The 5 Most Popular Stand-Up Comedians On Facebook

It’s easy to find yourself aimlessly browsingFacebook looking for ex-lovers and long-lost school friends or former work colleagues, when really you should be telling the world about the stuff you really like. Facebook features fan pages – official and fan-run – for many  entertainers. Among the most popular are stand-up comedians, some of whom have over 6 million fans on the social networking site alone.

The following 5 most popular stand-up comedians are collated based on the number of “Likes” they have received on Facebook.

5: Russell Peters: 676,130 Likes

Starting stand-up in his teens, Canadian Russell Peters is of Anglo-Indian origin and as a result his material regularly features humour based on his upbringing. As a Catholic with English heritage he’s perfectly placed to lampoon all manner of racial and religious prejudices and the results are often hilarious.

Like all of the other comics in this list, Peters has done a bit of movie acting as well as releasing various DVDs. Most notably he has appeared in Source Code and New Year’s Evein 2011.

Russell Peters

4: Chelsea Handler: 1,862,222 Likes

(Warning: adult material)

There is a good chance that Ms Handler’s popularity is as much to do with her stunning good looks as her comic ability, but there’s also a very strong possibility that the majority of her Facebook fans are women.

Put simply, Chelsea tells dirty jokes, from a woman’s point of view. More likeable than Sarah Silverman, she’s managed to corner the market in vibrator/sex toy gags and her shows are regularly packed out by an audience of women of all ages. She also acts and hosts her own talk show, Chelsea Lately on the E! channel.

Chelsea Handler

3: Michael McIntyre: 2,361,923 Likes

The hugely popular British comic is the slightly effete son of a successful comedy scriptwriter (Canadian Ray Cameron). Michael McIntyre has had a successful run in stand-up in the UK since 2008, going on to host his own live stand-up showcase on BBC television and performing sell-out gigs at some of Britain’s biggest venues. He’s also been a judge onBritain’s Got Talent and famously pulled out of a corporate gig for a debt collection company due to the poor treatment he had received while in financial hardship several years earlier.

McIntyre’s style – which can be observed on his various record breaking DVDs – is a combination of skipping across the stage and laughing at himself, with his material basically observational gags on his mundanely suburban life. It’s all in the delivery.

Michael McIntyre

2: Dane Cook: 4,141,694 Likes

It should come as no surprise that Dane Cook is popular; he has a grungy Wolverine look, great attitude and excellent material.  He’s been performing to massive audiences since around 2000 and has appeared in a long line of films such as Mystery Men, Employee of the Month, Good Luck Chuck, Dan in Real Life and My Best Friend’s Girl.

However he’s no stranger to controversy, having been on the receiving end of every comedian’s worst fear – accusations of plagiarism. Joe Rogan is among the comics to express anger at Cook for misappropriating their routines.

Despite this, however, Dane Cook enjoys a loyal following, many of whom have hit the Facebook “Like” button.

Dane Cook

1: George Lopez: 6,235,403 Likes

The American comedian, actor, and talk show host spreads his abilities far and wide which might explain how he hits the number one spot of most liked comic on Facebook.

With a sitcom and stand-up career running parallel to a talk show, it’s hardly surprising that the comic – whose routine regularly features material on Mexican American culture – is the most popular in this list. Lopez has of course made a few films, notably The Spy Next Doorwith Jackie Chan and Beverly Hills Chihuahua.

Surely there is more to the George Lopez phenomenon? Well, he also seems to be a pretty decent guy, so that probably helps (along with the “Likes” he gets from the Spanish-language Facebook).

George Lopez

So what do you think? Are these stand-up comedians hugely overrated? Who would be your number one?