Phill Jupitus

Pull a cracker for a festive QI with Phill Jupitus, Alan Davies, Danny Baker and RT's Sarah Millican. They are a ribald bunch, leading ringmaster Stephen Fry, resplendent in a luxuriant Santa outfit, to wail: "We have started our family Christmas show just as I'd hoped we would."

Everyone is on fine form and there are some good gags, including one from Fry about Freudians and a light bulb. And we learn why it is always Christmas in Millican's spare bedroom.

The derivation of advertising jingles is just one of the 'quite interesting' facts relayed by jovial host Stephen Fry, today in Father Christmas costume for the QI festive special. Other topics include Twelfth Night - not necessarily on January 6, according to Alan Davies's calculations - and jesus lizards. It's an enjoyable episode, with fun comic diversions including a rant about 'shiny children' that Phill Jupitus cannily uses to deflect from Fry's rather awkward question to Sarah Millican on the subject of kids. Millican may be a popular stand-up, but she's given little chance to shine here, mostly laughing very loudly at the chaps' banter. Danny Baker, meanwhile, gets to show off his obscure knowledge. It's entertaining, but not as much as, say, the 2010 Christmas special, where guest Daniel Radcliffe was used to better effect.

With previous Christmas editions of this quiz focusing on esoteric topics such as "Empire" and "Hocus Pocus", tonight's theme of "Jingle Bells" chimes (pun intended) with the season and sounds altogether merrier. Host Stephen Fry is joined for the ninth yuletide episode by regular panellist Alan Davies and guests Geordie comedian Sarah Millican, broadcaster Phill Jupitus and radio presenter Danny Baker.

The recession is preying on the minds of tonight's stand-up comedians. Sara Pascoe has a solution to credit card debt: make chip and pin machines talk like disapproving parents ("But you've already got a coat!"). Host Kevin Bridges is on flying form, dissecting the financial crisis: "Europe's skint, America's skint," he notes sadly. "I hope Africa have got some good rock bands, because we need a concert."

But the surprise of the show is Phill Jupitus, who comes on with the moody confidence of a man with nothing to prove. He doesn't bother with gags; he just does one long, taboo-torturing routine about dealing with his daughter's boyfriend. It's like a whole sitcom boiled down to one routine, and it's brilliant.

Old-head-on-young-shoulders Kevin Bridges hosts tonight's trio of stand-up stars from the Hammersmith Apollo. Bridges brings his wit to bear on the recession ("I hope Africa have got some good rock bands 'cause we need a concert") and takes a pop at David Cameron's work experience programmes. Phill Jupitus keeps things close to home with a hilarious, heartfelt account of his 16-year-old daughter's sleep-over with her boyfriend. And peppy Sarah Pascoe rounds things off by dressing down body-fascist women's magazines and tackling the residents of Tooting's terrible fashion sense.

Another series of music-based panel show Never Mind the Buzzcocks began this week. It's the 26th series, and it has to be said it's starting to show...

Although they still have Phill Jupitus and Noel Fielding onside, producers are still sticking with guest hosts. This week's host was Katy Burke - who did an OK job - but the panellists are, like always, a mixed bunch. Sarah Millican is usually always reliable, but then you had Fazer from N-Dubz, who I think was only called on because he was the only member of the band who had not appeared on the show before...

Another guest on this episode was Olympian long jumper Greg Rutherford, whose contribution was somewhat dubious. While Burke managed to get some good one-liners from him, I thought that the round entitled "Name that Ginger" was slightly tasteless.

The "Identity Parade". was also problematic. Usually the round features band members - but they must be struggling to find anyone new because instead the line-ups consisted of the now grown-up baby on Nirvana's Nevermind album, and someone's super-fan...

Hopefully this was just a blip, but I can't help but feel that it's time to for Never Mind the Buzzcocks to either shape up or stop.

Series 26, episode one: team captains Noel Fielding and Phill Jupitus are back in their chairs for more rude pop-based quizzing. In the presenter's seat - still without a regular occupant since the peerless Simon Amstell resigned - is Kathy Burke. Her excellent comedy Walking and Talking showed she knows and loves her pop music, at least if it was released in 1979. Among the guests are Fazer from N-Dubz and surprise Olympic long jump champion Greg Rutherford.

Fringe comedians form a theatrical Coalition

Phill Jupitus and Thom Tuck on their Fringe 2012 theatre project Coalition.

This is the third attempt to put JAM on the box, the BBC having done it previously in 1994 and 1999. Parsons and Merton appear in each episode, with guests appearing being Sue Perkins, Gyles Brandreth, Stephen Fry, Liza Tarbuck, Graham Norton, Josie Lawrence and Julian Clary. There are also a fair number of new contestants: Jason Manford, Miles Jupp, Ruth Jones, Phill Jupitus, John Sergeant and Russell Tovey.

The format is the same, but there are some obvious changes; for a start, there's no scorer sitting next to Parsons. Instead he just has the scores on a screen, and the clock is started by a large button next to him. There's also a little bell rang to indicate they are moving into the final round.

Some things do remain the same, though. The studio is designed to look like the art deco BBC Radio Theatre, where the radio series is normally recorded. For some reason, however, the studio lights change from blue to purple when the subjects start. Why they need to do this I have no idea. I find the camerawork even more irritating. There's no need to cut from here to there every three seconds.

However, there's still much to enjoy from this show. I for one enjoy the little amusing asides that go through out each episodes. My personal favourite was in the fourth episode when the panel kept making jokes about Miles Jupp being the supposed love child of Gyles Brandreth. The jokes just kept snowballing throughout.

With regards to the TV adaptation, I know that there will always be people who will insist that it's not as good as the one on radio, but there are always people who complain about TV adaptations of radio shows. If we rejected every TV adaptation of a radio adaptation out of hand we wouldn't have had the TV successes of shows like Whose Line is it Anyway? or Little Britain.

I'd love to see more episodes of the TV version of Just a Minute; but I doubt they'll produce them. Unless they want to celebrate the show's 50th anniversary, that is, and given that Parsons is 88 years old that might be a bit dangerous.

The Guessing Game with Clive Anderson

Wednesday at 14:05 sees the start of a brand new six-part comedy panel show called The Guessing Game. Clive Anderson presents the programme and he's joined with some great guests like Rory Bremner, Phill Jupitus and Zoe Lyons.