The winner offering came courtesy of Canadian funnyman Stewart Francis, known for his deadpan humour and way with a one-liner.
Francis won first place with 20% of the vote for the annual Dave award for the best joke at the Fringe, and he also come eighth for another joke drawn from his Edinburgh show Return of the Lumberjacks: “I saw a documentary on how ships are kept together. Riveting.”
Second place went to Tim Vine for: “Last night, me and my girlfriend watched three DVDs back to back. Luckily, I was the one facing the telly.”
Third place went to Will Marsh, for: “I was raised as an only child, which really annoyed my sister.”
Fourth place was won by Rob Beckett for “You know you’re working class when your TV is bigger than your bookshelf.”
Fifth place went to Chris Turner for: “I’m good friends with 25 letters of the alphabet… I don’t know Y.”
The second half of the top ten was:
6. “I took part in the sun tanning Olympics – I just got Bronze.” – Tim Vine
7. “Pornography is often frowned upon, but that’s only because I’m concentrating.” – George Ryegold
8. “I saw a documentary on how ships are kept together. Riveting!” – Stewart Francis
9. “I waited an hour for my starter so I complained: ‘It’s not rocket salad.” – Lou Sanders
10. “My mum’s so pessimistic, that if there was an Olympics for pessimism … she wouldn’t fancy her chances.” – Nish Kumar
Photo: YouTube.
