UNDER THE RADARPete Dennehy, Jongleurs Comedy Ireland

PETE DENNEHY likes to joke that comedy for him and his business partner Tim Stone is no laughing matter. In fact, for the two men, comedy is going to be a very serious business in the coming year. They've just launched Jongleurs Comedy Ireland, which aims to bring top-notch comedy acts to every corner of Ireland.

"Comedy is great and very funny, but you have to make the euros from it," says Dennehy.

But to make a few euro you have to spend a few first, and Dennehy and Stone are investing €200,000 setting up the Irish franchise of Jongleurs, which is the largest comedy network in the world, with a reach from London to Hong Kong.

"We acquired the IP for Jongleurs for use in the Republic plus also an option for Northern Ireland," says Dennehy, a commercial consultant in the leisure and media sector, which has seen him develop expansion plans for nightclub operators in the UK, manage the commercial interests of individuals in sport, the arts and entertainment, and advise on strategy and change for UK media organisations.

"It took a fair bit of work to land the world's biggest comedy company into Ireland, so we are matching that up with a serious strategic five-year plan." Despite the success of festivals such as the Cat Laughs in Kilkenny, Dennehy says Ireland has largely been under-served in terms of live comedy, and that there is a gap in the market for good quality live comedy, particularly in the larger towns and cities.

He's aiming to change that and is promising to bring some of the biggest international and Irish names to local venues under the Jongleurs banner. The tour will be a prelude to Jongleurs setting up a dedicated comedy venue in the country in late 2009 or early 2010, he says. That could involve an investment of up to €2 million.

However, Jongleurs is not just about big-name comics, he insists. It will also nurture local Irish talent.

"The company is about two things - the high-end comics who will be known, but separate to that is the passion to court local talent around the country."

Negotiations are ongoing with RTÉ for a TV programme based on the nationwide tour, he says. Despite the economic downturn, Dennehy says that corporate events will form a key target market.

"I know that people have been spending lots of money over the past couple of years on lots of different events," he says.

"I think they will be less ostentatious in the future, but they will still require corporate entertainment and that's why we think this is the moment for comedy."

The firm will offer bespoke comedy shows for the large corporate sector and private events; it is also close to hammering out a deal with Masterchef at Leopardstown racecourse in Dublin to provide comedy for the corporate Christmas party market.

Anticipated turnover in the first year is in the region of €100,000 to €175,000, rising to €375,000 in year three.