A Canterbury comic who used the city’s bars to learn his trade has been recognised at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe.

Mark Simmons’ show One Linerer was nominated one of the top 10 at the festival, with one of his jokes ranked among an eagerly awaited list of the event’s best.

Audiences vote for their favourite, with Mark’s quip placing sixth in a top 10 including stand-up giants Frankie Boyle and Ed Byrne.

He had crowds tickled with: “Combine Harvesters. And you’ll have a really big restaurant.”

The joke lost out to Ken Cheng’s: “I’m not a fan of the new pound coin, but then again, I hate all change.”

Mark, who has lived in Canterbury for 10 years, hopes the recognition will boost his comedy career.

He said: “Next up I’m going to tour my show around other festivals, and hopefully be the new face of Harvester very soon.”