Ard Collier
that Janice chick
Usual Suspect and general menace

Drugs and a hooker, according to said hooker's account in the News of the World. I've seen the episode that aired the week that the story broke. Hislop and Merton were quite... savage. Deayton lasted another three episodes (with a series hiatus in the middle), then another round of similar allegations broke out in the tabloids and the Beeb decided that Angus was no longer credible as the snarky host of a quiz program designed to make hay out of public figures' failings. Merton, in particular, had such palpable contempt for him by that point that the show was starting not to work. (As he later said when a newspaper reporter accused him and Hislop of stabbing Angus in the back, "No, we stabbed him in the front.")

Mind you, that was in 2002 and some people in the business are still pissed off about how it all went down. Stephen Fry, for instance, was rumored to be the producers' first choice to take over permanently as host, but he was so incensed by the way Angus got the sack that he's refused to appear on the program since, which, I guess, is why he's hosting QI now instead.

I think I prefer it with the rotating guest host anyway, to be honest; some of them don't work for me (e.g. that utterly smug woman MP whose name escapes me at the moment), but, I mean, if they still had Deayton we'd never have had the Boris Johnson episodes. Or the one with BRIAN BLESSED (as I am informed is the proper spelling of his name). And that would be tragic. For that matter, I'd probably never have stumbled across the show, since I only came to it by way of running across one of the episodes that Jeremy Clarkson guest-hosted.

As to your other suggestions, I've listened to a few episodes of I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, but not the other shows you mention. I've heard of The News Quiz - I gather the late Linda Smith used to be on it a lot - but never actually heard it. Still, always looking for new things to put on in the car, you know. It's a longish drive from anywhere to anywhere in my part of the world.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Admin
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

Indeed she did. HIGNFW is basic a televised, less funny version of The News Quiz (which is hosted by Sandi Toksvig and features prominent comedians from everywhere), and Mock The Week is a version of it more based around comedy than actual accuracy. Frankie Boyle, Scotland's funniest man and at 37, the oldest living resident of Glasgow, was a regular, as is the truly hilarious impressionist/satirist Hugh Dennis and Russell Howard, who is extremely good and also extremely good-looking.

You might also enjoy 8 Out Of 10 Cats, a panel game about polls and statistics hosted by plastic-faced, Antichrist-eyed comedian Jimmy Carr and featuring Sean Lock (improv master) and Jason Manford (a hilarious, fat Northerner like a less urbane and more down-to-Earth Phill Jupitus)

---
"She's old, she's lame, she's
barren too, // "She's not worth
feed or hay, // "But I'll give
her this," - he blew smoke at
me - // "She was something in
her day." -- Garnet Rogers,
Small Victory

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3MLY135xoU

The show survived the transition from the ABC to Ten very well, except they now cross-promote some wannabe starlet or singer every few weeks.

I can't let a GNW recommendation go past without linking this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWC0kOkaAfA) either - a song from this year's finale about refugees on boats. Not funny, just brilliant.

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Admin
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

You assumed there was a plot to begin with......B-D

Craig

----------------------------
IAMTW-Nominated Author

Author of the Battletech Novels, Icons of War,
Elements of Treason: Duty, Elements of Treason:
Opportunity, and Elements of Treason: Honor

Co-author of Four Outcast Ops
novels -- African Firestorm, Red Ice, Watchlist, and
Shadow Government.

Author of the The Russia-Ukraine War Factbook (Vol 1)

The 'reporter' was, in fact, Sir Michael Parkinson, of the interview
program Parkinson. He also says quite a few other, more than a bit
sharp and/or contemptous things. See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMXiR089ARQ
for part of the programme in question. The 'stabbed him in the front' part is
at about 3:25.

>Mind you, that was in 2002 and some people in the business are still
>pissed off about how it all went down. Stephen Fry, for instance, was
>rumored to be the producers' first choice to take over permanently as
>host, but he was so incensed by the way Angus got the sack that he's
>refused to appear on the program since, which, I guess, is why he's
>hosting QI now instead.

Indeed. Fry said that the sacking of Deayton was 'greasy, miserable,
British and pathetic'. Man has a way with words, he does.

Oh, I thought it'd been in a newspaper interview. I wonder where I got that impression... ah, well.

They used to show Parkinson on BBCA, oh, ten, twelve years ago now. I remember seeing an episode in which two of his guests were Shakespearean actors - I forget their names - who spent much of the show swapping war stories of life on the stage rather than bothering to be interviewed. My favorite bit was when one of them related his annoyance at Shakespeare students attending shows and paying no attention to the actual performance, other than to follow along in a script with a highlighter to make sure the actors said all the words. Eventually he got so irritated that he started delivering his lines in the style of a newsboy just to see what they would do - which was nothing at all.

--G.
"Horror! Horror! Horror! Tongue nor heart cannot conceive nor name thee! Read all about it!"
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Admin
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

And they'll STILL be making jokes about Piers "Morgan" Moron.

---
"She's old, she's lame, she's
barren too, // "She's not worth
feed or hay, // "But I'll give
her this," - he blew smoke at
me - // "She was something in
her day." -- Garnet Rogers,
Small Victory

"It's difficult keeping up with the cross-continuity, but I think Cosmouse just gave The Saturnian Scraphunter his Ultimate Pacifier to use against Galactapuss..."

Oh yes, and you can bet that G comes in for his fair share of abuse whenever he guest-hosts, though I'd like to think it's in a spirit of better-natured fun than, oh, say the shellacking Angus Deayton got toward the end of his run.

"This is the Salusian Minister for Public Security giving his annual address to the Estates General - but what I'm really interested in is this other story, if we could just go back for a moment..."

>however, Ian Hislop
>being a fair man, they'd generally find that there was nothing to
>complain about.

"I do sometimes wonder why you've never sued me." "Well, Ian, to the best of my knowledge, you've never reported anything about me that wasn't true. Well, apart from the thing about the Grand Duchy of Saenar, and that wasn't your fault."

>Although it might be good for lifting the lid off the
>unscrupulous behaviour of some of the IPO operatives (And I don't mean
>Lensmen- in every organisation, there's a few bad apples, and I
>sincerely doubt that the IPO is immune to the Peter Principle).

"On my right, the honorary IPO Deputy Chief for Agent Ethics Enforcement, Ian Hislop."

--G.
-><-
Benjamin D. Hutchins, Co-Founder, Editor-in-Chief, & Forum Admin
Eyrie Productions, Unlimited http://www.eyrie-productions.com/
Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam.

*****

"It's difficult keeping up with the cross-continuity, but I think Cosmouse just gave The Saturnian Scraphunter his Ultimate Pacifier to use against Galactapuss..."

This would have made a spectacular beverage explosion, had I been drinking anything right now. I can _SO_ picture this happening. Good job, sir.

--------------
Lime2K
The One True Evil Overlord

"It's difficult keeping up with the cross-continuity, but I think Cosmouse just gave The Saturnian Scraphunter his Ultimate Pacifier to use against Galactapuss..."