The judges
Toni Maggio
Toni is a wandering writer who is collecting addresses from all over the world (if you don't count the super hot places, which she cannot handle). She's been writing snarky movie and TV reviews and recaps on her blog, Toni Watches, for about a decade. It has caught the attention of some pretty cool producers, writers and actors, but she doesn't want to name drop (but totally will if you ask her). She recently completed a Masters of Creative Writing where she bribed her way into distinction. She's super pumped to be a judge for the Christopher Hitchens Award, where she can celebrate some hilarious writing, and honour the utter stupidity of the man himself.
Meg Mackay
Meg MacKay is a comedian, actor, comedy writer, and producer, based in Toronto. They’re a co-producer on the upcoming Crave/APTN series Don’t Even. As a TV writer, they’ve worked on many shows including the Baroness von Sketch Show, This Hour has 22 Minutes and Davey and Jonesies Locker. They were named one of the 2021 New Faces of Comedy at the Just For Laughs Festival, and appeared at the Winnipeg Comedy Festival in 2021 and 2024. They have two stand up comedy albums: Probably a Witch (2020) and Clown Baby (2023), both on Howl and Roar Records.
TBA
AISHA BROWN is a Canadian stand-up comedian and actress, most noted for her 2020 comedy special Aisha Brown: The First Black Woman Ever, the first Crave Original comedy special ever taped by a Black Canadian comedian.
The special garnered three Canadian Screen Award nominations in 2021. She also received a nomination in the latter category as a member of the writing team for This Hour Has 22 Minutes.
As an actress, she has appeared in sketches on The Beaverton and Baroness von Sketch Show, and in the comedy series Humour Resources.
Nour Hadidi
NOUR HADIDI is one of the brightest comedy stars to come out of the Toronto scene in recent years; she’s part of a generation of up-and-coming stand-ups like Courtney Gilmour (Canada’s Got Talent) and Brandon Ash-Mohammed (LOL: Last One Laughing Canada) who have gone from performing for small local crowds to finding international success.
Last year, Nour recorded her first album at her monthly show, Nour Hadidi & Friends at Toronto's Comedy Bar. She is most recognizable for her appearances on CBC Radio’s The Debaters, and was a staff writer on This Hour Has 22 Minutes.
Rachel Matlow
Rachel Matlow (they/them) is a freelance audio journalist and writer based in Toronto. Rachel was a producer at CBC Radio for over a decade, mostly on the arts & culture program, Q, as well as Spark and The Sunday Edition. Their darkly-funny memoir, Dead Mom Walking: A Memoir of Miracle Cures and Other Disasters, was a national bestseller and shortlisted for several awards. Rachel’s Modern Love essay, “Why My Father Called Me Son, Daughter, He, She and It,” appeared in the New York Times last year. Rachel is thinking about maybe writing another memoir even though they’re out of dying parents for material.