History

The Comedy Box was founded by promoter Steve Lount in 1994 as a "side project" to what used to be known as the Venue Comedy Club, a fortnightly comedy night at the Watershed Media Centre promoted by Bristol's Venue Magazine. Below is a potted history of The Comedy Box since its launch:

• The Comedy Box first appeared on Wednesday 9th March 1994 at the Mauretania pub at the bottom of Park Street, Bristol. Opening night line-up featured Owen O'Neill, Noel James and Kev F. The first successful season ran for twelve weeks until its summer break.
• The Comedy Box planned to return in September of that year but the Mauretania closed suddenly with no warning. The race was on to find a new venue before the first scheduled show.
• The Comedy Box relocated to the Bristol Flyer pub on Gloucester Road in time for the new season. Opening night featured Martin Soan, Marc Blake and Kev F.
• The Comedy Box ran very successfully on Wednesdays for the next year, operating concurrently with the Venue Comedy Club.
• In May 1995, unknown Irish comic Graham Norton performed his first proper stand-up set at The Comedy Box. He was replacing previously scheduled American comic Scott Capurro.
• In September 1995, The Comedy Box launched Fresh Off The Fringe, a fortnight celebration of some the best shows from the Edinburgh Fringe in August. One of the shows featured was Bill Bailey's Cosmic Jam. Successful spin-offs from the fortnight were the Instant Wit improv comedy group who had a weekly residency at the Bristol Flyer on Saturdays, plus the Sitcom Trials, a development project launched by Comedy Box compere Kev F for new writers.
• Also in September 1995, Jesters Comedy Club launched one mile away on Cheltenham Road at what used to be called the Malaap Club, ironically the same venue where promoter Steve Lount ran a short run comedy night called The Laughing Hyena for eight weeks in 1993.
• In September 1996, The Comedy Box moved to Saturday nights offering a very different alternative to the nightclub-style Jesters. The move from Wednesdays to Saturdays proved to be very astute. New alternating compere with Kev F was Bristol University student Marcus Brigstocke. 
• In 1997 The Comedy Box was approached by the owners of the Bristol Flyer to set up a sister venue at their south Bristol pub the Hen & Chicken, which used to be home of the Show Of Strength theatre company. 
• On Thursday 12 March 1998 The Comedy Box launched its sister venue called The MadHouse Comedy Club at the Hen & Chicken. The MadHouse name was chosen to avoid confusion with The Comedy Box, and to pacify the landlord of the Bristol Flyer who was instrumental in the success of The Comedy Box at the Bristol Flyer. The opening night of The MadHouse featured Simon Bligh, Mitch Benn and Kev F. The first season also featured relative newcomer Peter Kay of Phoenix Night's fame.
• In 2000 The Comedy Box was given notice to quit the Bristol Flyer by its new owners who wanted to turn the pub into a gastro pub with a no entertainment policy, including no sports, no pool and no live music or comedy in the upstairs function room. Last show at the Bristol Flyer in November featured Boothby Graffoe, Steve Rawlings, Ira Rainey and the compere was Justin Lee Collins.
• Meanwhile, over at the Hen & Chicken in Bedminster, The MadHouse Comedy Club had been running into difficulties with various relief managers and greater difficulties with getting decent audiences. The Hen & Chicken had a reputation as a rough pub at the time and MadHouse customers were reluctant to step into the pub. It was becoming increasingly difficult to keep The MadHouse afloat. Only a controversial sponsorship arrangement with Imperial Tobacco's Lambert & Butler kept the club going, but this had ended in 2000.
• The MadHouse Comedy Club almost departed the Hen & Chicken until the owners stepped in and brought in new trouble-shooting manager Mike Jones to clean up the place.
• In September 2001 The MadHouse Comedy Club name was dropped in favour of The Comedy Station, but in the following year this name was also dropped in preference for The Comedy Box, which turned out to be a very popular move.
• In November 2003 national comedy club chain Jongleurs opened in Baldwin Street.
• In March 2004 The Comedy Box commemorated ten years of independent operation with a three night run from Al Murray The Pub Landlord and one night from Dara O'Briain. All four nights sold out very quickly.
• In February 2006 the Hen & Chicken was put on the market by owners Punch Taverns. The future of The Comedy Box was again in the balance. Promoter Steve Lount started to look for a new venue, even considering taking on a twenty year lease of a small nightclub in Park Street.
• After a series of non-starters the Hen & Chicken was finally sold in June 2007 to pub operators Westcountry Inns who were attracted to the idea of a comedy club operating out of the pub. In anticipation of the sale to supportive owners, The Comedy Box doubled its operation to Fridays and Saturdays plus occasional other nights.
• Since September 2007 The Comedy Box has had its most successful season to date and its future looks more secure than ever. Comedians such as Mark Watson, Mark Thomas, Frankie Boyle, Richard Herring, Brendon Burns, Jason Byrne, Stephen K Amos and Milton Jones have played in the last year and on March 14 and 15 The Comedy Box celebrated ten years at the Hen & Chicken with Mitch Benn, the musical and satirical comic who started it all off for us at the Hen & Chicken back in 1998.