A COMEDIAN from Bradford will be taking to the stage tomorrow as he aims to win a prestigious national comedy competition.

Ben Peel, from Wibsey, will be competing in the Gilded Balloon ‘So You Think You’re Funny?’ comedy contest, going up against other comedians at a show in London.

Past winners of the competition include comedic heavyweights such as Peter Kay, Lee Mack, Miles Jupp and David O’Doherty, and Mr Peel is hoping to follow in their footsteps tomorrow.

He will be taking to the stage at the Angel Comedy Club in London, where he will perform a seven-minute set hoping to impress the judges and have the crowd in raptures.

If successful, Ben will then head to another round of heats at the Gilded Balloon in Edinburgh during the Fringe Festival in August, before heading on to the grand final on August 24 at the Gilded Balloon Debating Hall in Bristo Square, Edinburgh.

If Ben, wins, he will receive a number of prizes, including a slot at the Fringe Festival and trips to perform at comedy festivals in Montreal, Canada, and Bergen, Norway.

Ben, 32, a former Buttershaw High School student, said when he first moved to London a year ago his aim was to pursue music rather than comedy.

“My friends had always told me to have a go at comedy, and when I got to London I had a list of things I wanted to achieve, and one of them was to do a stand-up show,” he said.

“I did it and put a video on Facebook, and in 48 hours it got more views than any of my music videos ever have.

“Since then I’ve done a few more shows and built up material, and I’ve been preparing for this heat compiling my best stuff.

“I did a show recently and the jokes went down really well, I got some work mates down for some honest advice and a comedy agent to give me some expert feedback. Hopefully I’ll impress the judges, to do well in this competition would help me get an agent and manager and make a career of it.”

Ben will also be compering the Bradford Drunken Film Festival which will take place in July, and said he is “really excited” to be involved with the event, after agreeing to host the festival last year.