A Good Laugh Comedy Festival
A Good Laugh Comedy Festival Mount Barker District · Debut Season 2026 The Vision Mount Barker District is one of the fastest-growing regional councils in South Australia, yet it had no cultural event that truly travelled across its communities. A Good Laugh was created to change that, not a single-venue festival requiring people to drive to a hub, but a touring comedy experience that took world-class performances directly into the pubs, breweries and community halls where people already feel at home. The idea was simple: great comedy shouldn't be a city privilege. Produced by Bamboozled Productions and supported by Mount Barker District Council, the debut season ran 1–16 May 2026 across seven townships - Nairne, Macclesfield, Hahndorf, Echunga, Meadows, Totness and Mount Barker, headlined by Claire Hooper, Dilruk Jayasinha, Damian Callinan, Sam Taunton, Mel Buttle, Micheal Hing, Alex Ward, Nona Mona, Kel Belnaves and so many more! Alongside the evening program, The Big Giggle brought a free family fun day to Hahndorf Academy Lawns, making the festival accessible to all ages and all incomes.
What We Delivered
The debut season exceeded every expectation. Four of the six adult shows sold out entirely, with an average capacity of 96% across the program. 358 families and individuals attended The Big Giggle. Approximately 45 artists were employed, alongside 25–30 local crew and production staff - over 80 paid creative and technical contracts across the festival period.
Every show activated a local venue on a Friday or Saturday evening, generating pre-show dining trade, bar revenue and foot traffic on main streets that would otherwise have been quiet. The Tin Shed Distilling Co. in Nairne recorded its busiest ever AFL Showdown night. Prancing Pony Brewery sold out at 130 capacity through their own channels.
The marketing campaign reached 511,000 people through PR alone, with a further 90,000+ reached via paid social and 205,000+ impressions across META - achieving a 2.67x return on ad spend. The festival was featured in InDaily, The Note Mag, Play & Go Adelaide, 891 ABC Adelaide, Power FM, 5MU and Three D Radio.
The Community Impact
A Good Laugh aligned with eight or more objectives of the Mount Barker District Community Plan 2044 - including community connectedness, positive ageing, children and youth, tourism activation, and township vibrancy. The touring model meant each township had its own moment - Nairne wasn't watching a festival happen in Mount Barker, it was hosting one. That sense of local pride is something a centralised event can never replicate.
Concession pricing was available at every show, with the highest uptake at the Gala (28%) and Echunga (22%). The Big Giggle was entirely free, removing all financial barriers for families.
2026 Highlights
96% average capacity across all adult shows
4 of 6 shows sold out
511,000 total PR reach
90,000+ people reached via paid social
205,000+ impressions across META
45+ artists employed
7 township venues activated
Strongly delivered across all four council assessment criteria
Testimony
We would like to extend our thanks and congratulations to everyone involved in delivering this year’s Comedy Festival. It was an entertaining evening held at the Macclesfield institute — vibrant, professional, and uplifting for our community. We especially want to acknowledge the initiative to host performances outside the Mt Barker township. Bringing a major event into the District’s smaller towns was a truly positive and appreciated direction for MBDC’s events program, and we strongly encourage Council to continue supporting and funding more events of this kind.
Macclesfield Community Association
Testimony
Hosting A Good Laugh at the Cheese Factory was an absolute joy. The comedians were quick‑witted, sharp, and delightfully cheeky, even taking playful jabs at the venue and its owners, which the crowd lapped up with laughter, and so did we :). Their energy filled the room and created a wonderfully warm, communal atmosphere.
Bec and Jerome Lyons, The Cheese Factory Studio Gallery
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