Comedian Lorna Rose Treen was voted the winner of the Dave Funniest Joke of the Fringe Award for her pun, “I started dating a zoo keeper — but it turned out he was a cheetah,” from her show Skin Pigeon at Pleasance Courtyard”.
A panel of ten comedy experts nominated their list of the top ten jokes, which was then voted on by 2,000 people.
Treen's joke topped the list, with 44% of respondents saying it was the funniest at the annual festival.
Panelists attended hundreds of shows as part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this month and heard the jokes they enjoyed the most.
To determine the best one-liners and jokes for the much-anticipated Joke of the Fringe awards, Dave recruited an expert panel of renowned judges, drawn from some of the UK's leading comedy critics.
The jury made a list of the ten funniest side jokes:
– I started dating a zoo keeper, but it turned out he was a cheetah. (Lorna Rosenbaum 44%)
– The most British thing I've ever heard? A lady who said, “I'm sorry, but I don't apologize.” (Liz Guterbock 41%)
– Last year I had a great joke about inflation. But that's hardly worth it now. (Amos Gil 40%)
– When women gossip, we are called bitchy; but when men do it, it's called a podcast. (Sikisa 34%)
– I thought I'd start with a joke about the Titanic – just to break the ice. (Masai Graham 33%)
– How do celiac Germans greet each other? gluten day. (Frank Lavender 32%)
– My friend was locked in a coffee house overnight. Now he only goes to Starbucks, not to the competitors. He has Costa phobia. (Roger Swift 29%)
– I took part in the contest “How not to give up” and won by far. (Bennett Arron 29%)
– Nationwide must have looked pretty silly when they opened their first store. (William Stone 28%)
– My grandma describes herself as in her ‘end of the year' which I love because they are great movies. (Daniel Foxx 26%)
Treen has won numerous awards for her one-liners and became the first doubles winner at the Funny Women Awards in 2022.
Earlier this year, she won Chortle's coveted award for Best Newcomer.
Treen said: “I'm over the moon that I won Dave's best side joke! Are you kidding! I can't wait to tell my mom!
“It's already a wonderful pleasure to be able to debut at the Edinburgh Fringe this year and it's a beautiful thing too. A huge thank you for giving my silly joke that title!”
Now in its 14th year, the awards have included Masai Graham, Ken Cheng, Olaf Falafel, Tim Vine, Rob Auton, Stewart Francis, Zoe Lyons and Nick Helm.
The award aims to recognize both established and emerging comics.
Jokes are listed without reference to the comedian's name, meaning they are judged solely on the humor of the joke itself.
Dave Channel Director Cherie Hall said: “It's that time of year again – Dave's Joke of the Fringe – and this year we're delighted to award Lorna Rose Treen's joke the win.
“We have an amazing mix of jokes and comedians in our top 10 list this year, the quality of the entries will keep us laughing into next year.”
“This is our 14th year of sponsorship of Joke of the Fringe and Dave remains committed to presenting the best new comedy on the network.”
