Have I Got News For You - Series 39
So this series is going to run during the election campaign. I predict big impartiality headaches for the producers.
I think 'big' may be an understatement!
I remember when they were covering the last London mayoral election. One way they got around it was quickly running the names of all the candidates along the bottom of the screen. I doubt you can do that for over 650 different seats mind.
Details of the first episode are being revealed. The first guest host is Lee Mack. One of the guest panellists is Nigel Farage of UKIP.
Quote: Tim Walker @ March 26 2010, 1:30 AM GMTSo this series is going to run during the election campaign. I predict big impartiality headaches for the producers.
Quote: Aaron @ March 26 2010, 2:22 AM GMTI think 'big' may be an understatement!
God, yeah! The show has the best lawyers in TV working on it though so I'm sure they'll find a way through the mine field. The Now Show is also going out nightly during the election campaign so the BBC must have carefully planned and trained its satire shows on how they can avoid falling foul of all the various laws.
Really looking forward to it. The HIGNFY going out on election night itself could be a classic, provided it doesn't have its wings clipped that is.
I understand the BBC finds HIGNFY too be to broad and old fashioned in it's approach. Mocking political news is old hat.
The new version will only feature photos of politicians excrement.
"Have I got views of pooh."
*shakes head in sootyj's direction, unamused*
Did that Scottish bloke only arrive in the studio at 9:50?
Quote: Chappers @ April 1 2010, 8:51 PM BSTDid that Scottish bloke only arrive in the studio at 9:50?
Quote: Chappers @ April 1 2010, 8:51 PM BSTDid that Scottish bloke only arrive in the studio at 9:50?
Bit unfair, as he came on quite strong at the end (of the edit, lest we forget). Thought he was the best thing in tonight's show. Hadn't heard of this Kevin Bridges (was it?) before, but I liked his style and will keep an eye out for him in future. 
Otherwise it was a fairly dull show, I thought. Frankly, most of Ian's stuff would have been cut from the final edit if it had been said by anyone other than him.
How can you have not been aware of Kevin Bridges? Maybe I've just become over-exposed to him of late, through Comedy Central's Grouchy Young Men, but still...
Anyway, Paul - sadly - hasn't learned. Still just giving a quizical "eh?" look and glance around himself for laughs. Really disheartening to see that. He seems to maintain a successful live career as far as I can gather, so why is he so lazy and pathetic in HIGNFY now?
Quote: Aaron @ April 2 2010, 12:18 AM BSTHow can you have not been aware of Kevin Bridges? Maybe I've just become over-exposed to him of late, through Comedy Central's Grouchy Young Men, but still...
I recognised the face, but hadn't properly seen him on anything. I don't watch Grouchy Young Men and hopefully never will.
Quote: Aaron @ April 2 2010, 12:18 AM BSTAnyway, Paul - sadly - hasn't learned. Still just giving a quizical "eh?" look and glance around himself for laughs. Really disheartening to see that. He seems to maintain a successful live career as far as I can gather, so why is he so lazy and pathetic in HIGNFY now?
Same old argument, same old answer - no Angus. Comedy thrives from conflict and there is rarely that on HIGNFY thesedays. Neither Paul nor Ian regularly have guests or hosts who exert any kind of pressure on them to raise their game, either comedically or satirically.
Pointless debating this though, as it's a untouchable comedy institution.
Quote: Aaron @ April 2 2010, 1:18 AM BSTAnyway, Paul - sadly - hasn't learned. Still just giving a quizical "eh?" look and glance around himself for laughs. Really disheartening to see that. He seems to maintain a successful live career as far as I can gather, so why is he so lazy and pathetic in HIGNFY now?
I normally disagree with the Merton criticism, but last night he was fairly abysmal. He's much better than that. Still, I found the show overall to be enjoyable, though Hislop is starting to get on my wick with his blinding bias. There's been a fair bit of Tory corruption recently, but he's seemingly forgotten about all this. However, I did love the UKIP bashing, so I'm being completely hypocritical. How the guy can just laugh off nicking £2 million is a disgrace. And presumably Kevin Bridges was edited like that, I thought he was overawed but the last 10 minutes he stole the show, so he couldn't have been. I wonder why they cut his earlier stuff.
I thought largely the opposite: bashing a party is fine - that's generally what happens with satire - but the implication that not being a fan of the EU (politically) is akin to being so out-of-date that you don't believe women should vote, is breathtaking. If those comments had been directed at Nigel specifically, rather than UKIP as a whole, wouldn't that be libellous? Or slanderous? Or something...?