Launched in 1981, the Edinburgh Comedy Award is presented to the comedy show judged to have been the best at the city’s Festival Fringe and is widely recognised as the most prestigious comedy prize in the UK.
Most famously known as the Perrier Award, over the years it’s also been known as the if.comedy awards and the if.comeddies, and this year it’s celebrating its 45th birthday.
Originally it was just a single prize for the best show, but a Best Newcomer category was added in 1992, followed by a Panel Prize (now the Victoria Wood Award) four years later - for acts who have made a special contribution to the Fringe Festival.
Last year the main prize was won by Amy Gledhill, while Joe Kent-Walters took home the prize for Best Newcomer for his monstrous comic creation Frankie Monroe.
Meanwhile, the Panel Prize went to A Show for Rob Copeland - whose free show at the Banshee Labyrinth saw some of the biggest queues of the Fringe.
And this year’s comedy champions will be crowned on Saturday, August 23.
They will join a list of winners that includes some of the most biggest names in comedy.
Here are the 14 most famous winners in the award’s history.
13. Sarah Millican
Sarah Millican was a complte unknown when she won the Best Newcomer Award in 2008. She's now one of the most in-demand stars in British comedy. | Getty Images
14. Bo Burnham
American comedian Bo Burnham has one of the undoubted hits of the 2010 Fringe with 'Words, Words, Words'. Eligible for both Best Newcomer and Best Show, there was some confusion when he missed out on the shortlists. He ended up winning the Panel Prize instead and has gone on to become an acclaimed comedian, musician and filmmaker. | Getty Images for IMDb