Northern Irish comedian scoops the (Some Guy Called) Dave title in Edinburgh

Comedian Andy Gleeks has won a ‘joke of the Edinburgh Fringe’ competition with his line: ‘I had to visit the trauma unit last weekend. He prefers the term dad.’

The stand-up from Antrim, Northern Ireland, takes home £250 for scooping the (Some Guy Called) Dave Joke of the Fringe title. The slightly tongue-in-cheek contest was launched by comic Will Mars in the wake of   TV channel Dave axing their long-running gag contest this year.

 Gleeks said: ‘The first thing I've had to do today is message my father to tell him about the joke I wrote about him. He never knew I wrote it and was telling it to thousands of strangers up and down the country.’

Comedians performing at the Fringe were invited to submit their best jokes with one-liner comics Gary Delaney, Mark Simmons and Darren Walsh drawing up a shortlist, including this top ten:

1. I had to visit the trauma unit last weekend. He prefers the term dad. Andy Gleeks
2. The oldest profession is actually the DJ. They’ve been around since records began.  Kevin O'Brien
3. I wrote a time travel joke but you didn’t like it. Dave Bibby
4. I’m not one to brag about the size of my willy but I've just been charged with decent exposure. Dickie Richards
5. I just had my dog chipped. Now I can play my old Playstation games on it. Dean Coughlin
6. Last night, I had a really boring dream. I slept right through it.  Jacob Nussey
7. People who say bath bombs are relaxing have clearly never tried to carry one home in the rain.  Ian Smith
8. My mum often comments on my weight but in her defence, in the time she’s known me I’ve put on nearly 16 stone.  Burt Williamson
9. I had a one-night stand and in the morning we went to Starbucks. I had to find out his name.  Amanda Hursy
10. I used to hate darts but recently I've done a real 180. Andy Gleeks

Mars then headed to Edinburgh’s Cowgate, where he found ‘some guy called Dave’ – actually Fringe-goer Dave Humphrys and his family (below) – who picked the winner from the full shortlist of 25 jokes. Humphrys said: ‘I absolutely love dad jokes, puns, and one-liners and this list has really given us a good giggle.’

Mars previously ran the (Some Guy Called) Dave Joke of the Fringe contest in the limited post-pandemic Fringe of 2021, the last time the broadcaster abandoned its competition. Parent company UKTV announced that the award would again be ‘rested’ for this year’s festival, after 18 years, just before the Fringe kicked off.

Mars said: ‘I had to bring the (Some Guy Called) Dave competition back. It's important to comedians, it gives their work a little more recognition and placing on the list gives performers a lift just when they need it, when the Fringe starts to get tiring and tough. 

‘It's little lifts like these that help us all get through the Fringe experience, and I wanted to help continue lifting those comics up when they need it most. It's also a great chance to get some more jokes to tell your pals in the pub or at work.’

 Masai Graham  won the 2021  title with his gag: ‘I thought the word "Caesarean" began with the letter "S" but when I looked in the dictionary, it was in the "C" section.’

Gleeks is performing his Free Festival show Fragments at 12:30pm daily in the Boston Bar during the Edinburgh Fringe.

Published: 14 Aug 2025