IT was voted the best joke of the Edinburgh Fringe last year, but now a comedian’s throwaway line about Tourette’s syndrome is inspiring new research into the complex and baffling condition.

From the moment he won, controversy surrounded the Funniest Joke award presented to Swedish comedian Olaf Falafel for his pun-inspired gag about Tourette’s syndrome (TS) which was part of his show It’s One Giant Leek For Mankind.

He joked: “I keep randomly shouting out ‘broccoli’ and ‘cauliflower’ – I think I might have florets.”

The television channel Dave assembled a panel of comedy critics and they voted overwhelmingly for the joke to be on the shortlist for the public vote, with 41% of 2000 voters backing Falafel’s gag.

Charity Tourettes Action said it was “so disappointed” at the vote, with people clearly not understanding that TS is a hereditary, neurological condition which affects roughly 1% of the population and is characterised by “tics” – sudden, uncontrollable movements or sounds.

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Now researchers from the Universities of Bath and Oxford are working with comedians who themselves have TS to better understand the condition and how barriers to them can be broken down.

Lead researcher, Dr Melina Malli, qualitative social care researcher in the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences at the University of Oxford said: “Our findings suggest that in contrast to popular belief, people with Tourette’s may experience many difficulties in their everyday life that are not associated with compulsive swearing. The tics can be debilitating, extremely painful and everyday chores around the house, such as preparing a cup of tea, can be extremely difficult.

“Many of our participants with Tourette’s reported that they rely on their partners or family members for support as they would be too ashamed or embarrassed to ask for help for a ‘swearing disease’.

“Many talked about the loneliness linked to having a condition that renders them a joke, whilst others highlighted the lack of reasonable adjustment their employers were willing to make for them. These are all aspects of Tourette’s that have not been talked about, as the condition has been trivialised through humour and jokes.”

Professor Rachel Forrester-Jones, director of the Centre for the Analysis of Social Policy at the University of Bath explains: “For many with Tourette’s Syndrome we find that the stigma they experience is as a direct result of feeling that people are laughing at them.

“Over the years jokes about Tourette’s have resonated and have shaped what people think about the condition, yet in a very narrow and specific way.

“This matters and has tangible impacts on people’s lives because, partly as a consequence, we’ve too often downplayed the severity of Tourette’s and the support people need. This new work is a recognition that comedy is a powerful tool.”