Online Pro Cheng’s ‘Change’ One-Liner Scoops Comedy Award

(Photo: Comedy.co.uk)

Comedy and poker may not seem like automatic bedfellows, but for online pro Ken Cheng the combination of career’s paid off big-time when he was named the winner comedy channel Dave’s ‘Funniest Joke of the Fringe’ – an annual award at the famous Edinburgh Festival.

His one-liner about currency topped the public vote, despite being up against many of the UK’s finest comic talent – Frankie Boyle, Ed Byrne, Alexei Sayle and Time Vine also in contention for the 10th running of the competition.

According to the Guardian newspaper: ‘Cheng studied maths at Cambridge University before dropping out to become a professional online poker player. His big break in comedy came when he reached the final of the 2015 BBC Radio New Comedy award.’

His winning one-liner?

“I’m not a fan of the new pound coin, but then again, I hate all change.”

Short, sweet and funny – and it captured the most votes.

For British-born, Chinese funnyman Cheng, the fields of poker and comedy are not so dissimilar.

“The two fields of poker and comedy actually have a surprising amount in common,” he said. “The first similarity is how both are based around a constant barrage of either extreme punishment or reward. In poker, it’s money; in comedy, it’s laughs.”

He added:

“Every day you sit down at the poker table you could win or lose hundreds and, by the same notion, every time you step on stage you could kill or bomb.”

Speaking of his joke coming out ahead of some of the best comedic talent the Fringe had on offer, Cheng said:

“I am very proud to have won. As a tribute, I will name my first-born son after this award and call him ‘Joke of the Fringe’.”

In close contention for the top spot was Frankie Boyle’s: 

“Trump’s nothing like Hitler. There’s no way he could write a book.” 

But my own personal favourites among the top 15 this year are Olaf Falafel’s slightly morbid: 

“I wasn’t particularly close to my dad before he died... which was lucky, because he trod on a landmine.”

And Adam Hess’s witty: 

“I wonder how many chameleons snuck on to the Ark.”