The Irish Arts Council has made a committment to support comedy in the future.

Following strong lobbying from the industry to recognise stand-up comedy as a legitimate art form, the Irish Arts Council has said in their 2026 funding Schedule "We are committed to making additional supports available for comedy and comedians in upcoming funding rounds, enhancing our existing support through Multidisciplinary Arts Bursaries and the Agility Award, as well as the platforming of comedy through our funding of festivals and arts centres."

This will place comedy on the same footing as all genres of music, including country music, popular music, electronic music, jazz, improvised music and musical theatre, through funding schemes and other development programmes.

No further details have been revealed but the funding schedule for 2026 as well as details of how to apply can be found here.