Funniest Edinburgh Fringe jokes from years gone by

2023: Lorna Rose Treen became the first female comedian to win the accolade since the inaugural Fringe joke award in 2008 with her dating pun.

“I started dating a zookeeper, but it turned out he was a cheetah.”

2022: A pasta gag from Masai Graham triumphed as the Fringe festival returned in full force after the Covid pandemic.

“I tried to steal spaghetti from the shop, but the female guard saw me and I couldn’t get pasta.”

2019: Swedish comedian Olaf Falafel got plenty of laughs but also some criticism from a Tourette’s charity with his winning joke.

“I keep randomly shouting out ‘broccoli’ and ‘cauliflower’ – I think I might have florets.”

2015: With a Fringe show called Punderbolt, it was no surprise that a pun was Darren Walsh’s punchline.

“I just deleted all the German names off my phone. It’s Hans free.”

2014: Tim Vine became the first comedian to win the award for a second time with his joke about a vacuum cleaner.

“I decided to sell my Hoover… well it was just collecting dust.”

2013: Having quit his job selling paintbrushes to become a comedian, Rob Auton’s joke was judged a stroke of genius.

“I heard a rumour Cadbury is bringing out an oriental chocolate bar. Could be a Chinese Wispa.”