Russell Howard

The jokes may be less clever than in its big brother, Have I Got News for You, but Mock the Week can still serve up a few laughs. Now, as the 10th series begins, Frankie Boyle - the one who seems get a thrill out of reciting the most controversial jokes he can think of - has moved on. As has BBC Three darling Russell Howard, though as he is the least funny of the regular panel this is nota great loss. Dara O'Briain returns as host, with Andy Parsons and the quite wonderful Hugh Dennis still in their panel seats. They are joined by Chris Addison (The Thick of It, insurance adverts), Greg Davies (the headmaster in The Inbetweeners), and stand-ups Milton Jones and Seann Walsh.

There was a time when Mock the Week felt like Have I Got News for You's spikier younger brother. Its brow was low. Its comedy jeans hung at half-mast. In any given show you could be sure of jokes involving sex, drugs and royalty (or if Frankie Boyle was involved, all three at once). But Boyle has moved on and, for the time being, so has fellow stalwart Russell Howard, and the comedy in this topical panel show feels more comfortable and less subversive these days. As the tenth series begins, Dara O'Briain is still keeping order, with Andy Parsons and Outnumbered star Hugh Dennis as the key comics, ready to step forward and attempt to outgun each other on any given topic. Tonight they are joined by the smart and funny Chris Addison (from The Thick of It) and Greg Davies (Mr Gilbert from The Inbetweeners).

Now this could be fun, because tonight a trio of really disparate guests make themselves comfy on the sofa: Jack Dee, James McAvoy and drum roll Liza Minnelli! We know how much Norton loves a gay icon, judging by his glee at recent appearances by Bette Midler and Lady Gaga, but surely Minnelli beats them all. She talks about her life and career, of course, and also sings live. It will be delicious to see what she makes of Jack Dee, promoting a new series of his doleful sitcom Lead Balloon, in that often uncomfortable juxtaposition of a megastar and a cheeky British comedian they've never heard of (remember Maggie Gyllenhaal's bewilderment when faced with Russell Howard?). Bona fide Hollywood action man McAvoy (hasn't he come a long way since Shameless?) will discuss his role in the latest X Men movie, X Men First Class.

Gav's trip to Russell Howard's Good News

Hello, I'm Gav. I'm the bloke who talks between the programmes on BBC Three. Occasionally the bosses let us out of our cupboard - sorry I mean studio - to go and visit some of our shows. So I went along to watch Russell Howard's Good News being recorded last week. This is what happened...

Russell Howard extends sell-out UK tour

Russell Howard has added six new dates to his sell-out UK arena tour.

Russell Howard interview

Russell Howard says "If a comedian's naughty joke is on the front page, there's no

Yay, Graham's back and once again there is a reason to stay in on Friday nights. He's terrific, and has injected bright new life into the post-news chat-show slot vacated by you-know-who last year. I love the dynamic of the Norton sofa, where guests turn up en masse rather than separately, which leads to some funny and occasionally weird interaction, or lack of interaction (remember a worried-looking Maggie Gyllenhaal staring in bafflement at comedian Russell Howard?). So far in Norton's reign, my favourite odd couples are big, smiley Hollywood hunk Bradley Cooper, who took a shine to our own Jo Brand, and one of tonight's guests, Catherine Tate, who was "romanced" by rapper 50 Cent the last time she appeared. Tate, last seen as Howard Donald in Comic Relief's Fake That, joins her old mucker and former Doctor Who, David Tennant. Grammy Award nominee Josh Groban provides the music.

This week's edition of Good News had something for everyone. If you like Russell Howard, you will no doubt find this particular episode up to his usual standard. If you don't like Howard you'll get the joy of seeing him being beaten up by an old lady: if only more pensioners practiced martial arts then the world would be a happier place.

The thing with this series is that it's not the most satirical show in the world. It touches on some big topics covered in the news, but it's always in a light-hearted manner. Most of the time it's trivial human interest stories which he mocks, including clips from online and around the world.

Indeed there is quite a lot of garbage out there which is ripe for mocking, from newspaper stories devoted to a house that looks like Adolf Hitler to the TV coverage given to a man who showers with a squirrel.

Interestingly, quite a bit of this week's edition was disturbing and a little frightening. The budget lady-boy airline sketch might have mentally scarred many, as would have the excerpt from Rebecca Black's 'Friday' (I've been trying my hardest not to listen to that stupid song. To be honest, I put it on mute rather than listen to it in case it really is as horrible as people claim it to be.)

The best thing about Good News, though, is fittingly the good news story at the end, in this case about an Indian cook who gave up his job to feed the homeless. It really is good to see some news is treated with the respect and airtime it should be given, and Howard really does capture that well.

And it's certainly arguable that the laid-back and fun approach of Russell Howard's Good News is one of the best forms of satire, along with the harder hitting, informed, Mark Thomas style of satirical comedy and activism. That's possibly why 10 O'Clock Live does nothing for me. It just sits in the middle - trying to be hard-hitting but failing to do so - and loses viewers because of it.

Russell Howard's Blog News

Want to submit a story to the new series of Russell Howard's Good News? The production team have message for you...