Rose Matafeo
Nick Mohammed
Catherine Cohen
Kieran Hodgson
Sophie Duker
Olga Koch
Richard Gadd
Paddy Young
Diane Chorley
Kiell Smith-Bynoe
Zoe Coombs Marr
Max & Ivan
Colin Hoult
Tarot
& many, many more
Berk’s Nest produce live comedy shows that delight audiences at the Edinburgh Fringe, on tour across the UK, and as specials available to stream across the world.
So far, we’ve produced over 100 innovative and ambitious shows at the Edinburgh Fringe and on tour that have left a lasting impression with audiences and critics (and made them laugh!), including the Edinburgh Comedy Award Winning Richard Gadd: Monkey See, Monkey Do (2016), Rose Matafeo: Horndog (2018), and 2019 Best Newcomer Winner Catherine Cohen’s The Twist?… She’s Gorgeous, which later become her first Netflix special.
Berk’s Nest has also produced all of the solo shows from four-time Best Show-nominee Kieran Hodgson, three shows from Best Show nominee Colin Hoult, and Edinburgh Best Newcomer nominated shows from Paddy Young, Sophie Duker, Olga Koch, and Jayde Adams.
Spectacular, larger-than-life shows made by Berk’s Nest have included Nick Mohammed/Mr. Swallow’s A Christmas Carol-ish… comedy musical, which ran to rave reviews at Soho Theatre in December 2022 starring Nick, Sarah Hadland, Kieran Hodgson & David Elms, and Max & Ivan’s The Wrestling, which sees the best of the UK comedy scene (including Joe Lycett, Aisling Bea, and Ed Gamble) get into the ring with professional comedians. In 2019 and 2022, we partnered with Diane Chorley and Assembly Festival to open The Flick, an iconic purpose-built cabaret venue and late night bar in the middle of the Edinburgh Fringe.
Our expertly curated mixed bill line-up shows introduce comedy fans to fresh voices, big ideas and the best new material from household names. Live At The Clapham Grand runs monthly in South West London, with the likes of James Acaster, David O’Doherty, Nish Kumar, and London Hughes having taken to its stage. Live At Stratford East brings the best in UK stand-up to the iconic Theatre Royal in Stratford, including Phil Wang, Fern Brady, Mawaan Rizwan and Slim. Our comedy stages at music festivals have featured the likes of Mae Martin, Nina Conti, Desiree Burch, and Tim Key.
Berk’s Nest shows have become specials for Netflix, Amazon Prime, HBOMax, and the BBC. We’ve produced audiobooks for Penguin Random House, live-stream shows and specials for NextUp Comedy, and digital content for Channel 4.
Collaborating with the most exciting creative talent, we develop and facilitate incredible shows that showcase our favourite acts to the world.
The Team
Owen Donovan, Managing Director
Owen runs the day-to-day of Berk's Nest & produces all of our shows.
As well as producing, Owen directed Richard Gadd's Monkey See Monkey Do, Tessa Coates' Fringe shows Witch Hunt and Primates, and developed Lolly 3 with Lolly Adefope.
Away from Berk's Nest, he has developed scripted comedy for both television and feature films at Who’s On First Films and Burning Bright Productions.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, Owen was a co-founder of the Live Comedy Association, set up to support and advocate for the live comedy industry in the UK.
Phoebe Bourke, Creative Director
Phoebe is a comedy writer/director and producer. Having co-founded Berk’s Nest with Katie, she’s now Creative Director. Phoebe's directing credits for Berk's Nest include Rose Matafeo’s award winning Horndog, and award-nominated shows from Kieran Hodgson & Jayde Adams.
Phoebe has also directed shows from Glenn Moore (Best Show Nominee 2018), Darren Harriott (Best Show Nominee 2019) and Helen Bauer’s (Best Newcomer Nominee 2019).
Phoebe has written and directed short films selected for Encounters Film Festival, DUMBO Short Film Festival, FilmBath, and BFI's LOCO Festival, and been nominated for Best Director at Underwire Festival 2019. Phoebe has written for Question Team (Dave), Stand up for Live Comedy (BBC), The Island (Dave) and Comedians Giving Lectures (Dave) and has scripted projects in development.
Phoebe has previously produced for Comedy Central, Channel 4 and BBC.
Katie Churchill, Company Director
Katie founded Berk's Nest with Phoebe in 2012 after producing shows alone at the Fringe for several years. She is now predominantly a director of shows for the company.
Shows Katie has directed for Berk’s Nest include Kieran Hodgson’s ‘75, Maestro, and Lance (all Edinburgh Comedy Award nominated), and Lola & Jo’s Focus Groupies and Escape.
She previously worked for CAA, and is now a Development Producer at Sky Studios. For TV, she has produced Lazy Susan's BBC2 pilot, and Simon Amstell's Set Free, for Netflix.
James Alexander, Fringe & Line-up Producer
James has previously worked with Berk’s Nest as our Assistant Producer at the 2018, 2019 and 2022 Edinburgh Fringe Festivals.
Aline Downey, Marketing Coordinator
Aline previously worked for Berk’s Nest in 2022 and our Marketing Assistant, and we’re thrilled to have her back with us.
Work with us.
We are not currently recruiting for any new roles. To stay updated on any future job openings, please head to our jobs page.
We work with comedy writer/performers who are currently working in, or are looking to return to, live performance.
From new voices to established acts, we support acts that want to bring their next big idea - however bold, daring or seemingly impossible - to life. We’ve produced everything from straight stand-up to complex musical theatrical performances, featuring everything from orchestras to building our very own purpose-built venue The Flick for Diane Chorley’s 2019 Edinburgh Fringe run.
Why we’re different...
Our team has produced 93 hour-long shows, with a proven track record of supporting acts in creating fulfilling, challenging and personal projects that push their careers to the next level.
Our approach is holistic and based in creative collaboration, pulling together talented teams - from directors to flyerers - to ensure comics feel supported and able to make their best work.
Our perspective is long-term, as we guide our acts through developing projects that exceed their expectations and are ready to be translated into radio and TV.
We champion a range of voices with different life experiences and points of view. If you feel like you have an idea that you’re itching to explore, get in touch. You can invite us to see you perform, or send us a video.