Chris Cantrill has won the annual Edinburgh comedy award for his show Rewilding, two years after his comedy partner Amy Gledhill – in the double act The Delightful Sausage – took the same prize.
Cantrill, 42 and from Bradford, received the award for a show about his new life in rural Northumberland, where an act of vandalism shocks the local community and a spoof whodunnit ensues. The show builds on the foundations laid in 2024 by Easily Swayed, which documented his move to the countryside and secured what was then his third nomination, but first as a solo act.
Mainstream potential and leftfield shortlist
Like Gledhill, Cantrill is an uproarious, fun-loving and relatable act with palpable mainstream potential. His victory comes against the grain of an awards shortlist that, in both the best show and best newcomer categories, trended leftfield.
The oddballs are represented among this year's winners by Marty Gleeson, who received the best newcomer gong for her show Dog Ear. The eccentric set is inspired by Gleeson's experiences at art school in her native Limerick, and – with its live bodhrán accompaniment and a setpiece that requires shaking the hand of every single audience member – marches entirely to the beat of its own drum.
Star-maker in British comedy
The prize is famously a star-maker in British comedy. Previous winners of the main award, initiated in 1981, include Steve Coogan, Frank Skinner and Bridget Christie; winners of the best newcomer gong, introduced in 1992, include Harry Hill and Sarah Millican.
The organisers of the Edinburgh comedy award, theatre producer Nica Burns and its new executive director Emma Brünjes, said that “in Chris and Marty we have two outstanding winners: both are exceptional comedians, writers and performers who have crafted wonderful shows”.
Winners selected from 550 eligible shows
The winners were selected from more than 550 eligible shows at a festival claiming, yet again, to be bigger than ever, with just over 4,200 registered shows across 299 venues. As winner of the best show prize, Cantrill receives £10,000; best newcomer Gleeson wins £5,000. BBC Radio 4 will tonight broadcast a special showcase featuring nominees for the two awards.
This year's panel prize, which rewards initiatives that best sum up “the spirit of the fringe”, was won by One Joke, a new event asking “how many comedians can tell one joke each, in an hour?”. Produced by Liebenspiel, compered by Jonathan Oldfield, and headlined by the comic Lorna Rose Treen, it featured contributions by 60 comedians and raised money for charity.
