The Comedy Writers Group

It's our most epic episode yet! I've invited everyone from the Christmas Party for a Marathon Podcast. Recorded at the CWG Christmas Party. I hope it makes you feel like you were there!Featuring Ben Volchok, Brad Shean, Alice Jones, Lukas Opasinov, Marnie Mills, Louis Nicoll, RJ Carey, Sowmya Hiremath, Tamara Absalom, Dean Gallagher, Noni Field, Jason Roche, Laura Bruce, Roisin McAlinden, Belinda Anderson-Hunt, Matt Jenner, Yeluselemi, and Ece Musatoff.We cover so many subjects from Christmas Party chit-chat, dogs VS babies, accents, alt comedy, clown school, European holidays, first jobs, and so much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on the podcast I'm joined by actor, comedian, and content-creator, Charlotte Grimmer. Charlotte boasts over 200K followers across her platforms and has hit millions of views.We chat about graduating NIDA, her first video, performing her solo show in Edinburgh, sponsored-content, the creative process, and her upcoming Melbourne International Comedy Festival season.Follow Charlotte here.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon.Unlock on our online meet-ups and workshopsAccess weekly bonus episodesAccess the first 90 episodes of the podcastExclusive access to our discord and facebook groups  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on the podcast I'm joined by the Director of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, Susan Provan. Susan is an icon of the Australian comedy scene and it was great to get to chat with her. It's my first guest with an Order of Australia!Susan and I talk about the history of the Comedy Festival, how it's evolved over the years, programming, scouting, judging Raw Comedy, marketing, AI, and how she stays excited about the job.Tickets for the Melbourne International Comedy Festival are now on sale for 2026.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes along with the first 90 episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord communities, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

NYC comedian Myq Kaplan returns to the podcast this week to talk all about his new special RINI now available on Youtube. Myq Kaplan is an absolutely profilic comedian boasting more than 20 years of experiences and with appearances on Conan, Letterman, and Last Comic Standing (just to name a few.)We have a great chat about co-authoring a special, creating the perfect title for a show, promotion stamina, the nature of comedy, and lots more.Follow Myq.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I'm joined by the brilliant Dave Thornton. Dave has been crushing it in comedy for more than twenty years. You might know Dave from stand-up stages around the world, and all the iconic shows over the years from Rove Live to The Project. We chat about what motivated Dave to get into stand-up, the challenges of self-promotion, celebrating the wins, and his new stand-up special Nothing's Unpossible, available on Youtube. We also discuss what it's like to both have grandparents in the Dutch Resistance.Follow Dave here.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm joined by the brilliant Claire Robin from the multi-award winning show, Nun Slut. I chat to Claire about the development of the show, her relationship with clowning, acting school, keeping the show fresh, and what it's like to get recognition in the form of AWARDS!We also discuss the value of The Comedy Writers Group and the upcoming Comedy Writers Group Retreat coming up in January.Follow Claire here.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we're talking web-series with the creators of 'Til You Make It which has recently dropped on Youtube. I'm joined by actor Emma Choy, writer / actor Phillip Hayden, and producer Riley Sugars. We chat about how the show emerged, evolved, and how satisfying it is to put it out into the world.We also discuss the challenges of juggling work and parent life, and the hopes for the future of the series.You can watch all the episodes here and follow the behind-the-scenes on instagram.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm joined by actor, writer, producer, director, Casey Feigh all the way from LA. We chat about his hit show Holy Shit Improv and it's upcoming Australian tour. We get into Casey's surprising comedy origins, his passion for improv, his relationship with feedback, and what motivates him to produce shows.Follow Holy Shit Improv and get tickets to upcoming shows.Follow Casey.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

My guest this week is the brilliant Tim Batt. Tim is a comedian, podcaster, and producer. Podcast fans will know him from his cult-hit podcast The Worst Idea of All Time that he co-hosts alongside Guy Montgomery.We discuss making stuff for money versus making stuff for fun, the origins of his podcast, shooting a pilot in a sewer, and the preciousness of time as parent.Follow Tim Batt.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's time for another Group Workshop episode! I'm joined by Comedy Writers Group members: Mema, Phil, and Christopher to workshop some new material and tackle some challenging scenarios.We chat about how to approach performing outside, turning sandwiches into a story, and how boring sobriety can be. We also discuss the pre-show ritual and how we prepare for a show.Follow Mema.Follow Phil.Follow Chris.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm joined by the great Ray O'Leary (Thank God You're Here, Have You Been Paying Attention, Taskmaster NZ). We chat about how things changed when Ray put on the suit, starting out in Wellington, being stopped in the street, the value of setting goals, and the importance of persona.Follow Ray.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm joined by John Glover who you might know from the Sydney comedy scene, or from the world-wide phenomenon, Breaking The Musical. We chat about John leaving his full-time job for comedy, explore the Japanese philosophy of ikigai (the reason for being), his stand-up special , and how he plans to make the most of the next twelve months in his comedy career.Follow John.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm joined by the iconic Roz Hammond. You might know Roz from every brilliant Australian comedy from the past thirty years like The Dish, Muriel's Wedding, Mad as Hell, The Librarians, Full Frontal, or The Eric Bana Sketch Show.We chat about Roz's career, how she got started, how she persevered, and what led her to running public speaking workshops. I also gather the courage to tell Roz about my screenplay.Follow Roz.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm joined by comedian, musician, actor, Blake Everett. We chat about his latest project The Wham Bam Thankyou Jam, his children's theatre company, meeting his comedy heroes, and the value of having fun.Follow Blake.Follow The Wham Bam Thankyou Jam.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm joined by the brilliant Gen Fricker! We chat about Gen's return to stand-up, her love for Maria Bamford, her first directing experience, and what she has learned (and unlearned) from her fifteen years in comedy. It's a fantastic chat.Follow Gen.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's time for a Group Workshop episode! I'm joined by up-and-coming comedians (and CWG members) Maggie Baker, Marnie Mills, and Freya Morton for a comedy roundtable. We swap jokes, stories, and advice.We cover a lot of ground in this episode from how to end a story, dealing with heavy subject matter, structuring a show, and a whole lot of ADULTS ONLY content that will sound too strange outside of context.Follow Freya.Follow Marnie.Follow Maggie.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week's bonus episode I'm joined by Chris McAllister AKA The Trans Comedian (boasting 49.1K followers on instagram!) to chat about going into comedy full-time. We talk about the first gig, making stuff for the internet, we workshop a new joke, and more.Chris is a member of the CWG and I always love platforming our members. Catch Chris and a line-up of gender-diverse comedians at the Sydney Fringe. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm joined by the brilliant Daniel Connell (Have You Been Paying Attention, MICF Gala) to chat about his latest special Little Aussie Battler available to watch now on Youtube. We chat about Dan's fifteen years in stand-up, his relationship with bells and whistles, the value of management, and how he approaches filming his work.Follow Dan here.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week's bonus episode I'm joined by Bahaa Dabbagh to talk about turning his story as a refugee into a comedy show premiering at the Melbourne Fringe Festival.We chat about the gig that started it all, show development, the Melbourne open mic scene, community events and much more.Buy tickets to My Refugee Disorder here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm joined by returning guest Emma Leonard to chat about the premiere of her movie Zombucha at the Melbourne International Film Festival. We chatted about the writing of the screenplay way back on Episode 49! I'm also lucky to be joined by special guest co-host Eleanor Stankiewicz.We chat about how it feels to see your vision on the big screen, the development process, early reviews, creative relationships, test screenings, the next phase of making a movie, and a whole lot more.Follow Emma Leonard.Follow Eleanor Stankiewicz.Follow your host, Marcel Blanch-de Wilt.Follow The Comedy Writers Group on instagram and join the patreon to get weekly bonus episodes, 90+ episodes behind the paywall, access our exclusive facebook / discord, and come along to our weekly online writing and workshop sessions. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.