He's the red-headed/strawberry blonde/gingerish Tim Vine. The lanky Milton Jones. You get the idea. Mark Simmons* is one of the country's top one-liner comics. If you want gags he's got 'em. His show is packed with them. It's clever stuff too, done in his own distinctive, thoughtful style. Don't worry if you think a punchline doesn't quite work for you, that's probably because it's a set-up for another gag further on in the show.

Comedian Ross Smith made the headlines earlier this year when he decided to go on a lads' holiday to Hamburg. With a bunch of strangers. And he's not a lad. He was only invited because someone with the same name had dropped out and it meant a free ticket was there for the taking for anybody called Ross Smith. Our hero charted his boozy escapade on Twitter and the story soon went viral. Luckily he just about lived to tell the tale and will be sharing it with audiences in Edinburgh this August in I Am Ross Smith.

Scott Capurro should put "causing controversy since 1994" on his posters. Ever since the San Francisco comedian won the Edinburgh Comedy Award Best Newcomer prize that year he has been known for taking no prisoners when it comes to his subject matter. Whether talking about AIDS or the holocaust or anything else really he has a distinctive, witty take on the subject. This year he is talking about rich friends, worthy yoga and the miseries of home ownership.

Barry Ferns is probably best known in comedy circles as one of the team behind Angel Comedy and the brilliant Bill Murray pub in north London - see answer 4. But lest we forget he is also a very good stand-up comedian, who has recently been gigging in America. Ferns returns to the Edinburgh Fringe with a new show about "what it is like to be the human being Barry Ferns living life in the 21st century." If he can fit that into an hour he surely deserves an award.