Launched in 1981, the Edinburgh Comedy Award is presented to the comedy show judged to have been the best at the city’s Festival Fringe and is widely recognised as the most prestigious comedy prize in the UK.
Most famously known as the Perrier Award, over the years it’s also been known as the if.comedy awards and the if.comeddies, and this year it’s celebrating its 45th birthday.
Originally it was just a single prize for the best show, but a Best Newcomer category was added in 1992, followed by a Panel Prize (now the Victoria Wood Award) four years later - for acts who have made a special contribution to the Fringe Festival.
Last year the main prize was won by Amy Gledhill, while Joe Kent-Walters took home the prize for Best Newcomer for his monstrous comic creation Frankie Monroe.
Meanwhile, the Panel Prize went to A Show for Rob Copeland - whose free show at the Banshee Labyrinth saw some of the biggest queues of the Fringe.
And this year’s comedy champions will be crowned on Saturday, August 23.
They will join a list of winners that includes some of the most biggest names in comedy.
Here are the 14 most famous winners in the award’s history.
1. Cambridge Footlights
The first ever winners of the award in 1981 were arguably the most famous. The Campbridge Footlights comedy troupe included Stephen Fry, High Laurie and Emma Thompson, all of whom went on to be huge television and film stars. The much-missed comedian Tony Slattery, Penny Dwyer and Paul Shearer completed the lineup. | Getty Images
2. Frank Skinner
Frank Skinner won the main award in 1991 and went on to form a double act with David Baddiel, presenting 'Fantasy Football League' and co-writing football anthem 'Three Lions'. | Getty Images
3. Steve Coogan
British comedy icon Steve Coogan won the award in 1993 in character as Paul and Pauline Calf - in a show that also starred future 'Fast Show' comedian John Thomson. Since then he's played Alan Patridge in a string of radio shows, television programmes and films, as well as building an impressive career on the big screen in movies like 'Philomena' and this year's 'The Penguin Lessons'. | Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images
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4. Jenny Eclair
One of the most recognisable faces on British television, Jenny Eclair's big break came when she became the first women to win the Perrier in 1995. | Getty Images