Chinese Wispas… and other top jokes at Edinburgh’s Fringe
Need cheering up? Hold your sides – here’s a list of the funniest jokes of the year, or the best of the Edinburgh comedy festival at least. And the winner? A gag about a chocolate bar.
From a shortlist of 20 – cue the drum-roll – this is, officially, Edinburgh’s funniest joke, courtesy of 30-year old standup comic Rob Auton.
“I hear a rumour that Cadbury’s is bringing out an oriental chocolate bar. Could be a Chinese Wispa.”
The one-liner picked up almost a quarter of votes sent in by fans for the Dave’s Funniest Joke of the Fringe award, now in its sixth year. Judges sat through three hours of material before deciding their shortlist, describing the top ten as “quick, sharp, witty and clever”.
I used to work in a shoe-recycling shop. It was sole destroying. Alex Horne
Auton, who threw in a promising career selling paintbrushes in London’s Soho to pursue his comedy dream, declared he was honoured, and “just pleased that a joke that tackles the serious issue of the invention of a new chocolate bar can be laughed at by the people of Britain”.
Other jokes that made it onto the list include Alex Horne’s “I used to work in a shoe-recycling shop. It was sole destroying.”, and this by Alfie Moore: “I’m in a same-sex marriage…the sex is always the same.”
Tim Vine was also shortlisted, after coming second last year and winning in 2010 for this: “I’ve just been on a once-in-a-lifetime holiday. I tell you what – never again.”
Laugh a minute
Comedy has been booming on the Edinburgh Festival scene, making up around a third of the entire fringe programme, although numbers have been falling for the last two years as critics claim it’s all becoming too tame.
The Pope is a lot like Doctor Who. He never dies, just keeps being replaced by white men. Phil Wang
Nica Burns, head of the Edinburgh comedy awards, said some new acts were putting on shows before they were ready, inflicting what she called “absolutely terrible experiences” on hapless audiences.
In her speech at the start of the fringe festival, she said jokes should be taken seriously. “Comedy is an essential part of the cultural life of the nation. It’s part of our identity”, she said.
But let’s not take things too seriously. Here’s another one of those top ten jokes to get you through a Tuesday morning, by Phil Wang: “The Pope is a lot like Doctor Who. He never dies, just keeps being replaced by white men.”
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