Watching Have I Got News For You last Friday. I was struck by the thought that it seems the BBC are definitely looking for a new permanent host for the show, probably with the aim of getting someone in place for the next (autumn) series.
After Angus Deayton left, there was a lot of talk about who the new host was going to be, but it seemed the BBC had decided to go along the route of having a Saturday Night Live-esque weekly guest host. Some people would host more than one show over time, but there wouldn't be the same host every time. After Deayton left, they had a range of hosts - Anne Robinson, Boris Johnson, Charles Kennedy, Liza Tarbuck, Jeremy Clarkson, but, apart from William Hague and Charlotte Church, the hosts for this series have all seemed like ones the BBC are trying out to see if they're up for doing it permanently - Martin Clunes, Alexander Armstrong, John Sergeant and Hugh Dennis. Plus, unlike the last series, there haven't been many rumours of new guest hosts to come, aside from Michael Parkinson. Having guest hosts helped them in the ratings for a while (when they could call on big names like Robinson, Kennedy, Hague and Church) but having names who are only vaguely known isn't going to help the show much, and could do long term damage to the ratings if people don't see 'big names' coming on every week.
My tip is Alexander Armstrong - he had a good show as host, has a good track record in comedy (I've always thought Armstrong and Miller was underrated as a sketch show) and he has the 'new Angus' vibe by having done a lot of adverts. Clunes would probably be too expensive (if he wanted to do it), Sargeant is a good host, but much better as a guest and Dennis had a poor show on Friday - not entirely his fault, as it seemed a dead audience - but these sort of things count against people in TV.
Some have suggested that Deayton could come back, but I don't think that's at all likely. While the BBC might take him back, Paul Merton's been quite clear in interviews (especially on Parkinson) that he and Deayton didn't get on before the scandal, and from what he's said it appears, Ian Hislop feels the same. It seems quite likely that Deayton's lack of support from those two was the reason the BBC let him go.
So, given how my predictions usually go, by the time the autumn series rolls around, expect to see anyone other than Alexander Armstrong as host.
After Angus Deayton left, there was a lot of talk about who the new host was going to be, but it seemed the BBC had decided to go along the route of having a Saturday Night Live-esque weekly guest host. Some people would host more than one show over time, but there wouldn't be the same host every time. After Deayton left, they had a range of hosts - Anne Robinson, Boris Johnson, Charles Kennedy, Liza Tarbuck, Jeremy Clarkson, but, apart from William Hague and Charlotte Church, the hosts for this series have all seemed like ones the BBC are trying out to see if they're up for doing it permanently - Martin Clunes, Alexander Armstrong, John Sergeant and Hugh Dennis. Plus, unlike the last series, there haven't been many rumours of new guest hosts to come, aside from Michael Parkinson. Having guest hosts helped them in the ratings for a while (when they could call on big names like Robinson, Kennedy, Hague and Church) but having names who are only vaguely known isn't going to help the show much, and could do long term damage to the ratings if people don't see 'big names' coming on every week.
My tip is Alexander Armstrong - he had a good show as host, has a good track record in comedy (I've always thought Armstrong and Miller was underrated as a sketch show) and he has the 'new Angus' vibe by having done a lot of adverts. Clunes would probably be too expensive (if he wanted to do it), Sargeant is a good host, but much better as a guest and Dennis had a poor show on Friday - not entirely his fault, as it seemed a dead audience - but these sort of things count against people in TV.
Some have suggested that Deayton could come back, but I don't think that's at all likely. While the BBC might take him back, Paul Merton's been quite clear in interviews (especially on Parkinson) that he and Deayton didn't get on before the scandal, and from what he's said it appears, Ian Hislop feels the same. It seems quite likely that Deayton's lack of support from those two was the reason the BBC let him go.
So, given how my predictions usually go, by the time the autumn series rolls around, expect to see anyone other than Alexander Armstrong as host.
Nick got away with this at 6:08 PM
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