I’ve said that comedy, in it’s most basic form, is the joining together of two separate ideas to make a new – and funny – one.
That’s it in it’s most basic form.
Here’s a good example:

Take two things, slap them together to make something surprising and funny – in this case an honest job advert for McDonald’s.
If you break this down, there isn’t a massive amount of creativity or comedy skills here.
All they have done is:
- stolen the Uncle Sam thing,
- slapped a Ronald McDonald face on it, and
- used every stereotype of a McDonald’s worker and put it underneath.
That’s it. No joke formulas required.
Take two things and put them together to make something surprising and fun.