Summary
Overview
Richard Osman and Marina Hyde tackle listener questions about politicians appearing on comedy shows, product placement in entertainment, and celebrity job titles. They explore the strategic risks of political TV appearances, particularly examining Louise Haig's ill-fated Have I Got News For You appearance with her fraud conviction, and discuss Boris Johnson's successful use of the show. The pair also debate memorable animal performances in film and TV, the evolution of product placement from novels to AI-driven personalization, and the delicate art of celebrity self-description.
Politicians on Have I Got News For You: Risk vs. Reward
The hosts dissect why politicians agree to appear on Have I Got News For You, where they're often roasted. Using Louise Haig's recent appearance as a cautionary tale, they explain that politicians typically get paid £1,500-£2,000 for appearing and hope to seem human and relatable. However, only those with natural wit like Boris Johnson can successfully use the platform, while others end up amplifying their scandals rather than neutralizing them.
- Politicians get paid £1,500-£2,000 for guest appearances on Have I Got News For You, with hosting paying substantially more
- Louise Haig's appearance backfired as she kept getting reminded of her fraud conviction for falsely claiming her company BlackBerry was stolen because she wanted an iPhone
- Boris Johnson was uniquely successful on the show because he could laugh off awful things and had an uncategorizable persona
- Politicians often fail because they don't understand they need to think of jokes spontaneously rather than waiting for jokes to appear
- The show is low-risk for producers: either they get a good recurring guest or entertaining failure content
" You have to be very, very good. And whether or not you like it, Boris Johnson was very, very good on the show. He had a unique persona. It was sort of uncategorizable. He had a very dangerous thing where he was able to just laugh off these awful things "
" We live in a sort of witocracy. Because if you can be funny and you want to rule the world, it's easier. It's a real superpower to be able to do this because it just manages to diffuse all sorts of difficult situations "
" I would not go on it if I had a fraud conviction "
Top Fictional Animal Performances in Film and TV
In response to Steve Backshall's question, Marina presents ten remarkable animal performances from cinema and television, though she refuses to rank them properly. She covers everything from the wolf-dog in John Carpenter's The Thing to Crystal the Monkey's impressive filmography. The discussion highlights how different animals present different acting challenges, with dogs being naturally directable while cats require special skill to work with on camera.
- The wolf-dog Jed in John Carpenter's The Thing delivered terrifying performances, particularly in the traumatizing kennel scene
- Crystal the Monkey has an A-list CV including George of the Jungle, Night at the Museum, The Fabelmans, Hangover 2, and Community
- Jenny the donkey in The Banshees of Inisherin held her own against Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell and now lives in a sanctuary in County Carlow
- David Dundas, composer of the Channel 4 theme, made seven figures from it being played before and after every show for 15 years
- The Littlest Hobo was declared the top fictional animal, though there were actually four different hobos across the series
" Jonesy the cat in Alien deserves recognition because cats are very undirectable, unlike dogs who are very directable. Dogs are very eager to please but it's not in a cat's nature "
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