A joke by Edinburgh Fringe veteran Mark Simmons has been named the funniest of the lot at this year’s comedy festival.

A vote by 2,000 people found this joke by Simmons the funniest during the August event: “I was going to sail around the globe in the world’s smallest ship but I bottled it.”

Simmons has said he is “really chuffed” with the win – which comes a decade on from his first appearance at the event.

Some of the leading comedy critics and comedians in the UK were on the judging panel for the Funniest Joke Of The Fringe award, which celebrates “the art of joke writing” and making people laugh.

Panellists attended hundreds of shows during the Fringe, listening out for jokes which make them laugh, then submitted their 10 favourites in an anonymous shortlist to prevent any bias towards household names.

A public vote involving 2,000 people was then held, with 15 jokes ultimately making the shortlist, and Simmons’ winning one, taken from his PHB’s Free Fringe show at Liquid Room Annexe, got 40% of the vote.

1. I was going to sail around the globe in the world’s smallest ship but I bottled it – Mark Simmons

2. I’ve been taking salsa lessons for months, but I just don’t feel like I’m progressing. It’s just one step forward… two steps back – Alec Snook

3. Ate horse at a restaurant once – wasn’t great. Starter was all right but the mane was dreadful – Alex Kitson

4. I sailed through my driving test. That’s why I failed it – Arthur Smith

5. I love the Olympics. My friend and I invented a new type of relay baton: well, he came up with the idea, I ran with it – Mark Simmons

It came a decade after Simmons first performed at the Fringe as a solo act, when his friend convinced him to do an open mic night.

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Since then, his gags have placed 9th, 6th and 2nd in the joke award at the Fringe – and this year he had a second joke on the shortlist as well as the winning gag.

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Simmons said: “I’m really chuffed to win U&Dave’s Funniest Joke Of The Fringe. I needed some good news as I was just fired from my job marking exam papers, can’t understand it, I always gave 110%.”

He is debuting his show More Jokes at Liquid Rooms Annexe until August 24, and he is currently also performing a 200-date tour.

Previous winners of the award include Lorna Rose-Treen, Masai Graham, Ken Cheng, Olaf Falafel, Tim Vine, Rob Auton, Stewart Francis, Zoe Lyons and Nick Helm.

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