Donal Vaughan has won the Beat the Frog World Series 2016 at the Frog & Bucket in Manchester. 

The runner up was Mark Grimshaw and panel prize went to Simon Wozniak. The rest of the contestants were Tom Lawrinson,  Gary Meikle,  Matt Hutson, Chris Sullivan, Anthony Wright and Mark Grimshaw, plus 'wildcard' contestant Arielle Souma.

Irishman Vaughan was the 2015 Laughing Horse New Comedian of the Year and a 2014 Tedfest Award Winner.

Dan Nightingale compered and last year's Beat The Frog winner Rob Mulholland performed a headline set.

Every Monday throughout the year newbie comedians attempt to 'beat the frog' where they have to stay on stage and be sufficiently funny, interesting or even weird enough to entertain the crowd for five minutes as three audience members are armed with cards that they hold up when they decide they've had enough. If all three cards go up a loud croaking noise sounds and the act has to exit the stage. Those that manage to stay the course compete via a 'clap off' as to who wins the overall night and goes on to perform an uninterrupted eight minute set the following week as well gaining automatic entry into the World Series.

Beat the Frog grew out of the Raw amateur night at the Frog, one of the first shows the club produced when it opened back in 1994. The Raw night saw John Bishop's first ever stand up gig. Peter Kay, Johnny Vegas, Jason Manford, Sarah Millican and Jack Whitehall have all passed through honing their talents as they went. The late Caroline Aherne was a regular audience member.

The 2010 winner Brennan Reece was nominated for Best Newcomer in the Edinburgh Comedy Award at the Edinburgh Fringe this year with his début hour Everglow. Last year 's winner Rob Mulholland spent August performing at the Edinburgh Fringe. For the first time last year The Frog awarded a runner up prize to MC Africa Zulu (now Gbolahan Peter Macjob) and a panel prize which went to Tayo Cousins.