Amy Schumer

Sarah Silverman

Amy Poehler

Melissa McCarthy

Hannah Gadsby

Ali Wong

Tina Fey

Ellen DeGeneres

Here's a list of some of the funniest women in the frontline of comedy in the western world:

Ali Wong Shutterstock

Tina Fey YouTube/Saturday Night Live

Hannah Gadsby Shutterstock

Sarah Silverman Shutterstock

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Melissa McCarthy Shutterstock

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Ellen DeGeners Image: celebrityabc/Flickr

With two Oscar nominations to her name, McCarthy has been one of the biggest names in the world of comedy, and a rare talent who is equally effective in churning out a physical gag as she is in delivering a winner line. She’s been lauded for her ability to mine laughs even out of mediocre material and her improvisational skills are perhaps the best in the business. She is a hoot when it comes to mimicry — she channels American political aide Sean Spicer like second skin — and has shown what she can bring to a comedy role in a film, The Heat to Spy to the reboot of Ghostbusters.

One Netflix special — Hannah Gadsby: Nanette in 2017 — is what it took for its eponymous star to become an overnight sensation and the freshest voice in the global comedy scene. Nanette, that had the now 42-year-old Australian female comedian largely mine her own life to come up with a sparkling, and often scathing, social commentary on LGBTQ rights and mental illness, marked a whole new territory in modern comedy, helping it transition from raw humour to evocative storytelling, punctuated by a searing honesty the stand-up scene had rarely seen before. Her new show Douglas may not be as compelling as Nanette, but is effective in the manner it takes a hammer to patriarchy. Bottomline: anything Gadsby comes up with, we will watch. At least once.

Mentored by comedian Chris Rock, Alexandra ‘Ali’ Wong has quite a few credits to her name, including being a part of Inside Amy Schumer. But it’s her two smash-hit Netflix specials — Baby Cobra and Hard Knock Wife — that have established the 37-year-old as a name to reckon with. She filmed Baby Cobra when she was seven-plus months pregnant and is known to talk about issues — uncomfortable, bordering on the raunchy, would be a good way to put it — that others normally avoid. Her take on the advantage of being a female comic? “Most standup comics are male. You know what male comics can’t do? They can’t get pregnant. They can’t perform pregnant. So my attitude is, just use all those differences. Don’t think of it as you’re oppressed”. You go, girl!

Responsible for inspiring an entire generation of women to take up comedy as both passion and profession, Ellen DeGeneres needs no introduction. The creator and host of The Ellen Show is a tour de force in the world of comedy, her trademark straight-faced humour ensuring laughs for over three decades. Ellen’s ability to say it as it is is her biggest strength as a comedian, something that she’s used to great effect in hosting some of the most prestigious award shows, Oscar to Grammy. She took a break from stand-up comedy for 15 years, returning with the Netflix special Relatable in 2018. As expected, it was vintage Ellen. And yes, we want more.

A strong sense of relatability and the ability to show herself just as she is is Amy Schumer’s biggest pull as a comedian. Best known for creating and starring in the Comedy Central sketch series Inside Amy Schumer (a show that established her as a bold political satirist), the 38-year-old’s strength lies in her ability to flip the script when it comes to femininity. Gun laws to birth control to Hollywood’s treatment of aging women, Schumer has attacked it all with her trademark caustic humour, even showing that women comedians are bankable box-office propositions — her 2015 Holly debut Trainwreck, that she wrote and starred in, was a surprise but bonafide summer hit that year.

The American stand-up comedian addresses social taboos such as racism, sexism, politics, and religion, using both satire and deadpan to render her sets effectively. Starting off as a writer and performer on Saturday Night Live, the 49-year-old comedian is a name that spells serious business, given her strong views on politics in the modern world and the way she unflinchingly uses them in her comedy. And yes, she’s also won two Primetime Emmy Awards.

Wearing multiple hats of actress, comedian, writer, producer and director, 48-year-old Poehler has been a leading figure in the stand-up comedy scene. After studying improv, she went on to found the improvisational comedy troupe Upright Citizens Brigade in the early 1990s. Poehler may be best known for her winning portrayal of Leslie in the NBC sitcom Parks and Recreation, but it’s on stage and in front of the mic that she’s in top form, both humorous and hard-hitting with her coming-of-age stories and her sets on feminism.

A prolific comedian, writer and actress, Elizabeth Stamatina aka Tina Fey earned her comedic stripes churning out winner sketches on Saturday Night Live and then creating the iconic series 30 Rock, in which she starred as the inimitable Liz Lemon. Breaking into the stand-up comedy scene close to three decades ago, the 49-year-old’s main strength lies in her sharp and satirical writing. Her mimicry of US politician Sarah Palin is the stuff of legend, and she has nine Primetime Emmy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, five Screen Actors Guild Awards, and seven Writers Guild of America Awards to illustrate her talent. She’s been a hoot every time she’s walked on to stage to host the Golden Globe Awards, friend and fellow comic Amy Poehler for company.