Nominees announced for Edinburgh Comedy Awards 2026
Chris Cantrill, Lara Ricote, Dan Tiernan and more will be in the running for the prize, with the winner to be announced on Saturday 29 August
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The nominations for the Edinburgh Comedy Awards, largely viewed as a career-maker in the UK’s comedy industry, have been announced. Featured in the list are a number of highly acclaimed comics, including SNL UK and The Delightful Sausage’s Chris Cantrill (pictured above), the upcoming Last One Laughing’s Harriet Dyer, Mitchell And Webb Are Not Helping’s Lara Ricote, and more.
Also announced is this year’s Best Newcomer Award, with Underground Monk Show, Fatiha El-Ghorri, Marty Gleeson and Dom McGovern in the mix.
The 46th Edinburgh Comedy Awards ceremony will be presented by Richard Gadd, winner of Best Comedy Show 2016, and Ayoade Bamgboye, winner of Best Newcomer 2025, and will take place on Saturday 29 August.
The nominees for the Audible Best Comedy Show are:
- Chris Cantrill: Rewilding
- Dan Tiernan: Quartz and All
- Harriet Dyer: Easily Distra...
- Lara Ricote: INKLING
- Li Jin Hao: Falling From a Moon
- Spencer Jones: Dogs
The nominees for the Taffner Family Best Newcomer Award are:
- Dom McGovern: Prize Hog
- Fatiha El-Ghorri: Cockney Stacking Doll
- Freddie Meredith: Need a Light?
- Marty Gleeson: Dog Ear
- Omar Badawy: Guided Detour
- Tom Towelling Teaches You to Knit
- Underground Monk Show
Nica Burns CBE, director of the Edinburgh Comedy Awards, and Emma Brünjes, executive director of the Edinburgh Comedy Awards, said: ‘Our 2026 nominees have all created brilliantly funny, well written and performed shows. The Edinburgh Fringe is a place for experimentation and discovery and the nominees of Best Comedy Show and Best Newcomer are all outstanding examples. As the comedy industry strives for recognition for comedy as an art form, the comedians at the 2026 Edinburgh Fringe collectively make a powerful case.’
Liz Lewin, director of comedy series at Netflix UK and chair of the Edinburgh Comedy Awards 2026 panel, said: ‘What struck all of us on the panel this year is the range this shortlist covers – different backgrounds, styles, routes into a joke – yet every one of them made a room fall about laughing in a way only they could. Ten of us argued, laughed, and agreed… eventually! These are the people shaping the comedy landscape and we can't wait for audiences beyond Edinburgh to enjoy them as much as we did.’