I don't know brother, the joke didn't work for me, but then again I suppose that has something to do with my disability. I was born without a sense of humour

Even if the joke didn't hit you can't deny this guy is talking straight facts

Somehow I found the setup line of “I’m fat.” far funnier than the joke lol. Just coming out with that so deadpan

This is possibly one of the best videos I've seen so far that actually breaks it down and provide examples. And it under half hour long.

0:19 Dave Chapelle is the only guy I know that can tell you the punchline first and then proceed with the setup😂

I’m glad i found a video that actually gave specifics for how much you should be writing and that you need to edit on stage. Great vid!

"His name is Papa John"
😐🦗😐🦗😐

I love how this video is about the structure of a joke and not about “trying to be funny”. I feel like people who try to be funny usually aren’t funny

1. Set Up - least amount of context necessary to create enough tension so that when you deliver your punchline there's a laugh.
- creates tension


2. Punchline
- releases tension


Look at jokes to see why they're funny what's the set up eg. Misdirection

Remove as many words as possible for minimum context for a punchline to maximise laughs per minute. They want to laugh not learn.

Most people add too much context or put the punchline before setup and say you had to be there. Get to the interesting part.


Write everything you can possibly write without editing. The editing is where you find the joke. Create a mound of words then carve a sculpture out of it. Don't edit a joke over and over again.

Let the audience change and evolve the joke for you

Use the entire langauge to convey the same thing. A simple thing. Use synonyms antonyms alliterations rhymes puns homonyms


Write 10 lines of material everyday something that you can look back at the end of the edit and put up on stage. 250 words for funny story

3650 jokes a year
365 worth editing
36 good jokes
= 30 good minutes a year

This was a great help. I prepared a 5 min material and performed in front of 2000 people and even though I got a huge round of applause still I was slapped by organisers. Sadly i cannot perform the set at an election rally.

A tall man stood up too quickly and hit a light. He must have felt light headed.

i think the other thing is knowing your audience as that joke wouldn't work here as no-one knows Papa John.  The book Finding Your Comic Genius touches on your point here about the balancing of the joke and even breaks it down to syllables

Thank you. First video I found that actually has a formula and wasn’t some celebrity comedian talking about one of their jokes.

On the point of trying to remove as much context as possible without losing the joke, I’ve heard it described as “trimming the fat”. Honestly it’s applicable to most forms of communication and a good habit to keep in mind :)

This video has some really great pointers about not being boring, especially in the TikTok era. I like what he says about people are there to laugh, not learn. This reminds me of Rodney Dangerfield jokes. He said he hates some of the long story jokes people went to.

Thank you for explaining joke structures.

You gave actual insights on joke writing, like effective ones. Liked and Subscribed.

This was just amazing. Just your gaze alone says "I know my stuff." Awesome video, thank you for taking the time to do this. The light joke was great! :)) So simple, so effective. Respect

Great advice. I loved the fat joke 😂 Thanks for spreading your knowledge. I'm so inspired and bursting to try my hand at comedy. This is a good start! Thanks again

the light one actually got my laughing hard