Change for the best: £1 coin joke gets top spot at the Fringe

Comedian quids in with £2,000 prize for best gag at Edinburgh

THE new pound coin has only been in circulation for a few months, and it is made up mostly of nickel and brass, but Ken Cheng has already managed to turn it into a piece of 24-carat comedy gold.

Cheng’s one-liner, taken from his show Chinese Comedian, (“I’m not a fan of the new pound coin, but then again, I hate all change”) has been voted the best joke of this year’s Edinburgh Fringe, winning the 28-year-old British-born comic £2,000.

The joke, one of 15 shortlisted by a panel of comedy critics, was crowned the winner after securing 33 per cent of the public vote. The identity of the comedians was not revealed before the vote took place.

Glaswegian comedian Frankie Boyle, who is known for his close-to-the-bone remarks, came second with 30 per cent of the vote, for a joke about Donald Trump and Adolf Hitler (“Trump’s nothing like Hitler. There’s no way he could write a book.”). The list includes one-liners from some of the biggest names in comedy, including Alexei Sayle, Ed Byrne and Tim Vine, as well as some from comedians making their debuts at the Fringe, such as Alasdair Beckett-king (“Whenever someone says, ‘I don’t believe in coincidences.’ I say, ‘Oh my God, me neither!’”).

Cheng, a former maths undergraduate at Cambridge University who dropped out to pursue a career as a full-time poker player, said: “I am very proud to have won. As a tribute, I will name my firstborn son after this award and call him ‘Joke of the Fringe’.”

Steve North, the general manager of the television channel Dave, which sponsors the competition, said: “It’s fantastic to see that, even after 10 years of the Joke of the Fringe award, there is no shortage of brilliant one-liners delivered at the festival to get us all laughing.”

Dave’s Joke of the Fringe was won last year by Masai Graham for his joke: “My dad suggested I register for a donor card, he’s a man after my own heart.”

The award for the best show and best newcomer at this year’s Fringe will be announced on Saturday.