| Noël Coward Award for Best Entertainment or Comedy Play | |
|---|---|
| Awarded for | Best New Comedy |
| Location |  England |
| Presented by | Society of London Theatre |
| First award | 1976 |
| Currently held by | Titanique (2025) |
| Website | officiallondontheatre |
TheNoël Coward Award for Best Entertainment or Comedy Play is an annual award presented by theSociety of London Theatre in recognition of achievements inprofessional London theatre. The awards were established as the Society of West End Theatre Awards in1976, and renamed in1984 in honour of English actor and directorLaurence Olivier.
The award was titledComedy of the Year from its establishment in1976 until1990, was renamed toBest Comedy starting in1991,Best New Comedy starting in1999, then retitled to its current name for the2020 Olivier Awards – when "Entertainment" was moved to join Best Comedy Play from the Best Entertainment and Family award, which was renamedBest Family Show at that same time.
| Year | Play | Writer |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | ||
| Donkeys' Years | Michael Frayn | |
| The Bed Before Yesterday | Ben Travers | |
| Confusions | Alan Ayckbourn | |
| Funny Peculiar | Mike Stott | |
| 1977 | ||
| Privates on Parade | Peter Nichols | |
| Bedroom Farce | Alan Ayckbourn | |
| Once a Catholic | Mary O'Malley | |
| The Kingfisher | William Douglas-Home | |
| 1978 | ||
| Filumena | Eduardo De Filippo,Keith Waterhouse andWillis Hall | |
| Shut Your Eyes and Think of England | John Chapman andAnthony Marriott | |
| Ten Times Table | Alan Ayckbourn | |
| 1979 | ||
| Middle-Age Spread | Roger Hall | |
| Clouds | Michael Frayn | |
| Outside Edge | Richard Harris |
From this evening I must give the British people a very simple instruction — you must stay at home.
{{cite speech}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Step 4 of the roadmap will allow productions to play without capacity restrictions. June 21 was the goal; now, the government is eyeing July 19.
Any new production that opened between 19 Feb. 2020 to 22 Feb. 2022 are eligible for categories in the 2022 Olivier Awards. With two years worth of shows set for honours in one year's ceremony, the 2022 Olivier Awards will prove tougher competition than before.