City Life Comedian of the Year

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The City Life Comedian of the Year competition is judged annually in Manchester, and sponsored by the City Life magazine.

The competition began in 1990, and has grown into one of the most prestigious comedy awards in the North West of England, mostly on the subsequent success of many of its entrants and winners. The competition is open to all, and the early heats often have a broad mix of talent and ability, and from each heat the entrants are whittled down to 8 finalists. In the first year, the competition was won by Caroline Aherne, who went on to create Mrs Merton and The Royle Family and in subsequent years all three writers of the successful sitcom Phoenix Nights (Peter Kay, Dave Spikey and Neil Fitzmaurice) all won the competition. Famous runners-up include Dave Gorman, Archie Kelly and Johnny Vegas.