Does the Team Think?

Last updated

Does The Team Think? was a radio panel game broadcast originally on the BBC Light Programme (and later on BBC Radio 2 and BBC Radio 4) from 1957 to 1976, and revived, again on Radio 2, with a new cast, in 2007. It also broadcast as a TV programme. [1]

Contents

Format

The show was a parody of Any Questions? , where audience members pose questions to an assembled panel. The questions and answers were played for laughs (in contrast to the serious political debate in Any Questions?), with the panellists improvising witty answers.

Original series 1957–1976

The idea of a parody version of Any Questions? was suggested by Jimmy Edwards in 1957. The Light Programme agreed to run a short series, which ended up running almost twenty years. [2] The panel was chaired by Peter Haigh for the first series and by McDonald Hobley for the majority of its run. Regular panellists were Edwards, Arthur Askey, Tommy Trinder and Ted Ray, with a guest questioner joining them each week. [3] Other panellists who appeared on the radio series included Bernard Braden, Kenneth Horne, Cyril Fletcher, Derek Roy, Richard Murdoch, Cardew Robinson, Alfred Marks and Leslie Crowther.

TV series

A television programme of the same name was briefly trialled in 1961, also hosted by McDonald Hobley. [3] [4]

In 1982, a second TV series ran for 9 episodes, with Tim Brooke-Taylor as the host. It was produced by Robert Reed for Thames Television. Jimmy Edwards, Frankie Howerd, Beryl Reid and Willie Rushton were regular panellists. Guest questioners were Steve Davis, Robert Dougall, Britt Ekland, Roy Plomley, Magnus Pyke, Shaw Taylor and Barbara Woodhouse. [5] [6]

2007 revival

The radio show was revived in 2007. It was broadcast on BBC Radio 2 and was written and hosted by Vic Reeves, and produced by Paul Russell for Open Mike Productions. The title was changed slightly, to Does the Team Think.... The first programme went out on 28 June 2007. It was recorded at University of London Union on 27 March, 2, 23 and 30 April 2007. [7] A second series was aired in 2009. The first programme from this series was aired on 17 June 2009 and featured Reeves' comedy partner Bob Mortimer, and Shooting Stars team captains Ulrika Jonsson and Jack Dee. [8]

Episodes

EpisodeOriginal airdateGuests
Series 1 – 2007
1. 1–12007-06-28 Alan Carr, Jools Holland, Ben Miller, Pauline McLynn
2. 1–22007-07-05 Paul Whitehouse, Rowland Rivron, Andy Parsons, Lucy Porter
3. 1–32007-07-12 Suggs, Sean Lock, Patrick Kielty, Liz Smith
4. 1–42007-07-19 Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, Tom Baker, Jo Caulfield, Arthur Smith
5. 1–52007-07-26Paul Whitehouse, Lucy Porter, Michael McIntyre, Andy Parsons
6. 1–62007-08-02Jo Caulfield, Arthur Smith, Tom Baker, Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen
7. 1–72007-08-09Sean Lock, Suggs, Patrick Kielty, Liz Smith
8. 1–82007-08-16Alan Carr, Ben Miller, Rowland Rivron, Shappi Khorsandi
Series 2 – 2009
9. 2–12009-06-17 Jack Dee, Julian Clary, Ulrika Jonsson, Bob Mortimer
10. 2–22009-06-24 Rhod Gilbert, Marcus Brigstocke, Noddy Holder, Liza Tarbuck
11. 2–32009-07-01Andy Parsons, Ralf Little, Rich Hall, Gaby Roslin
12. 2–42009-07-08 Sean Hughes, Roy Walker, Bob Mortimer, Rhona Cameron
13. 2.52009-07-15Jack Dee, Julian Clary, Ulrika Jonsson, Bob Mortimer
14. 2.62009-07-22Noddy Holder, Rhod Gilbert, Marcus Brigstocke, Liza Tarbuck
15. 2.72009-07-29Andy Parsons, Ralf Little, Gaby Roslin, Rich Hall
16. 2.82009-08-05Sean Hughes, Roy Walker, Rhona Cameron, Bob Mortimer

Related Research Articles

<i>Im Sorry I Havent a Clue</i> BBC radio comedy panel game (since 1972)

I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue is a BBC radio comedy panel game. Billed as "the antidote to panel games", it consists of two teams of two comedians being given "silly things to do" by a chairman. The show was launched in April 1972 as a parody of radio and TV panel games, and has been broadcast since on BBC Radio 4 and the BBC World Service, with repeats aired on BBC Radio 4 Extra and, in the 1980s and 1990s, on BBC Radio 2. The 50th series was broadcast in November and December 2007.

<i>Have I Got News for You</i> British television panel show

Have I Got News for You (HIGNFY) is a British television panel show, produced by Hat Trick Productions for the BBC, which premiered on 28 September 1990. The programme focuses on two teams, one always captained by Ian Hislop and one by Paul Merton, each plus a guest panelist, answering questions on various news stories on the week prior to an episode's broadcast. However, the programme's format focuses more on the topical discussions on the subject of the news stories related to questions, and the satirical humour derived from these by the teams. This style of presentation had a profound impact on panel shows in British TV comedy, making it one of the genre's key standard-bearers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ted Ray (comedian)</span> English comedian (1905–1977)

Ted Ray was an English comedian of the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, on radio and television. His BBC radio show Ray's a Laugh ran for 12 years.

My Word! is a British radio quiz panel game broadcast by the BBC on the Home Service (1956–67) and Radio 4 (1967–88). It was created by Edward J. Mason and Tony Shryane, and featured the humorous writers Frank Muir and Denis Norden, known in Britain for the series Take It From Here. The show was piloted in June 1956 on the Midland Home Service and broadcast as a series on the national Home Service network from 1 January 1957. The series also ran on BBC Television for one series from July–September 1960.

<i>Never Mind the Buzzcocks</i> British TV comedy panel game (1996–2015, 2020–)

Never Mind the Buzzcocks is a British comedy panel game show with a pop music theme. It has aired on Sky Max since September 2021, having originally aired between November 1996 and January 2015 on BBC Two. The original series was first hosted by Mark Lamarr, then by Simon Amstell, and later by a number of guest presenters, with Rhod Gilbert hosting the final series. It first starred Phill Jupitus and Sean Hughes as team captains, with Hughes being replaced by Bill Bailey from the eleventh series, and Bailey replaced by Noel Fielding for some of series 21 and from series 23 onward. The show returned six years later, now hosted by Greg Davies, with Daisy May Cooper as the new captain and Fielding returning as a captain. The show is produced by Talkback. The title plays on the names of the Sex Pistols album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols and the band Buzzcocks.

<i>Mastermind</i> (British game show) British quiz show

Mastermind is a British television quiz show for the BBC, currently presented by Clive Myrie. Its creator, Bill Wright, drew inspiration from his experiences of being interrogated by the Gestapo during World War II. The show features an intimidating setting and challenging questions. Four contestants face two rounds, one on a specialised subject of the contestant's choice, the other a general knowledge round.

<i>QI</i> British comedy panel game television quiz show

QI is a British comedy panel game quiz show for television created and co-produced by John Lloyd. The series currently airs on BBC Two and is presented by Sandi Toksvig. It features permanent panellist Alan Davies and three guest panellists per episode; the panellists are mostly comedians. The series was presented by Stephen Fry from its beginning in 2003 until 2016.

<i>Question Time</i> (TV programme) British topical debate TV programme

Question Time is a topical debate programme, typically broadcast on BBC One at 10:45 pm on Thursdays. It is usually repeated on BBC Two and on BBC Parliament later in the week. If there is a Leaders special, it would be broadcast simultaneously on BBC News. Question Time is also available on BBC iPlayer. Fiona Bruce currently chairs the show having succeeded David Dimbleby as presenter in January 2019.

Lesley Judd is an English former television presenter and dancer, best known as a long-serving host of the BBC children's programme Blue Peter (1972–1979).

John Paul Ross is an English television and radio presenter, journalist and media personality.

<i>Mock the Week</i> British celebrity panel show

Mock the Week is a topical satirical celebrity panel show, created by Dan Patterson and Mark Leveson. It was produced by Angst Productions for BBC Two, and was broadcast from 5 June 2005 to 4 November 2022. Presenter Dara Ó Briain and panellist Hugh Dennis appeared in every episode, with a variety of other stand-up comedians being regular, frequent, occasional or one-off guest panellists during the show's history.

<i>Fighting Talk</i> UK radio program

Fighting Talk is a topical sports show broadcast on BBC Radio 5 Live during the English football season. The show is broadcast on Saturday mornings for an hour between 1100 and 1200 and is currently presented by Rick Edwards. This show is a similar format to the ESPN show Around the Horn.

The Brains Trust was an informational BBC radio and later television programme popular in the United Kingdom during the 1940s and 1950s, on which a panel of experts tried to answer questions sent in by the audience.

<i>Would I Lie to You?</i> (British game show) British TV comedy panel game show (since 2007)

Would I Lie to You? is a British comedy panel show aired on BBC One, made by Zeppotron for the BBC. It was first broadcast on 16 June 2007, starring David Mitchell and Lee Mack as team captains. The show was originally presented by Angus Deayton, and since 2009 has been hosted by Rob Brydon.

<i>Insert Name Here</i> British TV series or programme

Insert Name Here is a British comedy panel game show presented by Sue Perkins. The programme made its debut on BBC Two on 4 January 2016. In each episode two teams of three compete to answer questions about famous people, past and present, who have just one thing in common: they share the same name. The team captains are Josh Widdicombe and Richard Osman. The show was cancelled in February 2020 due to low viewership.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ted Kavanagh</span>

Henry Edward Kavanagh was a British radio scriptwriter and producer.

<i>Just a Minute</i> British radio panel game (since 1967)

Just a Minute is a BBC Radio 4 radio comedy panel game. For more than 50 years, with a few exceptions, it was hosted by Nicholas Parsons. Following Parsons' death in 2020, Sue Perkins became the permanent host, starting with the 87th series. Just a Minute was first transmitted on Radio 4 on 22 December 1967, three months after the station's launch. The programme won a Gold Sony Radio Academy Award in 2003.

The Write Stuff, "Radio 4's game of literary correctness", was a lighthearted quiz about literature on BBC Radio 4, taking a humorous look at famous literary figures, which ran from 1998 to 2014. It was chaired and written by James Walton. The two teams were captained by novelist Sebastian Faulks and journalist John Walsh, with Beth Chalmers reading literary extracts.

Animal, Vegetable, Mineral? was a British television panel show which originally ran from 23 October 1952 to 18 March 1959. In the show, a panel of archaeologists, art historians, and natural history experts were asked to identify interesting objects or artefacts from museums from Britain and abroad, and other faculties, including university collections.

References

  1. Gifford, Denis (1985). The Golden Age of Radio . Batsford. p.  71. ISBN   0-7134-4235-2.
  2. "BBC Genome Project". Does the Team Think (1st radio edition). Retrieved 25 February 2019.
  3. 1 2 UK Game Shows. "Does the Team Think?". www.ukgameshows.com. Archived from the original on 22 February 2024. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  4. "BBC Genome Project". Does the Team Think (1st TV edition). Retrieved 25 February 2019.
  5. IMDb. "Does the Team Think?". www.imdb.com. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  6. BFI. "Does the Team Think?". www.bfi.org.uk. Archived from the original on 1 October 2017. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  7. Radio 2. "Does the Team Think..." www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 10 August 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  8. British Comedy Guide. "Does the Team Think..." Retrieved 30 September 2017.