Edinburgh new act competition results

Australian comedian Joshua Khoury has been named as winner of the 39th edition of the So You Think You’re Funny? comedy newcomer competition. 

Bobby Jethro came in second place, with Lucas Jones Ho and Sarah Lewis taking joint third.

They took their titles at the Gilded Balloon in Edinburgh tonight. 

Katy and Karen Koren, the venue’s artistic directors, said in a statement: ‘Huge congratulations to Joshua Khoury - 2026’s fantastic winner of So You Think You’re Funny?

‘As ever, this year’s competition was very competitive with around 500 applications, so it’s an amazing achievement for these 10 finalists from across the UK to have made it to the final round, and perform in front of our sold-out crowd tonight.’

Khoury won the Raw Comedy competition at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival earlier this year, and got to compete in So You Think You’re Funny? as part of his prize.

The other finalists were Chris Byfield, Matilda Humphreys, Naph, Omar Bouzad, Sarah Dungworth and Victoria Blunt.

Celebrity guest judge Nina Conti said: "I was amazed by how fantastic all of the finalists were tonight. It was a joy to watch them, and it made our job very difficult!"

Since it began in 1988, previous winners and finalists of SYTYF? have included Aisling Bea, Tommy Tiernan, Maisie Adam, Peter Kay, Lee Mack, Fern Brady, Rob Beckett, Romesh Ranganathan, Sara Pascoe and Daniel Sloss.

Published: 27 Aug 2026