participated in Ollie's workshop last year, and I'm glad I did so. He really changed my perspective and helped me understand the role of the MC and their importance for a good show. Our shows completely transformed thanks to Ollie. I would recommend his workshop to every aspiring MC." — Anna

The most common feedback I've had from former participants is that even experienced comedians take the role of an MC for granted, and the very best comedy club MCs understand that MCing is a very different skillset to doing club stand-up. The workshop will help you to separate your two practices, and will give you some practical frameworks to assess and develop as a compere, and progress into paid MC work.

What the price includes

The price of the workshop is £39, which is a slight reduction over the in-person price of £59. It includes:

• Access to a three and a half hour online masterclass (we'll take a 30 minute break).
• Joining a WhatsApp group of all the participants to share tips and network
• A video link of the recorded masterclass for you to review whenever convenient
• A PDF of the workshop notes
• A Q&A where you can ask me anything

About the workshop

The first two hours of the workshop will be be going through what a successful gig looks like from start to finish, looking at all of the elements that can make a great gig, from practical production elements, to engaging successfully with the audience, to what to do if a problem arrises on the night.

The final part of the workshop will be split into a short session about what makes good crowd work, followed by a Q&A.

The workshop will cover:

🎤 The role of an MC

What an MC in a comedy club actually does, and how professional MCs adapt their approach depending on the club they're playing

🔊 Technical and production hacks

Your job is easier if the room is set up for success. We'll look at how staging, lighting, sound and seating all play a role in the success of your performance.

⏰ The tricky first 30 seconds

How to start a night, how to introduce yourself, and how to get the room to trust you as soon as you walk on stage.

✍️ Using your material

The hallmark of a hopeless MC is somebody who stubbornly runs their material in between acts. But great MCs are able to skilfully use pre-prepared lines and bits to their advantage.

😳 Disaster mitigation

Things go wrong, and we'll look at how you can prepare for this, and what to do when a problem arises.

🙋‍♂️ Hecklers

Hecklers are rare, but they are a part of live comedy. We'll look at the different types of hecklers, and tried and tested approaches to deal with them in a way that actually benefits your act.

🤣 Crowd work

When to launch into the crowd, and how to treat your interaction with the audience as an end in itself rather than a means to an end.

Is this for you?

The person who will get the most value from this workshop is somebody who has been doing comedy for a few years, and cares deeply about the craft, but hasn't yet spent any amount of time thinking about how they can leverage these skills as an MC. I'm confident that participating in this workshop will likely save you around two or three years of trial and error.

Money back guarantee

I only want you to invest in this workshop if I'm totally confident that you'll get value from it. So, if after attending the workshop you don't think you've got at least the value for the price you paid, you'll get a full refund, no questions asked.

Places are limited

In order to make sure that everybody gets a chance to participate and ask questions, I'm going to limit the number of people who can join the Zoom room. If you're keen to join, please reserve your place early to not miss out, because I won't add on any extra places once we've reached capacity.

About me

I've been a stand-up for over ten years, and the majority of my circuit work is as an MC, for clubs like Top Secret Comedy Club, Komedia, Just The Tonic and more. I also work as a corporate MC and event host, working for brands like Snapchat, National Geographic, and Techstars.

I am a reluctant comedy teacher (I sincerely believe most courses on the market are scams), but I get a huge amount of satisfaction from leading these workshops.

👉 You can see examples of my crowdwork on my Instagram page.

Any questions?

Hopefully there's enough information on this page to work out whether this masterclass is for you, but if you have any questions, then I'd be more than happy to answer them. Please DM me on Instagram.

Any discounts?

Yes, I offer two places each time to the unwaged. Drop me a message if you'd like to join but can't afford to.