Melanie Bracewell

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. She has worked 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 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 performed a special encore of her show ‘Ohh La La’ at The Athenaeum in Melbourne and returned to Australian screens with Season 3 of ‘Cheap Seats.

Furthermore, Melanie returned to New Zealand to host the prestigious New Zealand Comedy Festival Gala and toured her show, ‘Forget Me Not’, to sold out audiences and premiering on YouTube in April 2024. Melanie also toured the show to the renowned Just for Laughs festival in Montreal.

Additionally, Melanie adds a new dimension to her already impressive career by contributing her writing talents to the acclaimed series ‘Time Bandits’ as an Executive Story Editor and Series Writer.

Building on this success, Melanie was the winner of Taskmaster NZ 2023 and in 2024 will tour the UK, and her new show, ‘The Attack of the Melanie Bracewell’ through Australia and New Zealand, solidifying her status as a rising star on the international comedy circuit.