Comedy School

It's Day One of Comedy School. Ten students meet their teacher, veteran comic Rob McHugh. Over the next month, he'll give them the secrets of stand-up comedy. What they don't know when they enrol is that to graduate, they must write their own stand-up routine and perform it on stage at Sydney's legendary Comedy Store. The students are 'ordinary people' drawn from all walks of life.

The first week's assignment is to research, write and perform a 90 second set in front of the class. The students put on their comedy goggles and look at their lives as they try to find laughs from their own truth and pain. Sonny looks at his own Aboriginal culture, Gonzo meets up with his ex-girlfriend, and Emma struggles to get humour out of her professional life as a fashion journalist.

Already the Comedy Store is less than two weeks away, and the pressure is on. Rose is in a meltdown. Emma, who isn't sleeping, throws up during class, and Linda doesn't know what she should be writing her routine about. In the midst of the chaos, Adam announces that he won't make it graduation night as he will be on his honeymoon.

Graduation night at the Comedy Store is just days away. The students are burning the midnight oil to get their routines into shape. Nerves are frayed, insomnia is rife, and teacher Rob spends day and night answering panic calls and emails. When the big night arrives, the pressure approaches boiling point.