British Comedy Guide

ITV axes Don't Ask Me Ask Britain

Friday 24th November 2017, 11:50pm

Don't Ask Me Ask Britain. Image shows from L to R: Frank Skinner, Alexander Armstrong, Jonathan Ross

ITV has opted not to recommission comedy format Don't Ask me Ask Britain, British Comedy Guide has learned.

Part panel show and part quiz show, an interactive six-part series was broadcast during April and May this year.

Hosted by Alexander Armstrong, each episode saw two teams of two people each - captained by Frank Skinner and Jonathan Ross, respectively - trying to second-guess the British public on a series of topics. Uniquely, the programme was broadcast live, allowing the audience at home to vote for their answer to each question via a mobile app.

Produced by Chalkboard from ITV's HQ on London's Southbank, guests included Lolly Adefope, Gabby Logan, Meera Syal, Holly Walsh, and Caroline Quentin. Adil Ray was the only male guest to appear.

The first episode was watched live by an estimated 1.77 million people, declining to 1.35 million by the end of the run. Shown in an 8pm Tuesday timeslot, the figures are in excess of those achieved by many sitcoms, but below that which ITV chiefs would have been hoping to attract.

When asked for comment, an ITV spokesperson told us simply: "We have no current plans for a further series of Don't Ask me Ask Britain."

Armstrong, meanwhile, has recently signed up to host a brand new comedy entertainment format for the channel, The Imitation Game. A panel show from Big Talk Productions, it will feature the likes of Rory Bremner, Debra Stephenson, Jess Robinson and Luke Kempner, in a series of games and challenges focused around impressionism.

A seven-part series is due to be filmed and broadcast during 2018.

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