Funny Audiobooks
Let's talk funny. Funny audiobooks to be precise. Obviously any top ten list is subjective, but none more so than that of the best comedy audiobooks. After all, one human's funny is another's crass. Or weird. Or just... well… unfunny.
Be they gently amusing romantic comedies, uproarious contemporary fiction, slightly slapstick or delightfully dark, there is no halfway when it comes to comedy. Being funny is a serious business and one of extremes.
This is in no way a definitive top comedy audiobooks chart. It’s mine. It is a snippet of my favourites. What I would rank as the best comedy audiobooks.
Funniest Audiobooks 2021
Oh 2021, you delivered comedy gold. I highly recommend The Echo Chamber, my favourite release of the year.
With all that in mind, here's my list of top comedy audiobooks. Think of it as a tour of the best comedy authors, including that bone dry creature known as satire audiobooks. Enjoy. Or, you know, completely disagree.
Funny Audiobooks: Top 10
BY
Gill Sims
Gill Sims' uproarious tribute to unmumsy mums is the hilariously inappropriate, scathingly accurate and hopelessly endearing diary of a mum trying to measure up to the ridiculous standards of social media and society. Lighthearted yet relatable, this is the ultimate in mum-lit and, one of the funniest audiobooks around.
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Gabrielle Glaister
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Oscar Wilde
“The truth is rarely pure and never simple.” This is just one pearl in the ocean of sharp observations that make up this scathingly witty commentary on high society. There are several audiobook version of this classic play, the latest f which comes from Audible studios and stars Stephen Fry.
2
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Jonathan Coy, Janie Dee, Daisy Edgar Jones, Stephen Fry, Tom Glynn Carney, Paterson Joseph, Gwilym Lee, Lyndsey Marshall
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Nick Hornby
A group of misfits contemplating suicide is an unlikely source of humour, but Nick Hornby proves exactly how it's done in one of his best novels. Through this strange set of characters, Hornby explores themes ranging from futility to media intrusion and yet keeps the level of humour sky high.
3
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Scott Brick, Simon Vance, Kate Reading
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Paul Torday
Best known as the author of the magnificent Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, my favourite Paul Torday novel is this lesser known gem. Both novels share an absurd premise, a bottomless well of knowledge of an esoteric subject and humour as dark as a bottle of Vignobles Brumont 2015 Château Montus.
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David Rintoul
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Yahtzee Croshaw
Jam has taken over the world. Actual jam. Or something that looks like it anyway because this stuff has a mind of its own. This deliciously absurd apocalypse is written and brilliantly read by Yahtzee Croshaw.
5
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Yahtzee Croshaw
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Joseph Heller
Futility has never been funnier than in Joseph Heller's classic satire about the pointlessness of war. Narrator Trevor White delivers a clean, All-American performance (he is in fact British/Canadian) that's just right.
6
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Trevor White
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Adrian Tchaikovsky
I was tempted to include The Hitchhiker’s Guide To the Galaxy, but given its permanent top spot as best comedy books on audible I went for this instead. It’s sci-fi, it’s satire and it’s weird in the best possible way.
7
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David Thorpe
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Matt Rudd
Not to put too fine a point on it, but William Walker's first year of marriage is not going well. Actually, it's a bit of a disaster. And the results are hilarious. This lighthearted comedy is read in the ever so dry and disgruntled voice of Simon Shepherd and never fails to make me smile.
8
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Simon Shepherd
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Christopher Brookmyre
It's Chris Brookmyre read by David Tennant. You're welcome.
Oh. Oh, you need more?
Well, this is one of those rare half detective mystery half funny fiction audiobooks… That’s now a thing and I’m here for it.
9
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David Tennant
BY
Marie Phillips
What happens when the gods of Ancient Greece are stuck on Earth? Havoc and hilarity. Oh and completely inappropriate behaviour. Thoroughly entertaining.
10
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Glen McCready
Humour Books: Best of the Rest
Phew. That was difficult. There are so many great comedy and satire audiobooks, choosing just 10 was a wrench. I need to have a sit down. The point is, there are loads more. Check out yet more brilliant funny audiobooks below, listed A-Z.
The Trouble with Goats and Sheep
Quirky and Endearing. Plot takes Second Place.
Joanna Cannon
BY
Wife Support System
A fun, playful, witty listen with plenty of personality.
Kathleen Whyman
BY
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Charming
Gail Honeyman
BY
The Rosie Project (Don Tillman, Book #1)
Sweet, Uplifting Perfection
Graeme Simsion
BY
Why Mummy Swears (Why Mummy #2)
More Marvellous Mummy Madness
Gill Sims
BY
Will Save the Galaxy for Food
Sci-fi and satire collide with hilarious consequences.
Yahtzee Croshaw
BY
Futuristic Violence and Fancy Suits
Grisly violence, sarcasm and maniacal supervillains have never been so hilariously lovable.
David Wong
BY
Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
Simply Ex-squid-site, Gill-Splitting Brilliance.
Paul Torday
BY
The Diary of a Bookseller
Charming and funny, sardonic and quirky.
Shaun Bythell
BY
Touching Strangers
A Satisfying Rummage Through Tangled Minds and Stories
Stacey Madden
BY
William's Progress: Another (sleepless) Horror Story (William Walker #2)
A Chip Off The Old Book
Matt Rudd
BY