Thursday 11 July 2019 UKTVs leading comedy channel Dave today announces its new title partnership of The Edinburgh Comedy Awards, directed by Nica Burns.
The Edinburgh Comedy Awards, which were established in 1981 and are entering their 39th year for 2019, celebrate the talent of both established and up-and-coming comedians performing at The Edinburgh Festival Fringe each year. From 2019, the awards will be sponsored by comedy channel Dave, to further celebrate and support comics, from those breaking into the industry to much-loved names.
Daves Edinburgh Comedy Awards are judged by an independent panel, who see all eligible shows performed live at the Fringe, with previous winners including Rose Matafeo, Al Murray, Bridget Christie, Jenny clair, The League of Gentleman, Frank Skinner, Steve Coogan, Lee Evans and Russell Kane.
Dave has a well-established passion for supporting fresh comedy, and with a growing slate of UKTV Originals, the channel is committed to seeking out new acts. With an audience of over 19 million people each month, original commissioned series include fan favourites such as Taskmaster, Hypothetical, Judge Romesh, Sliced and Jon Richardson: Ultimate Worrier. The channel prides itself on supporting new talent, with the majority of their original comedies bringing in young audiences, significantly above industry average.
Across 2019, Dave has nine UKTV Original comedy series on the channel, working with over 100 comedians across the year.
Luke Hales, channel director for Dave, said:
We spend a lot of time talking to our audience about what they want from both comedy and Dave, and one of the most common responses is asking to be introduced to new comics - so partnering with The Edinburgh Comedy Awards feels like the perfect way to help us discover even more new talent. We want to make sure Dave is immersed in fresh comedy in the real world, as well as on television. We love the Edinburgh Fringe Festival here at Dave, and this year, wanted to build on our involvement alongside Daves Joke of the Fringe - were extremely excited to help support the Edinburgh Comedy Awards, who share our passion and commitment for supporting both new and established comedy stars.
Nica Burns, Director of the Edinburgh Comedy Awards, said:
We are delighted to announce that our new title partner is UKTV comedy channel Dave. There is an incredible synergy between us; we both love comedy and are always looking for up and coming talent - the stars of tomorrow - to sit alongside the stars of today. Many of our nominees, from James Acaster, to Nish Kumar, Sara Pascoe, Romesh Ranganthan and Lucy Beaumont are stars or panelists on Daves original comedy strands. We are looking forward to a great partnership and announcing our first Daves Edinburgh Comedy Award nominees and winners.
The new award, pictured, has been designed by UKTVs in-house creative team UKTV Creative. Alongside a brand-new partnership with Dave, 2019 is set to be a record-breaking year for the Awards already, with over 750 different comedy shows eligible for the shortlist, all of which will be seen by the judging team.
The nominations for Daves Edinburgh Comedy Awards will be announced on Wednesday 21st August, with the winners to be revealed on Saturday 24th August.
The Awards categories are:
Best Comedy Show - with a cash prize of £10,000
Best Newcomer - with a cash prize of £5,000
Panel Prize - with a cash prize of £5,000
A full history of the winners and nominees, eligibility rules and all other details about the Awards can be found at www.comedyawards.co.uk.
_
Notes for Editors
For further information please contact: Anna Arthur PR Anna Arthur - 07973 264373
For UKTV and Dave - please contact: Taylor Herring PR Georgina Vincent - GV@taylorherring.com 0208 206 5151
About Dave
Freeview 19, Sky 111, Virgin 127, YouView 19, Freesat 157, BT & TalkTalk 19 On demand on UKTVPlay Ever since it was knee high to a TV remote, Dave had an idea. It wanted to be the first place viewers would come for brand-new, award-winning entertainment from the biggest and brightest stars and production companies in the UK. And in the years since, it has launched some of the most exciting and best-loved titles on TV.
There are names like BAFTA and Emmy-nominated Taskmaster - now in its ninth series -, Judge Romesh, Hypothetical, Jon Richardson: Ultimate Worrier and Comedians Giving Lectures. And of course theres Dave Gorman, whose inquisitive mind is returning to the channel for Terms and Conditions Apply. Its not just in front of the camera where the comic genius lies either, with a wealth of scripted treasure such as Sliced, Porters and the globally popular Red Dwarf.
Daves not content just to make you laugh and share gags with your mates though. Expedition with Steve Backshall and Hurricane Man are showing you regions and aspects of the earth never before seen on TV. Red Bull Soapbox continues to delight with its boundless capacity for invention. And stepping away from the TV entirely, Daves partnered with CALM to launch the Be The Mate Youd Want campaign and the Conversations Against Living Miserably podcast.
Reaching 20million viewers a month, Daves come a long way, but its only just getting warmed up.
dave.uktv.co.uk / @davechannel
About the Comedy Awards
Established in 1981 the Awards the contest for the comedy crowns of Best Comedy Show and Best Newcomer has made headline news at the Edinburgh Fringe festival for four decades.
The inaugural winners were Cambridge Footlights in 1981, whose line-up included Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie, and Emma Thompson. Other winners whose careers have soared since carrying off the awards run from the late Sean Hughes, still the youngest ever winner at age 24, to Rose Matafeo, Hannah Gadsby, Bridget Christie, Sam Simmons, Frank Skinner, Steve Coogan, Jenny clair, Dylan Moran, The Leagu
Europe Stories
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
06/05/2026
New pricing tiers for vocal/dialogue restoration tool
NoiseWorks Audio's AI-powered vocal and dialogue processing plug-in is now available in three diff...
06/05/2026
Popular mixing & routing software overhauled
Following a recent public beta test, RME have launched the final release version of the powerful mixing and rou...
06/05/2026
New SOS Video Feature
Focusrites ISA C8X is a milestone product that brings together the companys analogue heritage and their expertise in digital audio. Yo...
06/05/2026
06 May 2026
VEON's Kyivstar Authorized to Resell Starlink for Businesses & ...
06/05/2026
UKTV has secured the exclusive rights to the early back catalogue of iconic Australian drama series Neighbours, following a landmark content deal with Fremantle...
06/05/2026
Wednesday 6 May 2026
Sky commissions feature documentary to mark 10th anniversa...
06/05/2026
Wednesday 6 May 2026
Sky and Formula 1 agree long-term partnership across UK, Ireland and Italy
Sky in the UK & Ireland to remain the home of Formula 1 until ...
06/05/2026
Sky Zero Footprint Fund-backed TV campaign launches nationwide, supported by new...
06/05/2026
Wuppertal May 6, 2026
Riedel Expands Leadership Structure, Appoints Marc Engro...
06/05/2026
SAN JOSE, Calif. - May 6, 2026 - Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced its latest broadband innovations for ANGA COM 2026, highlighting its vision for a new e...
06/05/2026
Statement from Rupert Murdoch, Chairman Emeritus, Fox Corporation on Ted Turner&...
06/05/2026
Friday 8 May on RT One and RT Player
Meet the NSPCA team caring for and protecting animals in need in this six-part series
Fly on the wall, six-part series...
05/05/2026
Experts from the world of academia, tech, business, politics and media convened for a Thomson Talks at the Cambridge Disinformation Summit in April. It's th...
05/05/2026
Another year, and more proof that Asia continues to shape some of the world's most exciting new sounds. This year's RADAR artists draw from deep local r...
05/05/2026
The Austin City Limits Music Fest 2026 lineup just dropped, and this year, Spoti...
05/05/2026
New drum machine book campaign incoming
Bjooks have announced that during Superbooth 2026, they will be launching a Kickstarter campaign to fund the product...
05/05/2026
Flagship all-in-one production bundle updated
The latest version of Native Instruments' flagship virtual instrument and plug-in bundle has just been ann...
05/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz to host RF Testing Innovations Forum 2026, helping design engine...
05/05/2026
The company grew by 7.6% in net revenue and 16.3% in EBITDA, achieving a 33% inc...
05/05/2026
FOX Sports, FOX One and Indeed Launch Nationwide Search for FOX One Chief World...
04/05/2026
just:play pro 2026 and just:live pro 2026 are available to download!
More Details:At NAB 2026, ToolsOnAir showcased just:play pro 2026 and just:live pro 2026, ...
04/05/2026
just:in mac pro 2026 - The Next Level of Professional Recording on macOS
More Details:The headline innovation in just:in mac pro 2026 is the new Auto format si...
04/05/2026
Last week, guests gathered in New York City for On Air, In Style: An Evening with Spotify-a night of conversation, culture, and connection celebrating the inter...
04/05/2026
New music & post-production features added
Avid's latest DAW update delivers an array of helpful features aimed at both music and post-production users,...
03/05/2026
Polysynth now features Mutable Instruments' macro oscillators
Melbourne Instruments have just released a free firmware update that brings the engine beh...
02/05/2026
Versatile re-amping tool announced
Warm Audio are best known for their recreations of sought-after vintage studio gear, but their latest release brings a ne...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
Florals for spring? Groundbreaking. But a playlist that tells you which The Devi...
01/05/2026
One of the world's biggest popstars is headed to El Cl sico. Later this mont...
01/05/2026
Limited-edition model celebrates 15th anniversary
Heritage Audio's range of monitor controllers has just gained a new member, the Baby RAM Black Edition...
01/05/2026
Dumble recreation now available as UAD plug-in
Along with their renowned processing plug-ins, Universal Audio have been steadily introducing emulations of c...
01/05/2026
We were lucky enough to benefit from huge generosity, so we now have a fantastic Quantum 338T and are developing a cutting-edge d&b loudspeaker system, he expa...
01/05/2026
The first Quantum console purchase made by the company was a Quantum 338 in September 2020. Since then, the company has leveraged Quantum power to steadily expa...
01/05/2026
Friday 1 May 2026
Hannah Waddingham and Ncuti Gatwa to host the series final tw...
01/05/2026
Friday 1 May 2026
Got plans? Cancel them. Sky Sports Big Weekend is coming
Sky Sports is preparing for a bumper weekend of live action, including Manchester ...
01/05/2026
Friday 1 May 2026
Sky Sports to broadcast all matches from World Sevens Football London edition
Sky Sports will be the exclusive UK broadcaster of the women&#...
01/05/2026
RT Sport awarded first pick free-to-air on Wednesday nights
Champions League and Super Cup finals
Highlights on Wednesday nights
RT today (Thursday 30 Apri...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
30/04/2026
Music is evolving, and so are the ways you discover and connect with artists. In...
30/04/2026
Between April 22-29, the first inaugural Stockholm Music Week brought together thought leaders and partners across industries including music, tech, government,...
30/04/2026
Iconic large-format console upgraded
API's iconic Vision console has just been treated to an overhaul that aims to meet the demands of today's profe...
30/04/2026
Comes complete with miking accessories
The LCT 440 Pure has proven to be a popular member of Lewitt's mic line-up, offering impressive technical perform...
30/04/2026
24 October 2026 at The Octagon, Sheffield
Now in its eighth year, SynthFest UK is the largest event of its kind in the UK, bringing together the top keyboar...
30/04/2026
Rohde & Schwarz equips new Terminal 3 at Frankfurt Airport with security scanner...
30/04/2026
Rohde & Schwarz expands broadband amplifier portfolio with new power classes up ...
Thursday 11 July 2019 UKTVs leading comedy channel Dave today announces its new title partnership of The Edinburgh Comedy Awards, directed by Nica Burns.
