The winners of Dave's Leicester Comedy Festival Awards 2015 have been announced this evening at a ceremony at the Grand Hotel in Leicester. The Legend of Comedy Award, which is voted for by festival goers and readers of the Leicester Mercury, was awarded to Rik Mayall and was accepted by Alexei Sayle.

Sayle – pictured with Festival Director Geoff Rowe – said of his friend, who died suddenly in 2014, “It was such a terrible shock when he died. Awards like this continue to keep his memory alive”.

All shows listed in the office festival guide are checked for eligibility. Every eligible show is seen by members of the awards panel in combination with members of the admin team and carefully selected scouts. The Awards panel is made up of previous panelists, people working in comedy and comedy fans from all over the country.

Geoff Rowe said “Our annual Awards Ceremony has become an important part of the Festival as we say a huge thank you to everyone who has been involved.  The festival has become a place where new talent can get spotted as well as an opportunity for us to recognise great British comedy performers.  Recent tributes have paid respect to Sir Norman Wisdom & Ken Dodd and this year it was a chance for us to acknowledge Rik Mayall, who truly deserves the title of Legend of Comedy.”

The full results are as follows:

Legend of Comedy Award - Rik Mayall

The winner of Best New Show was previous Leicester Mercury Comedian of the Year Romesh Ranganathan and the award for Best Festival Debut went to Phil Jerrod for his innovative stream-of-consciousness style, inspired by a cruel and harsh upbringing in Middle-class rural Warwickshire.

Nick Wisdom, son of the late great comedy icon Norman Wisdom, walked off with the Contribution to the 2015 Festival award for his lovingly curated exhibition (‘A Lifetime in Showbusiness: A Tribute to Sir Norman Wisdom’) which took place during the festival and celebrated the life and work of his father. 

Lynn Ruth Miller won the Liberty Award, which is decided by performers and members of the public tweeting about their favourite show.

Here are the other awards:

Best Venue (over 200 capacity)

Curve 

Best Venue (under 200 capacity)

The Cookie

Best Promoter

The Cookie                                                                 

Make Me Happy Community Project

Leicester City Libraries

Best Poster

Paul Banks, Peril Design

Lifetime Contribution

Lucy Bloomfield, Reach Marketing