Big names for comedy festival

COMEDIANS Jimmy Carr and Paul Merton will perform at the Glasgow International Comedy Festival this year, it was revealed yesterday.

The event, in its seventh year, has 370 shows at 51 venues across the city – making it bigger than last year's event.

Organisers said they hoped the performers, including such household names as Ross Noble, Clive James and Ed Byrne, would help audiences to forget the economic gloom.

The Scottish Comedy Agency director, Tommy Sheppard, said: "For many people these are difficult times and it will get worse before it gets better. More than ever people need cheering up – and that's what we'll do."

The programme was unveiled by comedian Rhona Cameron. This year the event will be involved in Homecoming Scotland 2009, which celebrates the 250th anniversary of Robert Burns's birth by welcoming back those with Scottish ties.

The festival began in 2003 with about 120 shows in 12 venues. This year's 18-day event, sponsored by Magners Irish Cider, runs from 12-29 March and has 104,000 tickets for sale.