Stand Up comedy challenge compere announced
The compere for the Wolverhampton Stand Up Comedy Challenge charity event is revealed as being professional comedian, Carly Smallman.

Smallman, (pictured) who has appeared on various TV and radio shows as well as starring on BBC's The Rob Brydon Show and ITV's Viral Tap will host Wolverhampton’s second Stand up Challenge at the Molineux Stadium this Thursday (26 April 2018).
The five new contestants - who are all local business people, have been training privately for weeks with a professional comedian, ready to perform their original, five-minute stand-up comedy routine on stage to a live audience, of family, friends, colleagues and anyone interested in seeing how they fair.
The contestants, Sarah Bishop from Recruit Recruit; Kim Izzard from Brookstreet; Paul Lewis from Forces Recruitment Services; James Thomas-Horton from Casino 36; and Iain Watkins from Wolverhampton Grand Theatre will be competing to win the prestigious title of ‘2018 Wolverhampton Stand Up Challenge Champion’.
Ian Watkins commented on his forthcoming participation, “Although I work in an office crunching numbers much of the time I am one of quite a few people in theatre who think they are funny. So, I am cautiously excited about this opportunity to put that to the test. What I’d also like to get out of it, is alive of course.”
A few tickets to see if Ian does actually make it out alive, are still available at the mere price of £15 each - or for those with friends, tables of 8 at £108 (including VAT) from the Black Country Business Festival website. This is because the Comedy Challenge forms part of the Black Country Business Festival – two weeks of business events running from 23 April to 4 May.
The Stand Up Challenge is a charitable event presented by Associate Events. Proceeds from the evening go towards Big Difference Company charity - a Midlands-based organisation that is committed to life changing schemes and projects. The event is sponsored by the Black Country Chamber of Commerce, the Black Country Business Festival, Creative Black Country, supported by the Molineux Stadium and delivered by Associate Events.
Geoff Rowe, chief executive of Big Difference Company said “the Stand Up Challenge has become a key fundraiser for our charity and we’re looking forward to a fantastic event as part of the Black Country Business Festival. I’m pretty sure all the brave contestants are terrified but on the night the excitement and thrill of taking to the stage will take over and I know both they and the audience will have a great night.
“They will be supported on the night by the fantastic Carly Smallman, who is an amazing comedian and host who will really get the audience going. It is sure to be a very entertaining night and one that will be worth attending!!”
Tickets and further details are available on the Black Country Business Festival and Stand Up Challenge websites www.standupchallenge.co.uk/wolverhampton
