THERE is the Fringe in Edinburgh, the Melbourne International and Montreal. But the last laugh could be on North Lanarkshire which is about to launch its very own comedy festival. No joking.
The North Lanarkshire Comedy Festival will run for a week, from October 6 to 11 in arts centres such as Airdrie, Cumbernauld, Shotts and the Bellshill Cultural Centre.
It is a joint venture between North Lanarkshire Council and Patrick Rolink, the Airdrie comedian who recently reached the finals of the Channel 4 competition So You Think You're Funny and was highly commended by the judges.
It will also set another international record by boasting the first family of separate stand-ups - the Bratchpieces of Motherwell. There's the auld yin, Mark Bratchpiece, who made his debut at the age of 50, elder son David - Bratchy - and Neil, the teenager, part of a double act, Martin and the Wee Man (formerly Neil and Martin).
Other comics include Des Mclean, Des Clarke, Bruce Morton, Parrot and Raymond Mearns.
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