Melbourne International Comedy Festival Award for Most Outstanding Show (2019-)
Barry Award (2000-2018)
Stella Award (1998-1999)
Subcategory of Melbourne Comedy Festival
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History

'Launched in 1998 as the 'Stella Award' and renamed in 2000 to honour the Festival's founding patron Barry Humphries, the Barry Award recognises the most outstanding Festival show. The winner gets fame, glory, a snazzy trophy and an all-important cheque.' (https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/about-us/awards

Notes

  • Indexed selectively.

Latest Winners / Recipients

Year: 2023

winner Gillian Cosgriff for 'Actually, Good'.

Year: 2018

Year: 2017

winner y separately published work icon Nanette Hannah Gadsby , ( dir. Jon Olb et. al. )agent 2017 Australia : Guesswork Television , 2018 14175539 2017 single work drama

'Nanette, Hannah’s masterpiece, saw the adored comedian take home Australia’s most prestigious comedy award ‘The Barry’ for Best Show at this year’s Melbourne International Comedy Festival. 

'The world claims to celebrate individuality but Hannah Gadsby knows from experience that this is folly. All the cool kids are normal. Hannah has always dreamt of being a cool kid but she has had to accept that, just like her childhood dream of being a dog, normal is just not possible for her. Over the past year, Hannah decided to embrace solitude, determined to see what harvest may come from nurturing her left field life. And what a strange little harvest, as her new show Nanette will attest.

'This is a show about learning how you can thrive as a “not normal” because Hannah’s year of gentle exile did not just see her harvest silly projects like making homemade jam and adopting a “blue clothes only” policy. It also gave her a strength she badly needed, when she observed with increasing horror the same sex marriage debates begin to hit all the same sickening notes she’d heard as a teenager in the 1990s when Tasmania resisted the decriminalisation of homosexuality.  

'At the beginning of 2017 Hannah announced that she would be retiring from the comedy world. As one of Australia’s most applauded and beloved comedians, don’t miss your chance to be spellbound by the inner workings of Hannah’s unique mind while you can.'  (Publication summary)

Year: 2016

Year: 2015

winner Sam Simmons
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