Our
Story
Little Smash Comedy grew out of a life spent around comedy rather than a business plan.
Founder Ross McGrane first stepped on stage at nine years old, performing stand-up in his parents’ living room. His dad had been running alternative comedy nights in the South East since the early 1990s, so comedy wasn’t something Ross discovered later on, it was always there. A “proper job” never really stood a chance.
Before becoming a performer himself, Ross spent over a decade promoting comedy shows, learning what actually makes a night work: how rooms behave, what audiences respond to, and why some gigs feel special while others quietly don’t. When he finally hit the circuit as a comic in 2013, he brought all of that with him.
Since then, Ross has worked across the UK an beyond, compering, opening and headlining, playing everywhere from small rooms to theatres of 1,600 people. He’s performed at many of the country’s best-known comedy venues, worked alongside some of the biggest names in stand-up, and supported Russell Kane on tour, who described him as “Awesome… the future of comedy.”
Little Smash Comedy began as Ross’s own monthly night in Southend originally set up simply to get stage time and quickly grew into something bigger. Built on good line-ups, confident hosting and nights that audiences trusted, it has since become a multiple national award-winning comedy club and one of the busiest nights of the week at Bar Up The Road.
Today, Little Smash Comedy brings that same approach to every show it runs: comedy that’s properly curated, professionally hosted and enjoyable for audiences, performers and venues alike. From intimate rooms to large-scale events and festivals, the focus is always the same, great comics, smooth nights, and comedy done the right way.
