MELANIE BRACEWELL

 
 

BIOGRAPHY

Comedian / Writer / Host

Melanie Bracewell has quickly carved out a path in the comedy scene with her impressive list of credits, showing she has a writing skill set well beyond her years. Bracewell has worked as a writer on all three seasons of the smash hit show ‘Wellington Paranormal’ - from the minds of Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi. She wrote full episodes covering everything from an out-of-touch 1930s ghost cop haunting the Mt. Victoria tunnel to ferocious alien plants that abduct cows. In 2021, Melanie won ‘Best Script: Comedy’ for an episode of ‘Wellington Paranormal’ at the NZ Television awards.

From the moment she took the microphone for the first time, Melanie has been in hot demand, performing regularly in both in Australia and New Zealand. A popular contestant on ‘Have You Been Paying Attention’, she has managed to convince the Australian public to look past her accent and realise she’s bloody funny (even if she is a kiwi) and in 2021, Melanie Bracewell became the co-host of the new Network 10 series, ‘The Cheap Seats’.

There are very few successful New Zealand comedy shows that Melanie hasn’t been a part of. She’s contributed as a writer on 7 Days, Have You Been Paying Attention (NZ) and Mean Mums all while performing award-winning shows all around the country. 

Other notable performances include opening for Jim Gaffigan, Norah Jones - yes, she really did comedy before a Norah Jones concert - and performing at a pro showcase with some real heavy hitters at the Gotham Comedy Club in New York. 

If you haven’t seen her on the stage or the screen yet, you’ve probably at least seen one of her tweets. They pop up everywhere, from Buzzfeed, to Playboy (the funny bits not the nude bits) and even The New York Times. She also reached worldwide fame when her impressions of Jacinda Ardern went viral, the story was covered by The Guardian and the BBC.

Finally, Bracewell also is an experienced radio announcer, working at the popular radio station ‘Radio Hauraki’ for 6 years, both as a producer and an announcer with her own weekend show. 

In 2021, Melanie moved to Australia and had a sell-out season of ‘The Rumours Are True’ at Melbourne International Comedy Festival winning the Director’s Choice Award.

In 2022, Melanie toured through Australia with her show, ‘Ooh La La’ and returned with with Season 2 of ‘Cheap Seats’ on Network 10, that was nominated for ‘Most Popular Comedy Program’ at the TV Week Logie Awards. Furthermore, Melanie was also nominated for Graham Kennedy Award for ‘Most Popular New Talent’.

In 2023, Melanie Bracewell claimed victory on Taskmaster NZ, delivered a special encore performance of her hit show Ohh La La at Melbourne's Athenaeum Theatre, and made a much-anticipated return to Australian screens with Season 3 of Cheap Seats.

Melanie also hosted the prestigious New Zealand Comedy Festival Gala, and took her show Forget Me Not on a sold-out tour across New Zealand, culminating with a standout performance at the renowned Just for Laughs festival in Montreal.

Expanding her creative repertoire, Melanie lent her writing expertise as an Executive Story Editor and Series Writer on Season 1, Episode 5 for the highly anticipated series Time Bandits.

Continuing her momentum into 2024, Melanie embarked on a successful UK tour with Forget Me Not, releasing the show on YouTube. She then followed up with her latest hit, The Attack of the Melanie Bracewell, which sold out across Australia, New Zealand, and Edinburgh.

In 2025, Melanie will return to screens with Season 5 of Cheap Seats and episode of QI and will be back on stage with a UK tour.

REVIEWS
“Melanie’s at the top of her game, using an almost unbelievable experience as the foundation for a fantastic hour of comedy.”
Scenestr

“The queen of well-earned callbacks and a master of wordplay, Bracewell’s always one step ahead of her audience.”
The Age

“Punchlines for days” 
Sydney Morning Herald

"A master of the stage”
STUFF.CO.NZ

"Amusing extrapolations interspersed with snappy one-liners are fashioned into a blitzing, clever, supremely satisfying set.”  ★★★★½
The Age

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