Abby Howells

Abigail Mai Howells is a New Zealand comedian, actor, and writer. She was the winner of the Billy T Award in 2023.

Early life and education
Howells grew up in Dunedin, New Zealand. She received a bachelor of arts in film and media studies from the University of Otago, and a masters in creative writing from Victoria University of Wellington's International Institute of Modern Letters in 2014. At Victoria, she wrote the screenplay Standing Up, which won the Brad McGann Award.

Howells completed a PhD in theatre studies from the University of Otago; her thesis, titled "Performing Prison: How Is Life on the Inside Portrayed to the Outside World?", explored how incarcerated women are portrayed in film and television.

Career
After starting stand-up in her 20s, Howells quit comedy for seven years after sexual harassment from another comedian.

Howells was a founding member of Discharge, a female comedy collective. She served as head writer for the group, penning the shows ''What is This? Woman's Hour? (2012), Benedict Cumberbatch Must Die (2014), and 28 Days: A Period Piece'' (2015).

She presented her solo show Glocknid: Dwarf Warrior in 2014, which won the Best Newcomer Award at the 2015 Wellington International Comedy Festival. She portrayed Beatrix in Trick of the Light Theatre's Beards Beards Beards, which toured the United Kingdom. Her play Attila the Hun was part of the 2017 Young and Hungry Festival. Howells acted in Fold by Jo Randerson in 2018, and The Bald Soprano in 2019.

Howells's show HarleQueen won the Director's Award at the New Zealand International Comedy Festival in 2021. In 2023 at the NZICF, she wrote and performed La Soupco, which is "based on a screenplay Howells wrote when she was 11 years old... a post-World War II nautical-themed romance set in Spain for little reason, where the characters don't have names". For the show, Howells won the Billy T Award. The New Zealand Herald wrote that La Soupco "strikes a wonderful balance between a theatrical concept and traditional stand-up".

In 2024, Howells and Angella Dravid formed an improv group called The Improfessionals and performed at the NZICF.

On television, Howells has appeared on 7 Days and Guy Montgomery's Guy Mont-Spelling Bee.

She has cited Blackadder and Jerry Seinfeld as influences.

Personal life
Howells is open about being on the autism spectrum.