Comics win New Zealand's first Grammy in 24 years

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The New Zealand comedy duo Flight of the Conchords, a cult favorite in the United States thanks to their HBO television show, won their country's first Grammy in 24 years on Sunday.

Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie, who play marginally talented folk singers struggling to make it in New York, picked up the best comedy album Grammy for "The Distant Future."

The last New Zealander to win a Grammy was opera star Dame Kiri Te Kanawa in 1984, according to the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand.

"Flight of the Conchords" ended its first season on the HBO cable network in September, and fresh episodes will air later this year. In the meantime, their first full-length disc, featuring reworked versions of tunes that they performed on screen and in concert, will be released in the United States on April 22.

(Editing by Steve Gorman)