Mock the Week

Both Dara Ó Briain and Hugh Dennis have been regular members of the cast on Mock the Week

Mock the Week focuses on six panellists – all being a comedian or a stand-up comedian – split into two teams, in which they compete over four rounds, presided over by host Dara Ó Briain. Although the programme maintains a quiz aspect to the format, which features questions on news items taken from those made during the week before an episode's filming, it is largely sidelined completely with a focus on comedy derived from topical, satirical discussions on the subject of each question, as well as from rounds featuring either stand-up routines by certain panellists, or improvisation comedy. Unlike Have I Got News for You, a similar topical, satirical programme that maintains a similar format but without the stand-up routines and improvisational comedy, Mock the Week's format does not use team captains or maintain a proper scoring system – teams generally win a round depending on who the host deems won it, including the episode.

Each episode is edited to feature about four rounds from those filmed and edited by production staff, to fit a 30-minute timeslot. Some content not used is often retained for use in a compilation episode, which also includes outtakes and highlights from the series. Although the first two series featured a multitude of different rounds for use, most of these were later abolished, leaving the programme to primarily use the following rounds in each episode:

• Picture of the Week: An image round in which panellists are shown a photograph from a news item and must identify the related story from it. The round usually focuses on panellists giving comedic answers that are deliberately wrong or mock the subject(s) of the image. The round generally does not conclude after the correct answer is given, as both the host and panellists will usually enter topical, satirical discussion on the news item, including any additional questions given by the host.
• Wheel of News: A stand-up challenge in which a handful of panellists must perform a stand-up routine, with each basing it on a subject determined by a "Random Topic Generator" (e.g. Education). The host often introduces the round with a title that is a comical reference to a recent event. The round initially featured most of the panellists appearing in the episode, but was gradually reduced to two panellists to provide more time for their routines.
• "If this is the answer, what is the question?": A round in which panellists are given the answer to a question on a topic and attempt to reveal what the question is, which is related to a news story. The round usually involves panellists given comedic questions that the answer could be connected to, and continues until the host prompts one member to give the correct question. The round generally does not conclude when this happens, as both the host and panellists will usually enter topical, satirical discussion on the news item, including any additional questions given by the host.
• "Scenes we'd like to see": An improvisation round, operating similar to "Scenes from a Hat" of Whose Line Is It Anyway?, in which panellists are given two topics and must provide comedic suggestions and ideas for each one, with the host buzzing each panellist after they given an idea in order to let another come forward with their suggestion. An example of a topic for comedic suggestions could be "Commercials that never made it to air".

On occasion the programme includes an additional round, which has mainly been shown during a compilation or special episode of the programme:

• "Newsreel": An improvisation round, similar to the game of "Film Dub" from Whose Line Is It Anyway?, in which a panellist – primarily Hugh Dennis – is shown a piece of news footage with no sound, and must provide either a comedic commentary track, or vocal track of the people involved.
• "Between the lines": An improvisation round involving two panellists. One performs as a notable figure (e.g. a politician) conducting a press conference, while another acts as a "translator", comically stating what they "really" mean to say. For example, panellist A might be performing as the Prime Minister and say "We are making certain that schools are well provided with school meals", to which panellist B might comically translate it as "We made a deal for cheap soup and biscuits from the Russians".

The panellists used on the programme are primarily comedians, including stand-up comedians, many of whom have made multiple appearances across the programme's history. While Mock the Week maintains the involvement of Hugh Dennis as a regular panellist - who has appeared in all episodes since its premiere in 2005, with the exception of a special episode of the programme that was broadcast as part of David Walliams' 24 Hour Panel People[6] - it initially incorporated additional regulars alongside Dennis and Ó Briain, including: Rory Bremner (Series 1 to Series 2); Andy Parsons (Series 3 to Series 14);[7] Russell Howard (Series 4 to Series 9); Frankie Boyle (Series 1 to Series 7);[8][9] and Chris Addison (Series 10 to Series 12).[10] However the programme later focused on ditching the need for regular members in the cast in order to incorporate more guest panellists for episodes.

On several occasions, Mock the Week has been the source of complaints, due to some risqué comments made by the panellists and the show's extreme use of profanity (in particular Frankie Boyle). In the first episode of Series 4, during a segment called "What The Queen Didn't Say in Her Christmas Message", Boyle made the comment: "I am now so old that my pussy is haunted." This led to the BBC's director general Mark Thompson being challenged about the comments on Newsnight.[11] Boyle later quipped "That was three years ago. If it wasn't haunted then it certainly is now."[12] In 2008, a larger controversy arose following another comment made by Boyle regarding swimmer Rebecca Adlington. Boyle stated that "she looks like someone who's looking at themselves in the back of a spoon".[13] The BBC ruled that the jokes were indeed "humiliating" and "risked offending the audience", while also calling Boyle "a brilliant member of the team".[14] Despite this, Adlington's agent said that simply admitting mistakes was not enough, saying: "By giving Frankie Boyle a rebuke they fail to discourage others from doing the same."[15]

Since leaving the show, Boyle has criticised both the show's production team and the BBC Trust. He claims that the show did not cover enough major news stories and was too restrictive on his risqué comedy act, as the producers and the BBC Trust were afraid of "frightening the horses".[16] The lack of female guests on the programme has been the subject of complaints in the letters page of the Radio Times. Jo Brand, while criticising the male-dominated genre of comedy panel shows, said in 2009, "I don't do Mock the Week any more and neither do some male stand-ups I know who have tried it once. We just don’t like the prospect of having to bite someone’s foot off before they let us say something."[17] In 2013, former panelist Rory Bremner stated his reasons for leaving the show, saying: "I felt that there was a new and highly competitive and quite aggressive tendency there and felt uncomfortable. But I've since found out that very few people have felt comfortable doing Mock the Week." He also criticised the way comedians like Linda Smith were treated by new comedians, who "are like prize fighters".[18]

A DVD, Mock the Week: Too Hot for TV was released on 26 November 2007. It contains almost three hours of material, including three extended episodes from series five, containing scenes that were considered too rude for broadcast.[19] The three extended episodes are titled, 'Putin, Henman & Konnie Huq', 'Nuts, Pies and Nim Nim Nim' and 'Money, Sex and The Lib Dems'. Mock the Week: Too Hot for TV 2 was released on 9 November 2009. Again, the DVD contains the main 'Too Hot For TV' feature with a compilation of unseen footage, plus three extended episodes from the series archives titled, 'The Anal Lube Show', 'The Leg Show' and 'The Hedgehog Show'. The extended episodes have a total of more than 40 minutes of unseen material.[20] Audio CD versions of both DVDs are available. Mock the Week: Too Hot for TV 3 was released on 8 November 2010. Like the previous two, this DVD features an hour-long smut reel and three extended episodes titled 'The Elves and Testicles Show', 'The Prisons and Other Dodgy Stuff Show', and 'The Johnny Blowjob and Bird Flu Show'.[21]

Boxtree published seven original tie-in books between 2008 and 2014, plus one which compiled the best of the first two books.

Mock the Week: Scenes We'd Like to See (August 2008)
Mock the Week: This Year's Book (September 2009)
Mock the Week: 1001 Jokes (January 2010, collected the best of the first two books, later published in paperback as Mock the Week: 1001 Scenes We'd Like to See)
Mock the Week: Next Year's Book (September 2010)
Mock The Week's Funniest Book of All Time (2011)
Mock The Week's Only Book You'll Ever Need (2012)
Mock The Week's Ultimate Panic-Buy! (2013)
Mock The Week's Brand Spanking New Scenes We'd Like To See (2014). [22]

• Mock the Week – official site
• Mock the Week at BBC Programmes
• Mock the Week at TV.com
• Mock the Week at IMDb 
• Mock the Week at epguides.com
• Mock the Week at British Comedy Guide
• Mock the Week at UKGameshows.com
• Mock the Week Looks Back At... at British Comedy Guide
• The BBC's Mock The Week YouTube playlist
• Mock the Week Video Clips on BBC Comedy