I almost forgot to write my post this evening, because I was carried away with one of my greatest guilty pleasures on the Internet. I have to come out and admit it, for this obsession claims hours of my time as I go from site to site and video to video. Though I make promises to myself to limit my time or to just stay away, I always find myself going back.
My friends, I am addicted to British panel shows.
Though they are both based on games, a British panel show and an American game show could not be more different. On the shows I watch, the contestants are not “ordinary civilians,” but comedians or other celebrities. The games are used not primarily as a true competition, but as a launching pad for jokes, insults, and anecdotes. Finally, the scoring systems can be exact, arbitrary, or essentially non-existent, because the winner isn’t important and there is no prize except bragging rights for a week. A group of bright, funny people discussing interesting facts and ideas…it’s my view of heaven,
There are many of these shows available in clips and full episodes on YouTube, but my favorite has always been QI. The show has been around for over sixteen years, hosted originally by Stephen Fry, and currently by Sandy Toksvig. Each week four comedians are quizzed about arcane facts from all areas of general knowledge, and they are rewarded points for correct answers (though no one connected to the show can explain how many) and are punished with a klaxon when they give a predictable wrong answer (Hint here: If the question is “How many moons does the earth have?” You can be certain to be klaxoned for the answer “One”)
More enjoyable than the base questions, which are often fascinating…did you know that “Jingle Bells” was written as a Thanksgiving song…is the banter between the contestants and between contestants and host. Since there are no real prizes, the only “reward” is laughter and applause from the audience. The hosts and contestants have a witty intelligent conversation, and this is shown on television as entertainment!
Now I must warn you before you fall into my addiction that British television humor can often be more racy than what is found on network or basic cable TV in America. They use words in ordinary language that would be truly scandalous to our virginal American ears. But if you can manage the language, you are in for a treat.
I can’t think of anything in America that is like this. Talk shows are about individuals, game shows are about money and prizes, reality shows are about everything but reality. Nothing I have seen on American television has the wit, the intelligence, and the excitement of a British panel show, and I am grateful I have this access through YouTube to these joyful reveries.
As always, I welcome your questions.
Image: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03njv5y