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The first-ever Caerphilly Comedy Festival is coming to town this week, bringing with it three nights of stand-up comedy.

The festival, which combines professional shows, new material nights, and a community-led comedy showcase, is being held on Wednesday April 15, Friday April 17, and Saturday April 18.

The festival has been organised by local comedians Chris Barnes and Tommy Smith, who also run Rogue’s Gallery Comedy Club in Swansea, with Tommy producing pop-up comedy nights across the valleys under The Comedy Patch.

The festival will be launched at The Project Bar (formerly Brew Monster) this Wednesday.

There will also be a School of Comedy Graduation Show at Y Banc – which is run by the community group Cynefin Caerffili.

Over the past three weeks, in preparation for the upcoming festival, Y Banc has been hosting a comedy school aimed at getting the community into stand up – with participants set to perform at the School of Comedy Graduation Show.

The festival will culminate with a grand finale at Caerphilly Workmen’s Hall on Saturday, headlined by Leroy Brito with support from Motherland’s Terry Mynott, as well as Steffan Evans and Tommy Smith. It will be hosted by Chris Barnes.

The finale starts at 7.30pm, with doors opening at 6.45pm. Tickets cost £17.60 including the booking fee.

Festival organisers Chris and Tommy said: “We wanted to put on something that brings the community into comedy, not just as an audience but as part of it.

“There’ll be people doing stand-up for the first time alongside acts who’ve been going for years, and that mix really matters to us.”

They added: “It’s about using local venues, keeping it accessible, and showing that great comedy doesn’t have to live in big cities – it can happen right here in Caerphilly.”