late night UK

 
 
Stephen Fry’s QI

The best of the bunch, QI or “Quite Interesting,” is hosted by Brit media super-celeb, Stephen Fry, who is regularly accompanied  by stand-up comedian Alan Davies. Three guests join in for each episode to inquire into a cornucopia of facts that cover any range of topics, arbitrarily guided by a letter of the alphabet for each broadcast season. The game’s objective: to remain interesting at all times. See links at the right.
 

Late Night on British Television


Late night British television seems to be all a-fever with “game shows.” These are not games shows as North Americans normally think of them. There are no prizes: indeed, winning often consists in losing, with honour of course. The contestants are drawn from a pool of stand-up comedians and other celebrities. Many guests on any one show are often hosts of their own “game show” in a kind of network merry-go-round, not unlike the early days of American television when the likes of Bob Hope, Jack Benny, Lucille Ball and Jack Parr (to mention only a few) would also pop-up on each others’ shows or specials.


So, what is the point? In a refreshing and sometimes even daringly unscripted way, it sets the stage for the possibility of actual wit, a break from the deliberate, bordering on “mannered,” humour of stand-up comedy. That said, many, if not most of the participants on this late-night television circuit are in fact well-known stand-up comedians or comedic actors in their own right.


Some of the more resilient gems in this menagerie of jesters include Stephen Fry’s “QI” (Quite Interesting)--a knowledge trivia show; “Mock the Week” (host: Dara O’Briain) that has comedians riffing on current events; “Would I Lie to You” (host: Rob Brydon among others; regulars David Mitchell and Lee Mack) that has contestants guessing whether the tales they tell are true or false; “Big Fat Quiz of the Year” that pairs comedians in a pub-style quiz on events of the year; and “Never Mind the Buzzcocks” (starring Phil Jupitus and Bill Bailey among others), a panel game show centred on popular music. QI is very much at the top of my list.


Clips of these shows can be easily located on You Tube. You can also narrow your search to retrieve items of 20 minutes or longer--or look for episodes presented in “Parts.”

David Mitchell

Co-star of “Peep Show,” a sitcom of two young men sharing the same flat, regularly appears on QI and Mock the Week as well as being a star on “Would I Lie to You.” The link here shows Mitchell taking off on a number of rants, his signature mode, but it also samples many of the shows on the late-night Brit circuit.
Nerdstock: 9 lessons & carols for godless people

This lengthy video (1 hour +) includes a wide variety of performers in a science-based celebration of Christmas 2009 at the Apollo Theatre in London. It is included here, however, only for the two short segments listed below:

(1) Minute 5:00
Prof. Brian Cox

Professor Brian Cox, the Carl Sagan of the UK, talks captivatingly on the “size” and beauty of the universe.

(2) Minute 31:40
Shappi Khorsandi

The Iranian-born English comedian, Shappi Khorsandi, while sometimes a bit mannered, can nevertheless get on a roll as in this clip.