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One of the country’s biggest comedy stars is to appear at Barnard Castle’s Funny Way to Be comedy club this Spring.

John Bishop will perform three shows at The Witham as part of a run of warm up shows for his fifth nationwide tour.

Three years after his last tour, Bishop will bring his brand new show Winging It to the Teesdale venue on Wednesday 19th April, Thursday 20th April, and Friday 21st April 2017.

Tickets for the three-night run go on sale on Friday 10th February at 10am, from Funny Way To Be’s website. Bishop’s last tour, Supersonic, was seen by over half a million people, and won huge critical acclaim.

Not only do the shows give comedy fans a rare chance to catch Bishop in a more intimate venue before he heads to arenas this winter, they mark a special anniversary for the club itself. Bishop’s opening night will mark Funny Way To Be’s 100th show.

Almost seven years since putting on its very first gig, Funny Way to Be Comedy Club has consistently brought the biggest names and best talent in comedy to fans in and around the small town of Barnard Castle.

In that time it has welcomed the likes of Russell Howard, Russell Kane, Mark Watson, Chris Ramsey, Lee Nelson, Jo Caulfield, Omid Djalili, Josie Long, Stephen K Amos and Jenny Eclair to its stage, hosted BBC4 recordings, and become a favourite tour stop for many of the country’s best-loved comics. And with the UK’s top-earning comic helping them ring in their first triple-digit show, the club shows no signs of getting complacent.

Bishop has achieved huge success in television, with a number of his own comedy, entertainment and documentary shows to his name, including John Bishop’s Australia, John Bishop’s Britain, John Bishop’s Only Joking, The John Bishop Show, The John Bishop Christmas Show, and John Bishop’s Gorilla Adventure.

A regular on A League of their Own, Bishop has also hosted The Royal Varity Performance, and in his new series John Bishop: In Conversation With… can be seen chin-wagging with top-flight celebrity names.

Peter Dixon, of Funny Way to Be said: “When we started Funny Way To Be Comedy Club around seven years ago, one of the key inspirations was seeing John Bishop playing in a number of small venues.

“In the few short months it took to get the club up and running, John had rocketed to super-stardom, and there seemed little chance that we could bring him to Barnard Castle.  So of course, we are beyond excited that he has chosen our club for his warm-up shows!”

Tickets are £20, and will be available online from funnywaytobe.com from 10am on Friday 10th February 2017. The show is suitable for ages 14+.