With a over 3,500 shows to choose from at this year's feast of culture, there’s something to be said for opting for performers who have a winning record – and there’s no bigger prize in British comedy than the Edinburgh Comedy Award.
Launched in 1981, the award is presented to the comedy show judged to have been the best at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and is recognised as the most prestigious comedy prize in the UK.
Formerly known as the Perrier Award, it is designed to promote acts that have yet to become household names, so comedians judged to have ‘star status’ are not eligible - for instance if they have a show on a major television channel or can regularly fill a 500-set venue.
The first winners were a talent-packed Cambridge Footlights featuring Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie, Tony Slattery and Emma Thompson, while other names catapaulted to fame by the award over the years include Steve Coogan, Jenny Eclair, The League of Gentlemen, Dylan Moran, Al Murray, Tim Key, and now Emmy-nominated Baby Reindeer star Richard Gadd.
A Best Newcomer Award was added in 1992, followed by a Panel Prize in 2006 - for those who have made a particularly special contribution to the Fringe Festival.
Here are all 15 winners you can see in Edinburgh this year.
5. Catherine Cohen
Best Newcomer 2019 winner Catherine Cohen had to cancel shows at last year's Fringe after suffering a stroke. She's happily completely recovered and is back in 2024 with comedy cabaret 'Come For Me' - a show she brought to Edinburgh as a work in progress a couple of years ago. The twist? It's great! See her at the Pleasance Courtyard from August 1-25. | Getty Images for Tribeca Festiva
.jpg?crop=4:3&trim=&width=680)
6. David O'Docherty
A hugely popular winner back in 2008, when 'Let's Comedy' beat Rhod Gilbert, Russell Kane and Kristin Schaal to the comedy crown, Irishman David O'Docherty is an Edinburgh regular. This year's show, entitled 'Ready, Steady, David O'Doherty', looks unlikely to stray far from his winning formula of wry humour and comic songs played on his trademark tiny keyboard. See him at Assembly George Square from July 31-August 26. | Contributed
7. Natalie Palamides
Clowning comedian Natalie Palamides (pictured with fellow-nominee Bill O'Neill) won the Edinburgh Comedy Award for Best Newcomer in 2017 for her show 'LAID'. This year she's one of the frontrunners for the Main Prize with her new show 'WEER'. It sees her use her remarkable physical comedy skills to play both characters in an "achingly tender 90s rom-drom (romantic dramedy) which asks you to look at every argument from two sides". See her at the Traverse from August 5-25. | Getty Images
8. Hannah Gadsby
Hannah Gadsby's global hit 'Nanette' - later made into a Netflix special - won the Edinburgh Comedy Award in 2017 (jointly with John Robins - in a first for the award). Now they're back with new show 'Woof!', at the McEwan Hall from August 18-25. | Hannah Gadsby