From 31m agoBrian is liveBrian is now answering your questions about the Edinburgh fringe.Key events4m agoWho should've won a Comedy Award but didn't?13m agoIf populism is popular, where is all the populist comedy?27m agoIs the fringe now just for visitors and ‘the industry’?31m agoBrian is live8h agoWelcome to the ConversationWho should've won a Comedy Award but didn't?Pgetz1 asks: What act or show(s) have been most unfairly overlooked for a Comedy Award nomination in your years of covering the festival?Brian:
double quotation markHow long have you got?! Last year gave us a prime example, when the American comedy/cabaret act Cat Cohen had the most fantastic show in town by a mile, and was overlooked. (The fact that no one is entirely clear on the award’s eligibility criteria doesn’t help.)
The phenomenon isn’t unique to Edinburgh comedy, but choices made by committee are often compromise choices, and acts that are brilliant but idiosyncratic find themselves sidelined. At any event, the majority of the incontrovertibly great acts and shows I’ve seen at the fringe over the years have been pipped to or wholly overlooked by the awards – or, as sometimes happens, offered the sop of the so-called Panel Prize.
