Stand-up comedian Ken Dodd OBE has tonight been named a 'Legend of Comedy' at the Leicester Comedy Festival, sponsored by Dave.

Dodd, who collected his award in person said it was "amazing, wonderful and plumptious" to be voted the winner from a list of such "fabulous funny people and good friends".

The annual award, which is voted for by readers of the Leicester Mercury newspaper as well as audiences at the festival, was last year won posthumously by Norman Wisdom OBE.

The 2013 award was restricted to comedians who had performed at the Leicester Comedy Festival in the past two decades. This year, to mark the festival's 21st anniversary, the search was opened up to include any comedian, alive or dead.

Dodd was voted the ultimate comedy legend from a shortlist also comprising Jasper Carrott, Lenny Henry, Nicholas Parsons, Jennifer Saunders and Victoria Wood.

A veteran entertainer, the 86-yer old Dodd is known for his long-running Happiness touring show, which regularly runs to many hours in length each night, often past midnight, as well as his tales of Diddymen and the Treacle and Jam Butty mines of Knotty Ash.

Geoff Rowe, founder and Director of Dave's Leicester Comedy Festival (pictured above with Dodd) said today: "It's great to have an opportunity to recognise the enormous contribution Ken Dodd has made to the UK comedy scene over the past 60 years. We were delighted to welcome him to the ceremony, as our special guest, and present him with the award."

Sponsored by digital television channel Dave since 2012, the Leicester Comedy Festival ran for 17 days in its 21st year, closing on Sunday 23rd February. Dave's Leicester Comedy Festival will return in 2015.

Here's a clip of Ken Dodd performing on 1980s quiz show 3-2-1: