Dan Tiernan wins BBC New Comedy Awards 2022
- Dan Tiernan has won the BBC New Comedy Awards 2022
- TikTok comedian Helen Christie won the Digital Comedy Award
The BBC New Comedy Awards 2022 has been won by Dan Tiernan.
Tiernan performed in the Middlesbrough heat. The comic, who works as a "dinner lady" at his local school, joked about having dyspraxia and the relationship with his step-dad.
Dan wins a paid commission to write and perform in a 30-minute audio pilot under the mentorship of a BBC Comedy Commissioner, plus a trophy and £1,000 cash.
The final took place at St David's Hall in Cardiff on Tuesday 1st November, but the result has been kept a secret until tonight's broadcast on BBC One.
The final also featured Dee Allum who won the Deptford heat; Omar Badawy from the Exeter show; Robbie McShane from the Derry heat; Marjolein Robertson who triumphed in Kilmarnock and Joshua Bethania, who sealed his finals place in Coventry.
The grand final was hosted by Kerry Godliman, with head judge Fern Brady joined by fellow stand-ups Rosie Jones and Nabil Abdulrashid on the panel. Last year's winner, Anna Thomas, handed over the trophy.
Bash The Entertainer presented the Digital Comedy Award category, which was won by Helen Christie, a content creator best known for her sketches on TikTok which focus on meme, pop and TikTok culture.
The BBC New Comedy Awards have been running since 1995. Notable winners include Julian Barratt (1995), Marcus Brigstocke (1996), Paul Foot (1997), Josie Long (1999), Alan Carr (2001), Nina Conti (2002), Rhod Gilbert (2003), Tom Allen (2005), Angela Barnes (2011), Lucy Beaumont (2012) and Lost Voice Guy (2014).
More than 1,000 comedians applied to this year's contest, with 80 selected to appear at showcases across the country, and 30 then progressing to the six regional heats, which were televised on BBC Three.
Jon Petrie, BBC Director of Comedy, comments: "BBC Comedy is the unrivalled home of new comedy talent and we are very proud of the role that the BBC New Comedy Awards plays in unearthing the British comedy stars of tomorrow."
The heats and final of the BBC New Comedy Awards can be watched on BBC iPlayer