Clawsome! Crabs judge 'world's funniest crab joke' contest

The 'world's funniest crab joke' has been crowned in Margate by a panel of expert judges: A group of crabs.

The winning joke was: "Why did the crab cross the road? It didn't. It used the sidewalk."

A whopping 700 gags were whittled down to the final four by local school children and celebrity judges, including comedian Harry Hill.

These were written onto pieces of paper and wrapped around some tinned fish, before the crabs picked their winner.

This joke pinched the silver medal: "Man walks into a restaurant with a crab under his arm and says, 'Do you make crab cakes?' Manager answers, 'Yes, we do.' 'Good,' says the man, 'because it's his birthday.'"

The Crab Museum in Margate, which held the competition, said the quality of jokes had been astounding.

"We've been pinching ourselves since the submissions closed!"

The museum opened in 2021 and claims to be Europe's "first and only museum" dedicated to the crab.

Here are some more of the shortlisted jokes - could you do better? Let us know in the comments below.

• How did the crab get out of prison? It used its escape claws.

• Why didn't the crab help the chicken cross the road? Because it was eaten by a pelican crossing.

• What did the sea urchin say to the crab? Please sir, can I have some claw?

• How do barnacles get around? A taxi crab.