The Big Fat Quiz Of The Year

Charlie Brooker on the Daily Mail getting offended

This is fusty, old-school outrage, spluttered in your mind's eye by a swivel-eyed ex-colonel with dangerously high blood pressure. But because it flopped, it's actually sort of poignant, like watching an old man ineffectually waving his fist as they concrete the duckpond and put up a Nando's.

James Corden has no regrets about C4's Big Fat Quiz

James Corden says Channel 4's controversial Big Fat Quiz of the Year show, which received more than 200 complaints from viewers, was 'good fun' to make.

Jack Whitehall giving up booze following Big Fat Quiz

Jack Whitehall got himself into an unjustified spot of bother last week, but to stop himself spouting off he has poured all his booze down the sink.

Reviewing this programme's a bit of a problem because it's been in the newspapers all week, so it's hard to try and think about something new.

For those who might have been living in a cave since the year began, on this year's edition of the two-hour long panel game hosted by Jimmy Carr (cue jokes about him tax dodging), one team, consisting of Jack Whitehall and James Corden, supposedly got into trouble after drinking some wine on the set, getting tipsy, writing a random phone number on the screen which lead to people phoning some random member of the public, and making some rude jokes about the Queen which I'm not going to repeat. If you want to know what they are, watch the programme on 4oD and see it in context.

Concerning the phone number, it should be obvious that if you write just about any sequence of numbers down it will be someone's actual phone number and some idiots will ring it up. That was a bit stupid, and Channel 4 could have made an effort to do something about it. You know, like blur it out.

To be honest, though, I've no objection to the jokes about the Queen. Everyone knows that the Disgusted of Tunbridge Wells and Daily Mail brigades would get up on their high horses because, frankly, they enjoy draining the passion out of anything that isn't a repeat of Last of the Summer Wine - while at the same time complaining that they're too many repeats on TV. Since the "outrage" that the Mail has failed to stir up in the same way as it did with "Sachsgate", people have been fighting back in their own way, generally annoying the rag.

But I suppose the main reason why I personally didn't mind the jokes about the Queen is that over the past few years I've become sick of all the royal events on the box. First there was William and Kate getting married, then the Diamond Jubilee, now there's going to be a baby, and you just know the TV channels are going to give months and months of tedious analysis about the whole thing.

I've just got this nightmare vision in my head of Nicholas Witchell and his camera-crew trying to bribe a midwife so that they could get the BBC live exclusive access to the birth from the Duchess of Cambridge's private maternity unit, in which he will try to talk for about 18 hours straight with experts, while a camera will film Kate's most private parts constantly as they wait for the baby's head to come out the royal CENSORED.

Other than that however, The Big Fat Quiz of the Year was mostly enjoyable, except for some tedious reality TV guests - and the lacklustre Jonathan Ross. Shame Whitehall and Corden didn't try to get him drunk.

Daily Mail blames Whitehall 'outrage' on his mother and more

The Daily Mail has reacted badly to Channel 4's unedited repeat of The Big Fat Quiz of the Year, lashing out at comedian Jack Whitehall and his family - as well as linking his rise to stardom to a string of other Daily Mail favourites, such as internet pornography, "drunken young women in tiny skirts" and his mother.

Have television panel shows had their day?

Jack Whitehall and James Corden's jokes about the Queen and Susan Boyle on Big Fat Quiz of the Year led to complaints to Ofcom and outrage in the press. Have TV panel shows had their day or are they just in need of a radical rethink?

Jack Whitehall: Privileged past of C4's grubby golden boy

Why is Jack Whitehall so eager to prove his laddish credentials?

Big Fat Quiz: Innocent man receives abusive phone calls

A man has received nearly 300 phone calls after his number was broadcast on Channel 4's Big Fat Quiz of the Year.

Jimmy Carr and Co: they've got to be joking

The popularity of mild-mannered comics like Miranda Hart mean crude stand-ups needn't have the last laugh.

Channel 4's Big Fat Quiz Of The Year. It wasn't just the controversial jokes about the Queen and the boozy antics of those contestants who appeared to be taking part in a Big Fat Ego Of The Year side contest.

No, the biggest shock was that in a line-up that contained Gabby Logan and six men who are (over)paid to be amusing for a living, Logan ended up being the third funniest.

As for Jimmy Carr's question, 'What does YOLO stand for?' Dunno, Jim. But in your case I'm guessing it's You Owe Lots Of...