British comedian Ken Cheng cashed in with joke of the year at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe with his take on the U.K.’s pound coin.
On Tuesday, Cheng earned bragging rights as the winner of the 10th annual Dave’s Funniest Joke of the Fringe with, “I’m not a fan of the new pound coin, but then again, I hate all change.”
The second place joke came from Scottish comedian Frankie Boyle, who offered his spin on current affairs with, “Trump’s nothing like Hitler. There’s no way he could write a book.”
Out of 15 jokes narrowed down by comedy critics, Cheng’s was chosen in a public vote as the funniest with 33 per cent of the 2,000 voters. Jokes are also voted on anonymously to avoid bias.
The annual Edinburgh Festival Fringe brings together thousands of performances in a celebration of arts and culture that includes standup comedy.
The winning joke from 2016 was Masai Graham’s, “My dad suggested I register for a donor card. He’s a man after my own heart.”
The British comedian’s deadpan delivery of the joke, based on the U.K.’s redesigned pound coin, fell flat with some on social media. Meanwhile others said he wasn’t the first person to make the joke.
...and here's the man himself Mr Ken Cheng (@supermarkliu) with his winning joke. #JokeOfTheFringe pic.twitter.com/f16UaJbEaZ
— Dave (@davechannel) August 22, 2017
The #JokeOfTheFringe really isn't that funny. Must've been some awful contenders
— Sam Shinar (@SamShinar) August 22, 2017
@skysarahjane After careful and long consideration I conclude that the Ken Cheng joke and his own delivery was .... Rubbish.
— Henry Joseph (@HenryJosephJohn) August 22, 2017
@kenchengcomedy I said it first! ��#Edinburghfringe2017 https://t.co/UvaejTINFI
— Jennifer B (@Im_not_a_robot) August 22, 2017
Congrats to @kenchengcomedy for his prize winning "I Hate Change" gag. Commiserations to the 50 people who made it on Twitter back in March pic.twitter.com/A0jkQyLcA6
— Kev F Comic Artist (@KevFComicArtist) August 22, 2017
Here are the top 15 funniest jokes from the festival:
- “I’m not a fan of the new pound coin, but then again, I hate all change.” – Ken Cheng
- “Trump’s nothing like Hitler. There’s no way he could write a book.” – Frankie Boyle
- “I’ve given up asking rhetorical questions. What’s the point?” – Alexei Sayle
- “I’m looking for the girl next door type. I’m just gonna keeping moving house ‘till I find her.” – Lew Fitz
- “I like to imagine the guy who invented the umbrella was going to call it the ‘brella.’ But he hesitated.” – Andy Field
- “Combine Harvesters. And you’ll have a really big restaurant.” – Mark Simmons
- “I’m rubbish with names. It’s not my fault, it’s a condition. There’s a name for it…” – Jimeoin
- “I have two boys, 5 and 6. We’re not good at naming things in our house.” – Ed Byrne
- “I wasn’t particularly close to my dad before he died… which was lucky, because he trod on a land mine.” – Olaf Falafel
- “Whenever someone says, ‘I don’t believe in coincidences.’ I say, ‘Oh my God, me neither!’” – Alasdair Beckett-King
- “A friend tricked me into going to Wimbledon by telling me it was a men’s singles event.” – Angela Barnes
- “As a vegan, I think people who sell meat are disgusting; but apparently people who sell fruit and veg are grocer.” – Adele Cliff
- “For me dying is a lot like going camping. I don’t want to do it.” – Phil Wang
- “I wonder how many chameleons snuck onto the Ark.” – Adam Hess
- “I went to a Pretenders gig. It was a tribute act.” – Tim Vine
