Ian Hislop

Why HIGNFY hits the target even after 20 years

When they first appeared on BBC2's risky new show Have I Got News For You, Ian Hislop and Paul Merton, aged 29 and 32 respectively, were young, dangerous, and at the cutting edge of television satire.

Private Eye: Audio slideshow

As Private Eye prepared to go to the presses with its last pre-election issue, editor Ian Hislop invited the Today programme to see how the satirical magazine is put together each fortnight.

Take a unique look inside the Eye's offices in central London - as its writers decide which politicians, business leaders and celebrities deserve to be scrutinised and lampooned in the latest edition.

Incredibly, this is the 20th anniversary and the 39th series of the BBC's flagship entertainment programme - the only entertainment programme that is consistently and genuinely entertaining. Paul Merton's unstoppable flow of surreal invention never seems to dry up, while Ian Hislop must be one of the few people on the planet who can appear on television suffering from a burst appendix and still manage to be funny. With an election looming, the big challenge of the new series - according to Richard Wilson, head of comedy at the production company Hat Trick - will be "to take the spectacularly dull things that politicians say and get laughs out of them". The host tonight is Lee Mack, with Alexander Armstrong and Jo Brand booked to appear later in the run.

On a Thursday? Are schedulers messing with our minds? Is this an April fool? Since time immemorial Have I Got News for You has been a fixture of Friday nights, like crowds outside pubs and kebabs on the pavement. It boots us into the weekend with a flurry of vicious wit, surreal satire and cheap jokes at the expense of John Prescott's figure. It's our pressure valve on the end of the working week, allowing the nation to let off steam and laugh at our betters, while wondering where Paul Merton gets his I'm-wearing-this-for-a-joke shirts and noting the steady advance of Ian Hislop's chins. To plant it on a Thursday seems like sacrilege, until you remember that tomorrow is Good Friday, so the weekend sort of starts here. Let's hope series 39, which starts with Lee Mack at the helm, can keep up the standards.

It's series 39 of the topical panel game and tonight's headline is: HIGNFY has transferred from its traditional Friday night to a new Thursday night slot.

HIGNFY might be billed as the comedy quiz that grills celebrity contestants on the week's top news stories, but we all know it's an excuse for team captains Paul Merton and Ian Hislop to make jokes at the expense of everyone else on the show. Stepping up this week are Nigel Farage MEP, former leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party, and Scottish comedian Kevin Bridges.

Bridges is likely to give as good has he gets. But Farage may find that political barracking is no preparation for the heckling he could get from the HIGNFY team.

The News at Bedtime is a brilliant Today show spoof by Ian Hislop and Nick Newman which went out at Christmas and rather got lost in the nation's annual drowse. Catch up now as John Tweedledum (Jack Dee) and Jim Tweedledee (Peter Capaldi) present the latest from the land of nursery rhymes. It is so funny you can hear each episode five times (thanks to the marvellous iPlayer) and still find new things to laugh at (thanks to producer Simon Nicholls).

News at Bedtime was Ian Hislop and Nick Newman's dazzling satire on current affairs culture, featuring twin presenters John Tweedledum (played by Jack Dee) and Jim Tweedledee (Peter Capaldi) broadcasting from Nurseryland. You wouldn't need to be a Today aficionado to find this series a delight. There was the crooked man defending himself against allegations of corruption: "It's not a crooked sixpence John. I found it next to a stile. It's perfectly acceptable for me to claim as an allowance." The Grand Old Duke of York was on defending his military action - "You launched an ill-thought out, ill-conceived and legally dubious assault on the hill". There was the Daily Fairygraph, owned by the Brothers Grimm, and Jonathan Porridge from Beanpeace protesting against Jack's genetically modified beanstalk. All of it was pitch perfect, totally inventive and very funny.

Ian Hislop and Nick Newman Interview

The News at Bedtime writers Ian Hislop and Nick Newman reveal the surprising number of similarities between nursery rhymes and The News...

Anyone with fond memories of Chris Morris's dearly loved news spoof On The Hour could do far worse than tune into this comic version of the Today programme penned by Ian Hislop and Nick Newman. Starring a first-rate cast of British comedy talent, helmed by Jack Dee and Peter Capaldi, The News At Bedtime is an almost hypnologic take on the conventions of a modern radio news programme, which presents streams of dreamlike absurdity with a staunchly straight face. While the content is a little silly at times, comedy fans and news junkies will still find plenty to enjoy.

The News at Bedtime (R4, 6.15pm) tries a new tack. Jack Dee and Peter Capaldi, as Jack Tweedledum and Jim Tweedledee, are argumentive anchormen in a world where Humpty Dumpty really has had a great fall. Written by Ian Hislop and Nick Newman. If you're up late making stuffing or doing wrapping here's some kitchen company.