Phill Jupitus

As pretty much every comedy show apart from The Office has discovered, British humour, like strong cheese, is something that doesn't travel well. Pity British comedian Phill Jupitus, then - not easy words to write, to start with - but he's agreed to undertake a comedy swap with US comedian/actor Eugene Mirman. For Mirman, a veteran of Flight of the Conchords, there awaits a trip to Britain, and a deluge of appearances on panel shows involving Marcus Brigstocke. For Jupitus, there's a sense of deja vu as he returns to standup, and some testing times, in New York comedy clubs. This show may well be what the phrase "tears of a clown" is all about.

Original programming on Dave! Yes, and it's perfect for the channel: a series of interest to serious comedy fans, but inclusive and fun enough to draw in new viewers. Phill Jupitus is first to take part in an experiment where UK and US stand-ups swap places. Jupitus flies to New York to play to audiences who've never heard of him, while Eugene Mirman tries to impress here. Cultural differences are such a comedy cliche, you'd think the pros would be hyper-sensitive to them, but a visibly nervous Jupitus manages to derail his first gig by attempting a routine about Frosties. The very funny Mirman starts well by playing on his bewilderment, but still anxiously adjusts gags between sets. The two men's skill and likeability create valuable insights into the comedian's craft. And when they finally get it right, the gags are tremendous.

Phone call put Phill Jupitus back on comedy stage

When Eddie Izzard telephones to ask why you gave up stand-up comedy, the least you can do is give it another go. That is what happened to Phill Jupitus last year when the eccentric comedian called him. But the strange thing was, Phill didn't think he had quit stand-up.

This week the pop quiz is the launch pad for the manic wit of regular team captains Noel Fielding and Phill Jupitus, guest host Alex James and panellists Peter Serafinowicz, Holly Walsh, Newton Faulkner and Jessica Origliasso. That means there's a range of comic styles as divergent as this show's musical tastes usually are from the current Top 40.

The music panel show continues as Noel Fielding settles into his new role as permanent team captain opposite the immovable Phill Jupitus. Comedian Rhod Gilbert takes the guest presenter's chair tonight (replacing Simon Amstell who has now left the series). Fielding is joined by sports presenter Gabby Logan and Jeremy Reynolds from trendy electro band Hockey. Facing them is a far more intriguing line-up comprised of Spandau Ballet's Martin Kemp and gravel-voiced comedian Greg Davies, who plays the angry head of sixth form in The Inbetweeners.

The line-up seems to change as often as the cast of your average soap but somehow this comedy music panel game has endured. Since the show's inception in 1996, Mark Lamarr and Simon Amstell have had spells as presenter, and Sean Hughes and Bill Bailey have both taken the role of regular team captain. Only Phill Jupitus has lasted the distance. Even the tone of the show has changed over the years - particularly after Amstell took over presenting duties. He put his own quirky, irreverent and somewhat juvenile mark on the programme and when team captain Bailey quit last year he referred to the guests as "gormless indie twerps". Now Noel Fielding (of The Mighty Boosh fame) will take the captain's seat opposite Jupitus, and Amstell will be replaced by guest presenters (beginning tonight with Gavin & Stacey's James Corden). Whether the show will survive after such a flurry of changes remains to be seen. Although Buzzcocks has long since left the illusion of improvisation behind, it has certainly become much "trendier" in recent years and, thanks mostly to the wit of Amstell and Jupitus, it has remained entertaining. Now one must hope that Jupitus can carry on that tradition alone. Joining the teams this week are the potentially dull Tom Clarke of indie band The Enemy and singer Paloma Faith but fortunately actor/comedians Ben Miller and Janeane Garofalo should help keep the proceedings lively.

Simon Amstell made this pop-music panel game outrageously, unmissably funny - but he also made it his own. It was Amstell doing a comedy act, with a quiz interrupting on occasion. Now he's made the logical decision to concentrate on his own stand-up, where he won't have to weave his jokes around asking someone from GMTV questions about Climie Fisher. So Buzzcocks has been left to go down the guest-host route. First to try to follow Amstell is James Corden, co-creator of both the untouchable Gavin & Stacey and the relentlessly (and slightly unfairly) panned Horne & Corden. His appearances on panel shows so far have been more fun for him than for us, but he's naturally funny and he knows his music. Also new, but full-time, is team captain Noel Fielding of absurdist rock-star comedy duo Mighty Boosh. He should slot right in opposite Phill Jupitus, who's now in his 14th year of humming intros and picking has-beens out of line-ups.

Fans of the pop quiz will have been gutted by Simon Amstell's announcement he was quitting to concentrate on his live work. We hoped he was joking - but for once he was deadly serious.

On Amstell's watch Buzzcocks was unmissable weekly irreverence. He read an autocue like nobody's business but the best stuff came off the top of his head - scattering unpredictably like priceless comedy dandruff.

Guest hosts starting with James Corden will helm the new run - but generating that relaxed, free-wheeling chemistry that flourished under Amstell will be tough for anyone dropping in. Noel Fielding, who's been excellent value in the past, becomes a team captain opposite Phill Jupitus.

For those worried that they'd not seen much of James Corden on their screens recently, relax, he's back. He hosts the umpteenth return of Buzzcocks - along with Noel Fielding, who's back as a team captain. The quick-witted Simon Amstell is gone, so now it's a revolving-door host policy, with the ability to read an autocue and laugh generously at unfunny gags by Phill Jupitus the only qualifications that seem to be required. Fine, anything that keeps Mark Lamarr from clawing his way back on to our screens.

The early-evening Radio 4 comedy in which Marcus Brigstocke encourages celebrities to venture outside their comfort zones transfers to TV, with Clive Anderson the first to try five fresh cultural experiences. The former barrister had not been recorded throwing caution to the wind at the time of going to press, but we're promised few changes to the programme's original format. Recently we've heard Phill Jupitus eating his first Findus crispy pancake, Joan Bakewell getting a beat-boxing lesson and Barry Cryer changing a baby's nappy - the result being an enjoyably less-splenetic version of Room 101, in which the guests do sometimes find pleasure in the very things they've been avoiding.