Have I Got News for You

Actor Angus Deayton, satirist Ian Hislop and comedian Paul Merton make a very formidable trio on this weekly quiz show. Each week they are joined by guests, with appearances by such people as Paula Yates, John Simpson and Tom Baker being particularly memorable. I don't know what Americans would make of it, because you have to be familiar with British celebrities and British news to understand it. Nevertheless, there is endless humour and it's a delight to watch the regulars score points against each other every episode. The format could go on forever but it wouldn't be the same without Deayton, Hislop and Merton.

Running for 14 years now, and through fire, brimstone and Presenter Prostitution Scandal, still going strong, the recent vein of guest presenters bringing strong new variety to the show.

'Private Eye' editor Ian Hislop and veteran funny man Paul Merton spearhead this quiz show, led formerly by respected actor Angus Deayton, of 'One foot in the grave' fame have sculpted a masterpiece manifested in this programme. At first, I was wondering how a show about current affairs could be so comic, but the news provides us with an inexhaustible supply of scandal, potential parodies, and hilarious opportunities to lambast politicians and such like, which is what 'Have I got news for you' has been inspired by for the last fourteen years.

Joined by two guests, usually politicians, comedians, journalists, or Boris Johnson, the format surprisingly has never grown tiresome, and with recent classics such as Angus'... Well, departure, the infamous 'Tub of Lard' episode, and 'Elton John' Joining the guests, I am hopeful this show will continue for many years to come.

Eleven years and still going strong. This is a topical news quiz which is never short of hilarious in its biting satire and ceaseless wit. In the chair is Angus Deyton, and competing are two teams, each made up of a regular captain and a different guest each week. The captains are comedian Paul Merton and Prive Eye editor and former 'Spitting Image' script-writer Ian Hislop. Guests over the years have included a wide range of politicians, celebrities and other well-known faces including Neil Kinnock, Ken Livingstone, Tom Baker, Charles Kennedy, Boris Johnson, Bob Monkhouse, Clive Anderson, Jo Brand, Harry Enfield, Rory Bremner, Jimmy Saville, Peter Hitchens, Trevor McDonald, Cecil Parkinson and many others. Here's to another eleven years.

I felt I should write this as the previous review had no mention of Angus Deayton's departure.

Though this should have been a tragedy for this great show, something good has come out of it, with a guest host every week. 'Have I got News for You' is a dependable British Comic institution. I can be found faithfully on a Friday night in front of my TV set, watching and laughing. The basic formula is: one guest host (expected to make obligatory self-derogatory remarks) two captains (almost without exception the comic geniuses that are Ian Hislop and Paul Merton) and two guests (who are expected to make jokes relevant to their fields, For many people it is a matter of choice, but I prefer Paul Merton's humour to Ian Hislop's.

The animated title scene is perhaps the worst part of this brilliant show- and it is only half a minute! The other problem is that because this is so topical, it cannot survive like Blackadder has, it lacks that timeless element. Generations to come would have to read up on some news reports to understand the jokes.

Sometimes, the guests can be superb, or less so, but the programme is carried solely on Merton and Hislop, and rounds such as the one where a newspaper is taken and a series of words blanked out are guessed.

On a more serious note, this is not a quiz show in the vein of Who wants to be a Millionaire or University Challenge- this is for fun. Some who are not entirely up to speed on current affairs may not enjoy all the jokes.

So if you find life tragic enough and long for a bit of humour, do watch it, because they've got news for you!

(I couldn't resist it)

*****/*****

This is a very funny BBC panel game with two teams and a host. Angus Deayton hosted it for over a decade, but since he was fired it has had many different guest hosts. One team is led by Paul Merton and the other by Ian Hislop. Each team has different celebrity players each week. However, many celebs have been the host and/or contestants multiple times.

The show has several rounds and is very good at making fun of politicians, current affairs etc.

Some episodes are much better than others, depending on who the participants are.