The UK’s most prestigious prizes for comedy,the Edinburgh Comedy Awards, celebrate 45 years of spotlighting up-and-coming talent at Edinburgh Fringe

Audible’s Director of Original Content and Comedy Commissioner Sam Bryant will chair the judging panel, in the first year an audio streaming platform has been represented and in recognition of podcasts and radio as vital mediums for emerging comic talent.

London – July 26, 2025 -- Affectionately known as ‘the Oscars of Comedy’ due to their impact on winners’ careers, the Edinburgh Comedy Awards will celebrate 45 years of championing the next generation of comedic talent at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2025. .

At a time when the Fringe remains the key launchpad for comedic careers, the role of the Edinburgh Comedy Awards in supporting emerging talent is more vital than ever.

The 2025 Edinburgh Comedy Awards are co-sponsored by Nica Burns, Donald Taffner of DLT Entertainment and the Victoria Wood Foundation.

The ‘Spirit of the Fringe’ Panel Prize, awarded at the discretion of the judging panel to the act that best captures the essence of the Fringe, is now known as the Victoria Wood Award in tribute to the beloved comedy icon.

To further spotlight this year’s nominees and support them with opportunities in the increasingly vital world of audio, BBC Radio 4 will broadcast a special showcase recorded at The Gilded Balloon. Hosted by last year’s Best Comedy Show winner, Amy Gledhill, the programme offers listeners across the UK a chance to experience the energy and excitement of the 2025 Edinburgh Comedy Awards and hear some of the best bits from our nominees. It will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on Thursday 21st August at 23:00, and available to catch up on BBC Sounds.

Nica Burns CBE, Director of the Edinburgh Comedy Awards, said:

"In 2025, we are celebrating the 45th birthday of the Edinburgh Comedy Awards! We are only five years away from our half century!! Spotlighting the best up-and-coming talent at the Edinburgh Fringe is a huge privilege, which we take very seriously. The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is, and always will be, the world showcase for comedy talent and every year we look forward to discovering the next generation of comedy stars.

This year, we said a fond goodbye to Shona McCarthy, Chief Executive of the Fringe Society who was such a wonderful champion of the Fringe. We are looking forward to working with her successor, Tony Lankester, who brings a wealth of experience and a steady pair of hands to this vital and challenging role./p>

We would like to offer some big thank yous. Firstly, to our illustrious panel of judges and supporting scouts, who will collectively watch thousands of hours of comedy over the next month. We’re equally grateful to our returning co-sponsors: DLT Entertainment, The Taffner Family Charitable Trust, the Victoria Wood Foundation, and of course, me!

Comedy has been the largest genre at the Fringe for many years now and I predict it will still be the largest when the Edinburgh Comedy Awards celebrate their 100th year in 2080!

Looking forward to a bumper festival for all!"

Donald Taffner, Jr., Chairman of DLT Entertainment UK Ltd, said:

“The Edinburgh Comedy Awards remain the most prestigious honours in comedy. My parents founded DLT Entertainment 62 years ago, and growing up immersed in that world, I’ve seen first-hand how vital it is to shine a spotlight on the brightest rising stars. The Fringe is the highlight of my year, and each summer I relish the challenge of trying to beat my own personal record for the number of shows I can see.”

“Through DLT Entertainment’s sponsorship of the Newcomer Award, we’re proud to champion the fresh voices who are just beginning to make their mark. Supporting new talent has always been central to our mission, and there’s no better place to discover it than Edinburgh.”

“The Taffner Family Trust’s support of the Taffner Family Comedy Award reflects a deeper family tradition — one built on decades of love for the craft and those who dare to make others laugh. It’s our privilege to help celebrate the very best performers at the Fringe.”

DLT Entertainment is proud to sponsor the Best Newcomer Award, championing the rising stars just starting to make their mark. And through the Taffner Family Trust’s support of the Taffner Family Best Comedy Show Award, we honour a family tradition of backing brilliant performers who keep pushing comedy forward.”

The Judging Panel:

The carefully curated 2025 judging panel is made up of seven industry experts and three knowledgeable and avid comedy fans from the general public who are selected through an open application process. The 2025 judging panel is made up of:

Sam Bryant: Director of Original Content and Comedy Commissioner, Audible (Chair)
Josh Buckingham: Executive Producer, Hat Trick Productions
Ashley Davies: Freelance Arts Journalist, Metro, Times Scotland, Scotsman
Shukri Dire: Development Producer, Scripted, BBC TalentWorks
Tristram Fane Saunders: Freelance Journalist and Comedy Critic, The Telegraph and Editor of The Little Review
Rachael Healy: Freelance Comedy and Theatre Writer, The Guardian and The Observer
James Robinson: Executive Producer, BBC Studios Audio
Janet Jackson: Public panellist
Krishna Kapur: Public panellist
Justine Teasdale: Public panellist

The Edinburgh Comedy Awards has a proven history of spotting comedy brilliance. Past winners have amassed 534 television writing credits, 45 directing credits and over 1,500 acting credits, and nominees have 534 writing credits, 72 directing credits and over 1,200 acting credits on screen. Best Newcomer nominee Alex Horne created the BAFTA award-winning TV series Taskmaster, which has had appearances from 40 winners and nominees across its 20 series.

Responsible for launching the careers of the UK’s comedy elite, previous award winners include Stephen Fry, Steve Coogan, Lee Evans, Al Murray, Sarah Millican, Omid Djalili, Eddie Izzard, Tim Minchin, The League of Gentlemen, Jenny Eclair and Frank Skinner. Founded in 1981, many award winners and nominees have gone on to have a significant impact on mainstream popular culture, going on to write, direct and act on screen, in some of the most iconic television and film over the last four decades, including Green Wing and Smack The Pony (Victoria Pile), Sherlock (Mark Gatiss), Alan Partridge and Philomena (Steve Coogan), Car Share (Peter Kay), The IT Crowd (Richard Ayoade), Benidorm and No.9 (Steve Pemberton), Doctor Who and her eponymous TV show (Catherine Tate), W1A (Sara Pascoe), Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget (Romesh Ranganathan), Sex Education (Hannah Gadsby), Baby Reindeer (Richard Gadd) and Starstruck (Rose Matafeo).

-- Ends--

Further information:
Nikki Murray, on behalf of DLT Entertainment: nikki.murray@premiercomms.com | +44 (0) 20 7292 5094
Emily Souders, Riot Communications: emily@riotcommunications.com | +44 (0) 7732 646145

NOTES TO EDITORS

About Monkey Barrel Comedy:
Monkey Barrel Comedy is Edinburgh’s #1 rated comedy club, was home to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe’s ‘Best Comedy Show’ in 2022, 2023, 2024, and won ‘Scotland’s Best Comedy Venue’ at the most recent Chortle Awards. It hosts comedy in three, permanent venues twelve months a year.

About DLT Entertainment:
Headquartered in London and New York, DLT Entertainment Ltd. is engaged in every aspect of video distribution and production around the world. Founded in 1963 as a distribution company by Don Taffner Sr., the company added television production to its portfolio in 1977. It has enjoyed terrific success in its sixty-one-year history with legendary hits on both sides of the Atlantic including the multiple award-winning and BBC Trust praised sitcom My Family, As Time Goes By, Three’s Company, Too Close for Comfort and Meet My Folks. In addition, DLT has built a reputation as a leading distribution company with classics such as The Benny Hill Show, The World at War, Chicken Soup for the Soul, The Russ Abbot Show, The Olivier Awards, and Dara O’Brian’s Go 8 Bit.

Production activities expanded through an investment in Mark Watson’s Impatient Productions and the acquisition of Vera Productions whose productions include Getting On, Bremner, Bird, Fortune, and numerous Dispatches Including The King, The Prince and Their Secret Millions. In 1986 DLT expanded into stage production in the US and in the UK, where it owns and manages London’s Shaftesbury Theatre, the London home of Just For One Day: The Live Aid Musical. Later, DLT added talent representation to its portfolio with ownership positions in Milburn Browning Associates, The Soho Agency, Blue Book Artist Management, The Galton Agency, Bedford Square Voices, and Gag Reflex.

2020 saw the creation of an audio division with the release of Very Modern Quests starring Alice Levine's for Audible, DLT recently for BBC Radio 4 / BBC Sounds Time of The Week, created by award-winning comedian Lorna Rose Treen and Jonathan Oldfield and starring BAFTA award winner Sian Clifford and The Many Wrongs Of Christian Brighty featuring Jessica Knappett, Colin McFarlane and Christian Brighty.

Demonstrating its ongoing commitment to comedy, DLT is proud to sponsor the Edinburgh Comedy Awards for the third consecutive year.

About The Taffner Family Chatitable Trust:
Founder of DLT Entertainment Don Taffner Snr started his career in the mailroom of William Morris where client Milton Berle required him to be in the audience of his shows because of his infectious laugh. Don’s leadership of DLT resulted in being awarded an Emmy and appointed an OBE in recognition of his services to the British television industry.

Don Taffner Snr was married for nearly 50 years to Eleanor who not only supported Don in his TV comedy career but was also a supporter, donor and Board member of the Glasgow School of Art and was a serious collector and expert on the work of Charles Rennie Mackintosh for which she was appointed an MBE. The Taffner Family Trust was established more than 25 years ago and has provided financial support to a number of arts organizations included the Glasgow School of Art and BAFTA’s scholarship program. The 2024 additional sponsorship is made in memory of Don and Eleanor and their work.

About Nia Burns CBE
Founder of DLT Entertainment Don Taffner Snr started his career in the mailroom of William Morris where client Milton Berle required him to be in the audience of his shows because of his infectious laugh. Don’s The Edinburgh Comedy Awards were founded in 1981 and have since 1984 been run by Nica Burns, who was honoured with a CBE for services to theatre in the King’s Birthday Honours June 2024. Nica learnt the fundamentals of producing her own work as a young actress at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe using her then life savings of £600. A good review in The Scotsman sold the show out ending in a profit of £48, which she split with director Colin Watkeys. Nica was Artistic Director of the Donmar Warehouse from 1983-89, putting on late night comedy on Fridays and Saturdays and taking over the then embryonic Perrier Awards from 1984. In 2005 Nica Burns founded Nimax Theatres with business partner Max Weitzenhoffer. They own and run the Palace, Lyric, Apollo, Garrick, Vaudeville and Duchess Theatres in the heart of London’s West End. Nica has since produced over 100 multi award-winning shows, is Chief Executive of Nimax Theatres, and built and recently opened London’s newest theatre @sohoplace on the Charing Cross Road.

bout The Victoria Wood Foundation
The Victoria Wood Foundation was set up after the death of Victoria Wood in April 2016. The Trustees are former friends and colleagues of Victoria’s. Their support is mainly directed towards the arts – in the most general sense – and they are particularly keen to support causes which would have interested Victoria and / or to support applications from the parts of the country in which she lived.