THE laughter erupting from Halesowen’s Cornbow Hall on Saturday night must have forced the DJ at Swankys to crank the volume up a notch or two.

Hundreds of people packed into the town centre venue for the first Comedy at The Cornbow event and the atmosphere was electric.

The show was a sell-out so the pressure was on for the three acts to deliver - and they didn’t disappoint.

First up was the likeable Alun Cochrane, who kicked off with tales of being a grumpy dad and his desperate bid to enforce the no eating in the car rule before finishing his set with musings about religion, Brexit and Trump.

With the crowd warmed up it was time for quirky Brummie comedienne Jo Enright to take to the stage.

She dazzled with her hilarious observations about her hometown Erdington and becoming an older mom.

By the time headliner Tom Stade stepped on stage, the crowd were well and truly ready - the cheers and applause were deafening before he'd even opened his mouth.

And as the Canadian’s set got into full swing, the cheers got louder - easily the loudest of the night - as mocked frugal Midlanders, shared the perils of his 18-year-old daughter bringing friends home and revealed that he got more than he bargained for during a drinking session with his son.

The show, which was compered by Dudley’s own Wayne Beese, was thoroughly enjoyable and it was great to see so many people support the launch.

The only downside was the queue for the bar - a teething problem that Beese has vowed to get sorted for the next show.

I can see Comedy at The Cornbow going from strength to strength and would urge comedy fans to join the mailing list at www.funnybeeseness.co.uk to find out first about future shows.