British Comedy Guide

Six of the best

Well, they're not all the best and a couple have been recycled but here's half a dozen topical gags I knocked out tonight. I'll be sending the majority to NR and Treason, I suppose:

John McCain edged closer to the White House after huge wins in the Super Tuesday elections. He shouldn’t be too pleased with himself: most of the voters are still confused that the French fries they ordered at the polling booths haven’t arrived yet.

Two men have been accused of swindling sports fans out of thousands of pounds by selling forged signatures of David Beckham, Michael Owen and Sir Alex Ferguson. When asked how they would pay their legal fees, the duo replied: “We have cheques signed by David Beckham, Michael Owen and Sir Alex Ferguson.”

Labour MP Madeleine Moon has called for the Welsh suicide rate to be investigated, saying: "For some reason it is significantly higher than in England". That reason being that Welsh people live in Wales.

A legal loophole has been closed which allowed prison inmates to claim hundreds of thousands of pounds in student grants and loans. “The accommodation’s shit, I blew the whole loan on fags and booze, and still got rogered every other day” said one Oxford University graduate.

A 12-year-old boy has been arrested after a Kent school suffered a pepper-spray attack. A police spokesman said: "Clearly a lot of gas has affected some of the pupils." Their first suspect, the school dinner lady, has been released without charge.

Despite harsh new laws for motorists, drivers who kill someone while behind the wheel could still avoid jail if they claim to have been ‘momentarily distracted’. Good news for any taxi driver with a grudge and bad news for Jade Goody.

Laughing out loud
My personal fav.

A 12-year-old boy has been arrested after a Kent school suffered a pepper-spray attack. A police spokesman said: "Clearly a lot of gas has affected some of the pupils." Their first suspect, the school dinner lady, has been released without charge.

The Welshman in me should hate it, but it's my favourite.

Labour MP Madeleine Moon has called for the Welsh suicide rate to be investigated.At the moment too many of the buggers are surviving.

Quote: Chimes of Freedom @ February 8, 2008, 8:29 AM

"Two men have been accused of swindling sports fans out of thousands of pounds by selling forged signatures of David Beckham, Michael Owen and Sir Alex Ferguson. When asked how they would pay their legal fees, the duo replied: “We have cheques signed by David Beckham, Michael Owen and Sir Alex Ferguson.”"

would be MUCH slicker and MUCH funnier if you change 'We have . . ." to 'With . . .' in the last line.

making:

Two men have been accused of swindling sports fans out of thousands of pounds by selling forged signatures of David Beckham, Michael Owen and Sir Alex Ferguson. When asked how they would pay their legal fees, the duo replied: “With cheques signed by David Beckham, Michael Owen and Sir Alex Ferguson.”

In its revised form, it's top class comedy material.

Football leaves me absolutely cold so I'm in no position to argue the merits of the joke, but this proposed alteration does nothing to improve its quality. It does nothing to lessen it either. It's a tweak for tweak's sake.

Quote: David Bussell @ February 8, 2008, 9:47 AM

Football leaves me absolutely cold

David, football does have its uses. For one, It's a good way of separating the men from the spit-roasting knuckle-dragging dimwits that we call footballers.

Quote: Chimes of Freedom @ February 8, 2008, 9:55 AM

No problem.

It's probably just a case of 'pearls' and 'swine'. ;)

Yes... there is of course a certain duality to that statement!

Loathe as I am to agree with Chimes, I did actually preemptively make the suggested change just before I went to bed, so I am rather bound to say I prefer that construction. However, on the flip-side, it of course makes me a writer of 'top-class comedy material', in this instance at least, so thank you very much.

I don't like football either. What a tediously time-consuming pursuit.

Thanks for the positive comments btw :)

Quote: David Bussell @ February 8, 2008, 9:47 AM

Football leaves me absolutely cold

The joke is not exactly about football though. It would work for any rich celebrity.

Yeah, liked em JW.

The only joke I kind of felt coming was the welsh one, but besides that all good solid jokes.

I agree with Chimes, that's what I call slick dialogue rather than laboured or overwritten and one doesn't need any knowledge of football to get it. The news this week is that two men have been selling fake signed football shirts and are up in court for fraud.

Quote: bushbaby @ February 8, 2008, 3:31 PM

I agree with Chimes, that's what I call slick dialogue rather than laboured or overwritten and one doesn't need any knowledge of football to get it. The news this week is that two men have been selling fake signed football shirts and are up in court for fraud.

In case my phraseology was unclear, I agreed with Chimes too, much to my own chagrin. But I can still steadfastly and stubbornly claim to be resisting Chimes's advice as I had already made the change.
Don't think the original was especially laboured or unclear though...! Whistling nnocently

Yeah, I couldn't resist the Welsh one. The trouble with that news story is that it doesn't *need* a punchline! You could just read the top line, raise your eyebrows, and score maximum effect IMO!

Quote: Charisma @ February 8, 2008, 3:12 PM

The joke is not exactly about football though. It would work for any rich celebrity.

Yes, that's true, but my loathing of football is absolutely pathological.

I'm just sat here in awe and disgust at that avatar ^^^^

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