Is this the funniest joke in Britain?... Southwater school in battle for best gag

Foxes class at Castlewood Primary School has been named one of the top ten funniest classes in the country by long-running comic Beano.

And now the school is calling on people to help it claim the crown of the most hilarious classroom in Britain as it bids to win a competition being run by the children's magazine.

The beloved series, which has created iconic characters such as Dennis the Menace and Gnasher, has launched a new campaign, hunting for the funniest classroom in Britain.

Castlewood joined schools across the country, sending its best jokes to the publisher to be judged by comedy experts including TV and stand-up star Harry Hill.

Foxes' pupil Macie Rowland's entry left the judges in stitches and has been selected as one of the ten best jokes which are now being put forward for the public to decide the winner.

Foxes class teacher Katy Smith said: “We are so excited because we have been chosen as one of the ten funniest schools in Britain and now the votes are on."

The school got involved in the competition after Year 3 pupil Samuel Kemp spotted the event in his magazine.

After speaking with Mrs Smith she decided it would be a fun activity for the whole class to get involved in.

Mrs Smith said: “We all wrote down some of our favourite jokes. We had to submit three jokes as a class and Macie’s joke was chosen as the winning joke."

All the entries were judged by an expert panel made up of Beano gaff writers and Harry Hill.

After choosing Macie's joke to be in the final the star of TV Burp sent the youngster a special video of him reading out the gag.

Macie said she was very emotional after hearing her joke had been selected and she was 'so happy tears were running down her face'.

The joke went: “At the bank a lady asked me to check her balance, so I pushed her over.”

Sue Barnard, secretary at the school, said: “It’s the best joke in there. You can vote as many times as you like. Vote, vote, vote!”

Beano will be awarding prizes to the top three schools in the competition which will include a joke workshop run by the magazine, subscriptions to the comic and Beano annuals.

Sue added there was also a bonus for the winning entry which would see the children immortalised in a comic to illustrate their joke and they would also be presented with a trophy.

She said: “They would love to win, they would love to have the trophy and they would love the Beano to come down.

She added: “There’s definitely lots of good future comedians in the class. I can see a few stand-up comedians to rival Harry Hill."

Mike Stirling, editorial director at Beano said: “Everyone at Beano has been left in stitches by the entries to our national joke competition to find the funniest primary class in Britain and we can’t wait to see which school the public will vote the ultimate comedy genius.”

You can vote for your favourite joke by visiting https://commercials.beano.com/funniest-class/

The finalists and their jokes are listed below:

- 5GC class at Elm Academy, Bournemouth (Hampshire): “What do you call a magic Labrador? A Labracadabrador.

- Da Vinci class at St Judes C of E Primary School, Portsmouth (Hampshire): “I went to the doctor this morning and said I have a golf ball stuck up my bum! The doctor said ‘Yes I can see, it’s gone up a fairway!’”

- Foxes class at Castlewood Primary School, Southwater (West Sussex): “At the bank a lady asked me to check her balance, so I pushed her over.”

- Talland class at Polperro Primary, Looe (Cornwall): “YouTube, Twitter and Facebook are making a joint website. What would it be called? YouTwitFace.”

- 4SB class at Larchwood Primary School, Pilgrims Hatch (Essex): “What’s the difference between Harry Hill and Dennis the Menace? Nothing, they both have great Gnashers.”

- 6A class at Bispham Endowed CE Primary School, Blackpool (Lancashire): “A Mexican man says to his friends, ‘I can disappear in three seconds. Uno...dos…’ and then he disappears without a ‘tres’!”

- 5K class at Staines Preparatory School, Staines (Surrey): “Have you seen the new movie ‘Constipated’? No? That’s because it hasn’t come out yet!”

- P6RC class at ESMS Junior School, Edinburgh (Midlothian): “How do you fry a black and white bear? With a pan-duh!”

- Wagtails class at Yeo Moor Primary School,Clevedon (North Somerset): “Why did the chicken cross the road? Because he farted, so he had to run away from the smell!”

- Rochester class at St Marks Primary School, Bromley (Kent): “What is green and not heavy? Light green.”