Recent Acclaim for Stand-Up
“the most topically incisive impersonator on the block…exemplary in its vocal accuracy and political acumen. It’s laugh-a-minute stuff, underpinned by the kind of wisdom and natural resilience our leaders could learn from. He was always impressive, but he deserves his inevitable standing-ovation as never before.”
Dominic Cavendish, The Daily Telegraph ★★★★★
“flying the flag for satire…succeeds in seamlessly weaving together the personal and the political in a meaty hour of impressions, gags and reflections. Forde is brilliant…so much to admire here. But you come away admiring the man as much as the performer”
Mark Wareham, Mail On Sunday ★★★★★
“outstanding…nobody else serving up party-political humour at this level…the greatest set piece of the evening, perhaps the best routine in town. Stunning.”
Dominic Maxwell, The Times ★★★★
2nd May 2025 – Leading political comedian Matt Forde (The Royal Variety Performance, Spitting Image, Have I Got News For You, British Scandal) is set to host The Matt Forde Focus Group, his first series for BBC Radio 4. Launching on Thursday 22nd May at 6.30pm, the 6 x 28” political comedy series will see Matt raid his contacts list, convening his own personal Focus Group of politicians, comedians and experts to examine the most pertinent contemporary issues of the day and their underlying themes.
Matt Forde said: “This is a show I’ve wanted to make for ages. As well as being a good laugh, it will be an antidote to hearing the same old voices having the same old arguments. I want to showcase intelligent, impassioned people who can also laugh at themselves – and, where appropriate, at each other”
Meanwhile, in Matt’s Political Party podcast which he has hosted since 2013, he brings Parliament to life through stand-up and lively debate with some of politics’ most powerful figures, including Keir Starmer, Nicola Sturgeon, Tony Blair, Jacob Rees-Mogg, Angela Rayner, Michael Heseltine, Anthony Scaramucci, Alastair Campbell, Gordon Brown and Gary Neville. After an 18-month hiatus due to his bone cancer diagnosis, Matt has resumed his West End residency of the live edition and will record three live episodes at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, with guests to be announced. The show has amassed over 11 million downloads, earned multiple nominations from award bodies including the British Podcast Awards and Chortle Awards, and is regularly featured as a top podcast pick in the press.
Elsewhere in the world of audio, Matt co-hosts Wondery’s flagship British Podcast Award-winning British Scandal alongside Alice Levine, as well as the Down The Dog podcast with Jon Richardson. He also presents Rock ‘n’ Roll Football, a weekly show on Absolute Radio.
Matt is currently on his biggest tour to date with his stand-up show, The End of an Era Tour, which was heralded the best-reviewed Edinburgh Festival Fringe comedy show (topping 1,638 others, per the British Comedy Guide). This August, he will return to the Fringe with a new hour Defying Calamity, in which he explores finding positivity in life despite the rising tide of populism in the UK, the actions of Donald Trump, and his own ongoing health battles.
Matt has written and voiced characters including Boris Johnson, Keir Starmer and Donald Trump for Spitting Image (BritBox/ITV). He has hosted four series of Unspun with Matt Forde on Dave, receiving several nominations at the Broadcast Digital Awards, and has numerous other broadcast credits including: Have I Got News For You (BBC One), The Royal Variety Performance (ITV), Mock The Week (BBC Two), 8 out of 10 Cats (Channel 4), Hypothetical (Dave) Rory Bremner’s Coalition Report and Rory Bremner’s Election Report (BBC Two), Question Time (BBC One), This Week (BBC One), Newsnight (BBC Two) and Daily Politics (BBC Two).
The Matt Forde Focus Group is an Avalon production. Executive Producer is Jon Thoday for Avalon. Producer is Richard Garvin. The Commissioning Editor is Julia McKenzie for BBC Radio 4.
The Matt Forde Focus Group first airs on Thursday 22nd May at 6.30pm on BBC Radio 4 and BBC Sounds.
For further information and publicity enquiries, please contact Victoria Wedderburn at [email protected] / 07557160139 and Chloe Waterhouse at [email protected]. Please copy the Radio 4 press office (Frances Kordonowy, Publicist, Radio 4 Comedy – [email protected]).
Notes to Editors:
What the Press Have Said About Matt Forde’s Previous Shows
“Demand to see Forde in action at the Pleasance outstrips supply – the place is rammed…While Forde has plenty to chew on, there’ll surely be much more that’s fresh – and more appetite in us, too – once we head into the election year, when by rights he should be playing to arenas”
Dominic Cavendish, The Daily Telegraph
“our foremost satirical stand-up…Whatever your politics, you’ll find excellence here”
★★★★ Stephen Armstrong, The Sunday Times
“tremendous performance, encapsulating the politics of modern day Britain”
★★★★★ Lewis McKenzie, The Herald
“Possibly the best political comedy show on the Fringe”
★★★★★ Dominic Cavendish, The Telegraph
“Forde is as gratifyingly sane as comedians come… smart, funny ideas”
★★★★ Dominic Maxwell, The Times
“the excellent Matt Forde…even more accurate than Starmer’s needling voice”
Lloyd Evans, The Spectator
“Is there a better political comic than Matt Forde currently working in the UK? I can’t think of another to touch him”
★★★★½ Jay Richardson, Chortle
“Matt Forde never fails with his state-of-the-nation address, a mix of bang-on-the-money political takedowns and spot-on impressions”
★★★★ Mark Wareham, Mail On Sunday
