Description
Bristol Improv are the University of Bristol’s improvised comedy society. We host shows, workshops, events, and socials featuring improv comedy! Our aim is to build a fun and exciting comedy community for students here at the University, with no previous experience required!
You can see us in action at our free student comedy night 'Dynamite!' ("thoroughly entertaining" - Epigram) on the third Thursday of every month, showcasing the very best of local stand up and improvised comedy! Our next Dynamite will be in September, so come along for a fantastic taste of what Bristol Improv is all about. Thursday 17th September, Bristol Folk House, 7:45pm-9:30pm. It’s free!
Workshops
Our weekly workshops are very relaxed, allowing attendees to participate in warmups, scenes and short improv games, or just sit, watch and enjoy! They're accessible and inclusive, it doesn't matter if you're looking to get started in comedy, want to build your rapport as an actor or just want to get involved in something new and build your confidence. Run by our amazing committee members, these themed workshops run during term time and are generally on a Wednesday, 6:00-8:00pm in the Stephenson Room (Richmond Building). Check out our Instagram page for more information!
Shows
Throughout the year we put on a huge variety of shows, from nights of fast-paced, quick-witted improv games to fully improvised plays! We have at least one show every single month, so there’s always something to get involved in, whether you’ve never stepped on a stage before or you’re a seasoned improviser. With no auditions, no scripts, and few rehearsals, you’d be hard pressed to find an easier performance society to get involved in! To see what we’re getting up to, check out our webpage, where you'll find updated ticket links alongside links to anything else important happening.
We place a particular focus on creating performance opportunities for those historically underrepresented in improv – while everyone is always welcome to perform in our regular shows, we also put on an annual Women and Marginalised Gender show in March!
This year we’re also expecting to put on the second annual Bristol Student Comedy Festival, featuring multiple nights of stand-up and improv acts from students across the country. Get excited! You can see what we got up to last year on the Festival’s dedicated Instagram.
The following is just a taste of the shows we have put on in the past couple years:
- ‘Night of the Laughing Dead’: Featuring a 50 minute improvised gothic horror play.
- ‘The Brothers Grimprov’: Our fantastic 2025 Edinburgh Fringe show involving improvised fairytales.
- ‘I’m an Improviser – Get me Out Of Here!’: An improvised reality tv show
- An improvised superhero play at the Bristol Student Comedy Festival!
- ‘Love… Actually?’: An improvised mockumentary about love.
- ‘Ghouls Just Wanna Have Fun’: an improvised 80s slasher!
Socials
We put on tons of exciting socials throughout of the year to help you unwind and get to know your fellow improvisers! In the past, we've had a wide range of events, including board game café trips, improv 'jams' at the local improv theatre, movie nights, watching live improv shows together, a winter formal, karaoke nights, playing the classic game of sardines, joining in on Revunions' famous Taskmaster night, watching other student performances, cycling from Bristol to Bath together, chill café meetups, and post-show pub trips! You can expect many of these to be back this year, plus an array of fun new socials, and we'll always listen to what you want to do. There's something for everyone!
Membership
You can buy membership here on our SU page. It's only £5, and will allow you to come to all our regular workshops, enable you to perform in Dynamite, our seasonal shows, and Edinburgh Fringe, give you access to exciting socials, and let you purchase discounted tickets to all Improv and Revunions shows! We ask that anyone who attends more than a couple of workshops purchases this membership to support the society and allow us to keep putting on workshops, shows, and socials. It's also worth buying membership if you just want to watch us and Revunions perform - the discount on show tickets will pay for the membership within a couple of shows so it's a great deal!
Why try improv?
Our members have all kinds of motivations for joining us – here are a few reasons you might want to give it a go:
- Improv builds confidence, making you more comfortable in front of an audience, in public speaking and in presentations.
- Playing improv games is fun! Adults don’t get enough opportunities to play, be imaginative, work together with others, and experience a bit of childlike joy.
- If you’re an actor or performer, developing improv skills can greatly help in your craft!
- Our society is super friendly, welcoming and inclusive. Join us and find your new home at university!
Even if you don’t want to do improv long-term, our workshops are a great place for new students to meet new people, unwind and build their confidence in the busy and overwhelming world that is university life. But don’t just take it from us – this is what our members in 25/26 said about the society!
‘Bristol Improv has made me feel like I'm part of a community at university. The committee work extremely hard to ensure that every week, members are welcomed to an inclusive and no-pressure environment where they can relax and take some time away from the stresses of university life.’
‘Meeting so many like minded people is amazing :)’
‘So many opportunities to perform and develop performance skills! And everyone is so lovely, friendly, and supportive.’
‘It is a really fun break from the rest of my life, I can go and be silly in a safe space for 2 hours or more every week.’
Get in touch
If you have any questions about our society, feel free to email us at improvbristol@gmail.com, pop us a DM on our Instagram page, or come along to one of our Give it a Go sessions!
Give it a Go sessions are free with no membership required, and allow you to try out improv in a supportive environment, meet our committee, and see what our society is all about!
Our next introductory Give it a Go sessions will be during Welcome in September - stay tuned for further details, but you can expect them to be running during our usual weekly slot (6pm-8pm, Wednesday, Stephenson Room).
We also have a Whatsapp community! We don't share a link to this group online to avoid scammers, but come to any workshop or social and one of the committee will be happy to add you to the group. This is where you can find the most up-to-date information about society workshops, events and socials, ask any questions you have, and chat about all things improv!
2026/27 Bristol Improv Committee:
President - Katie Schofield
Vice President - Andrew Innes
Secretary - Alek Hart
Treasurer - Manny Punter
Equality & Access Officer/Wellbeing Champion - Holly Cooper
Dynamite! Rep - Gabriel Cornell
Publicity Officer - Holly Cooper
Social Secretary - Holly Cooper
Contact Us
Email: improvbristol@gmail.com
Bristol Improv - where every General Meeting comes with free trifle!
Terms and conditions
Click here to view terms and conditions
Membership Fee Inclusions
Prior to signing up to a Club or Society speak to the Committee to find out what your membership includes and if there are any further expenses throughout the year.
Service Standards
All Club or Society members can expect to receive:
- The opportunity to attend regular meetings, events, activities, trips and socials as arranged.
- The opportunity to stand for a committee position or vote in their elections (Bristol students only).
- For Sports Club – to attend regular training sessions and have the opportunity to be selected for the teams.
Code of Conduct
When joining a club or society you are agreeing to abide by the constitution, general rules, regulations and policies of University of Bristol Students’ Union and also the Club or Society Code of Conduct which sets out the level of behaviour & discipline expected of all Club & Society members.
Refund Policy
Any customer who pays for a membership subscription to a Bristol SU Society, Sports Club, Student Media and initiatives has a 14 day cooling off period from the time and date of purchase during which they have the right to cancel the subscription and receive a full refund. If you do decide to cancel within the 14 days, Bristol SU will refund your payment within a further 30 days of the cancellation. To request a refund please email: bristolsu@bristol.ac.uk
Data sharing (Sports Club members only)
Please be aware that Bristol SU may share data relating to the members of its sports clubs with the Centre for Sport, Exercise and Health (a department of the University). This information may be used for the purposes of communicating direct with these members and/or to cross-reference against SEH's Sports Pass membership records.
As part of Bristol SU's membership of British Universities & Colleges Sports (BUCS) Bristol SU may have to share data on to its sports clubs members so BUCS can, from time to time, communicate with these members.
Data sharing (Societies members only)
If you're joining one of the societies listed below please be aware that your name and email address will be shared with Bristol Hub for the purpose of keeping you up to date with their activities through their email “The Week”:
AIESEC Bristol, AMICUS Bristol, Anti-Slavery Society, Bristol Feminists, Bristol Friends of MSF, Bristol Marrow, Bristol Social Enterprise Society, Bristol Student Action for Refugees, Bristol University Amnesty International, Conservation Group, Bristol University Oxfam Group, Bristol University Sustainability Team, Bristol Volunteers for Development Abroad, Engineers Without Borders, Howard League for Penal Reform Student Society, International Affairs Society, Medsin Bristol, Model United Nations, and Vegetarian and Vegan Society.
For more information on Bristol Hub visit: http://www.bristolhub.org.
If you do not want your details shared with the Hub please email: bristolsu@bristol.ac.uk.
These terms shall be governed by English law and are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts. Nothing in these terms shall exclude liability for fraudulent misrepresentation.
