The first major Comic Relief event was held on 4 April 1986 in the UK, as the inaugural live fundraising show “Comic Relief Utterly Utterly Live.”

Quick Scoop: Key Dates

  • Comic Relief concept launched on TV on Christmas Day 1985, during Noel Edmonds’ Late, Late Breakfast Show from a refugee camp in Sudan.
  • The first big Comic Relief live fundraising night took place on 4 April 1986 at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London, featuring Rowan Atkinson, Billy Connolly, Stephen Fry, Lenny Henry, Kate Bush and others.
  • The first Red Nose Day telethon (often what people mean by “first Comic Relief”) was held on 8 February 1988, drawing about 30 million viewers and raising £15 million.

So, if you’re asking “when was the first Comic Relief?” in the sense of the first full-scale event, the answer is 4 April 1986 ; if you meant the first Comic Relief Red Nose Day telethon, that was 8 February 1988.

TL;DR:

  • First Comic Relief launch: Christmas Day 1985 (on TV).
  • First full Comic Relief live show: 4 April 1986.
  • First Red Nose Day telethon: 8 February 1988.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.