Could you be the next Michael McIntyre? Jimmy Carr? Billy Connelly?

Workshops are planned for Halifax Comedy Festival to help people find their inner comic, learn the art of clowning around or sharpen their art skills.

Could you be the next Jimmy Carr?
Could you be the next Jimmy Carr?

The classes give festival visitors a chance to put themselves in the performers' shoes — and even test their new skills on a live audience.

With workshops for all ages, we've got all the details you need.

Here's 9 workshops to try at Halifax Comedy Festival:

Stage Fright Comedy Workshop

Saturday October 24, The Workshop, 10am-5pm, £30, 16+

If you've ever fancied entering the stand-up business, this is the workshop for you. The day-long course will help you to find your inner comic with guidance on creating and performing material, getting gigs and getting noticed! Refreshments will be provided throughout the day. Places are limited.

Do Your Thing! Open Mic Night

Friday October 30, The Workshop, 7pm, Free event but booking required

Show off your inner comic
Show off your inner comic

This is the festival's sole open mic night, and a chance for new comics to introduce themselves! All you have to do is turn up and do your thing. The audience will be asked to pay what they feel is right for the gig at the end of the show, with all donations supporting The Workshop.

Drawing to Stories

Saturday October 25, The Artworks 1830 Gallery (Shaw Lodge Mills), 12pm-1.30pm, £5 adults £3 concessions, all ages and abilities welcome

Combining improvised storytelling with a drawing class, the Drawing to Stories workshop will take you on a weird and wonderful journey through the Wild West where the audience's drawings and characters drive the plot.

Nose to Nose Workshop

Wednesday October 28, The Orangebox Young People's Centre, 10am-12.15pm, £5 £2.50 concessions, age 11-14

Clown around at the Nose to Nose workshop
Clown around at the Nose to Nose workshop

Kids will love this introductory workshop to the world of clowning. It's said we all have a clown inside — whether silly, serious, simple or tragic — and this class can help youngsters to find theirs. Suitable for children aged 11-14.

Improvisation workshop

Friday October 30, The Orangebox Young People's Centre, 10am-12.15pm, £5, £2.50 concessions, ages 14-18

This beginner's workshop introduces 14 to 18-year-old to the world of improvised drama through exercises and games. The class will teach the basic rules of improv and help teens learn how to create memorable work out of nowhere!

Talk and Draw

Saturday October 31, The Artworks 1830 Gallery (Shaw Lodge Mills), 12pm-1.30pm, £5 adults £3 concessions, all ages and abilities welcome

Grab your pencils for Talk and Draw
Grab your pencils for Talk and Draw

Explore your drawing and communication skills in this creative workshop. The format is simple: one person draws, the other talks, describing what they see. But — talkers must describe without naming, and drawers must draw what they hear, with confusing, often hilarious results!

Stand up for Children, workshop and performance

Friday October 30, The Workshop, 1pm onwards, £5 for workshop, £8 for performance

A Halifax first, Stand up for Children allows youngsters to take part in a fun workshop exploring stand up comedy, before allowing them to perform live on stage!

The workshop will run 1pm-2.30pm, and costs £5 (adults go free). The performance will be held at 3pm — tickets to watch cost £8 for adults, 11 for children. Recommended for children aged six and above.

Story Theatre Workshops/Performance

Sunday October 25, Victoria Theatre, 11.30am onwards, £5 for workshop, £6 children/£3 adults for performance

Join The Story Witch for workshops exploring the art of telling stories, creating characters and describing situations. The workshops run 11.30am-12.30pm and 2pm-3pm, and cost £5 per child for one workshop, £4 each for two workshops (adults go free).

Then enjoy a storytelling performance at 3.30pm, full of comic characters, strange happenings and magical worlds. Tickets cost £6 for children, £3 for adults.

Or see the Storytelling performance and attend both workshops for £14 (children) and £3 (adults).

Spooky Halloween Workshop

Friday October 30, Victoria Theatre Green Room Bar, 11.30am-1pm, £5 children, adults free

Claudia aged 4 and Annabella aged 2, dressed as witches

There's a witches' brew bubbling at the Victoria Theatre! This fun Halloween workshop teaches youngsters all about spooky witches and how children trick and defeat them.

Here's a guide to the Halifax Comedy Festival venues — including a map

To find out how to book tickets, click here