8 Out of 10 Cats

Love it. Ashamed to admit that panel shows are my way of keeping up with UK news and culture, and this is still one of the best. TheyAlways have a good variety of guests, and the regulars are doing a good job as well. Of course, Sean Locke will be missed, but there's not much we can do about that.

Too much canned laughter. Even the most stupid attempts at humor get a raucous laugh, and most of the attempts are stupid.

Most shows up until the recent series are pretty good. Jimmy Carr and Sean Lock in particular. However, it has been utterly ruined with the introduction of Rob Beckett as a captain. Now about as funny as pulling teeth, giant shiny teeth at that. No wonder the viewing figures are through the floor. Won't last long now I wouldn't think unless they get shot of Beckett.

Since this panel show mostly concerns current events, the episodes feel old pretty quickly. Many of the jokes rely on the audience having news stories in fresh memory, so as those memories have faded, the jokes no longer work.

The quality of guests varies greatly, and conversations between them can feel a bit forced. Still, latest episodes can be worth catching if you're into making fun of current affairs.

The one old episode I'd recommend is S13E09 - the tax avoidance scandal.

In 2005, Channel 4 launched a brand-new panel comedy series called 8 Out of 10 Cats, featuring opinion polls and statistics.

It was hosted by British stand-up comedian Jimmy Carr, who was the perfect host for this series, with him showcasing his quick wit and snappy one-liners whilst not overshadowing the show and the guests.

Alongside Carr, one of its team captains was the late Sean Lock, who joined it from the beginning, and comedian Dave Spikey, who left the show after Series 4.

Spikey was then replaced by Jason Manford, who joined in Series 5 before leaving in Series 10, and was subsequently replaced by comedian Jon Richardson.

Carr, alongside Lock and Richardson would later do 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown, which they would later focus on full-time, causing Lock and Richardson to leave the main 8OO10C show at the end of Series 18.

Carr would remain as host for the remaining of the show's tenure, but the show would garner new team captains.

Enter Rob Beckett and Aisling Bea, who were frequent guests on 8OO10C and Catsdown, who joined as team captains in Series 19. Around the same time, the show moved to More4.

Bea would leave the show at the end of Series 20 (which moved to E4 starting with this season), leading to guest team captains in Series 21 before Katherine Ryan, who also frequently appeared on the main show and Catsdown, joined the show as a permanent team captain in Series 22.

As of now, the show has sadly ended since the last episode aired in January of 2021, with its spinoff Catsdown continuing to air on Channel 4.