A Stab in the Dark (TV series)

Last updated
A promotional image, showing Baddiel (l) and Gove (r). A Stab In The Dark Gove Baddiel.jpg
A promotional image, showing Baddiel (l) and Gove (r).

A Stab in the Dark is a British television programme of topical monologues and discussion screened on Channel 4 in 1992, shortly after Channel 4 axed the similarly titled (but unrelated) After Dark . The series ran from 5 June [1] until 7 August 1992. [2]

It was hosted by comedian David Baddiel, television presenter Tracey MacLeod and journalist and critic Michael Gove, later a Conservative MP and minister. [3] [4]

The monologues, often containing very dark 'humour', were delivered straight to camera by each host in turn before a small studio audience on a stark set with numerous staircases. [5] Sometimes relevant guests were invited on, including Conservative MPs Jerry Hayes and Alan Clark. Contributions were also made by Richard Herring. [6] One of the writers on the show was Stewart Lee. [7] A segment was included where Gove examined the rubbish bins of celebrities, including David Attenborough's. [8]

Both MacLeod and Baddiel have described the show as a failure: Baddiel called it "not right in so many ways" and MacLeod called it a "fiftysomething commissioner's fantasy of merging The Tube and That Was the Week That Was ...the clips that exist capture the horrible, echoey silence with which most of our monologues were received...[it] turns out it's a good idea to have very strong opinions about stuff before signing up to do a polemical TV series." [9] [3] Baddiel also said in 2016 that "I actually think bits of it were interesting and funny. But the presentation was appalling." [10]

Viewing figures were not encouraging and the show ran for a single series; Baddiel was privately asked if he was interested in filming a second series without his co-hosts but declined. [3] It has never been repeated, although in 2016 Channel 4 released eight of the nine episodes to its All 4 streaming service, following increased public interest in Gove after the EU membership referendum. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Attenborough</span> British broadcaster and naturalist (born 1926)

Sir David Frederick Attenborough is a British broadcaster, biologist, natural historian and author. He is best known for writing and presenting, in conjunction with the BBC Natural History Unit, the nine natural history documentary series forming the Life collection, a comprehensive survey of animal and plant life on Earth.

The Mary Whitehouse Experience is a British topical sketch comedy show that the BBC produced in association with Spitting Image Productions. It starred two comedy double acts, one being David Baddiel and Rob Newman, the other Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis. All four comedians had graduated from Cambridge University. It was broadcast on both radio and television in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Baddiel</span> English comedian and writer (born 1964)

David Lionel Baddiel is an English comedian, presenter, screenwriter, and author. He is known for his work alongside Rob Newman in The Mary Whitehouse Experience and his comedy partnership with Frank Skinner. He has also written the children's books The Parent Agency, The Person Controller, AniMalcolm, Birthday Boy, Head Kid, and The Taylor TurboChaser.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Gove</span> British politician (born 1967)

Michael Andrew Gove is a British politician serving as Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations since October 2022, having previously held both offices from September 2021 to July 2022. He has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Surrey Heath since 2005. A member of the Conservative Party, he has also served in various Cabinet positions under Prime Ministers David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak. Gove has twice run to become Leader of the Conservative Party, in 2016 and 2019, finishing in third place on both occasions. Apart from a period of just over one year, he has served continuously in the Cabinet since 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rob Newman (comedian)</span> British comedian, born 1964

Robert Newman is an English comedian, author and political activist. Newman found mainstream fame with The Mary Whitehouse Experience before forming a successful partnership with one of the programme's other comedians, David Baddiel, in the early 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nick Frost</span> English actor, comedian and screenwriter (born 1972)

Nicholas John Frost is an English actor, comedian and screenwriter. He has appeared in the Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy of films, consisting of Shaun of the Dead (2004), Hot Fuzz (2007), and The World's End (2013), and the television comedy Spaced (1999–2001). He also appeared in Joe Cornish's film Attack the Block (2011). He co-starred in the 2011 film Paul, which he co-wrote with frequent collaborator and best friend Simon Pegg. He has also portrayed various roles in the sketch show Man Stroke Woman. In 2020, he cocreated and starred in the paranormal comedy horror series Truth Seekers with Pegg.

<i>The Hill</i> (newspaper) American political newspaper and website

The Hill is an American newspaper and digital media company based in Washington, D.C., that was founded in 1994.

Newman and Baddiel in Pieces is a sketch comedy television show written by and starring comedians Robert Newman and David Baddiel, produced by Harry Thompson, and broadcast on BBC2 from 20 September to 20 December 1993.

Saturday Live is a British television comedy and music show, made by LWT and initially broadcast on Channel 4 from 1985 to 1988, with a brief revival on ITV in 1996. A few one-off editions have also been screened sporadically, including a contribution to the BBC's 1993 Comic Relief telethon. It was based on the American sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live but otherwise had no direct connection to the show.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waldemar Januszczak</span> English journalist

Waldemar Januszczak is an English art critic and television documentary producer and presenter. Formerly the art critic of The Guardian, he took the same role at The Sunday Times in 1992, and has twice won the Critic of the Year award.

Barry Jones and Stuart MacLeod are a duo of Scottish BAFTA-nominated magicians and comedians whose work has been seen on television and on stage around the world. The double act are known for their comically dark performing style, for taking as inspiration the accounts of Biblical miracles and faking paranormal phenomena to form the basis for some of their illusions.

Tracey MacLeod is an English journalist and broadcaster. She has presented arts and music programming, including The Late Show (1989–95) and its musical offshoots New West and Words and Music, Edinburgh Nights, the Booker Prize (1990–95) and the Mercury Music Prize (1994–98). She hosted a Sunday night radio show on GLR from 1990 for several years and was one of the launch DJs on BBC Radio 6 Music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dan Schreiber</span> Australian radio producer

Daniel Craig Schreiber is an Australian radio producer, writer, podcaster, and comedian based in London. He co-created the BBC Radio 4 panel show The Museum of Curiosity with host John Lloyd and co-producer Richard Turner and co-hosts the podcast No Such Thing As A Fish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Conservative Party leadership election</span> British Conservative Party leadership election

The 2016 Conservative Party leadership election was held due to Prime Minister David Cameron's resignation as party leader. He had resigned after losing the national referendum to leave the European Union. Cameron, who supported Britain's continued membership of the EU, announced his resignation on 24 June, saying that he would step down by October. Theresa May won the contest on 11 July 2016, after the withdrawal of Andrea Leadsom left her as the sole candidate.

Chewing Gum is a British television sitcom created and written by Michaela Coel, based on her 2012 play Chewing Gum Dreams. It stars Coel as 24-year-old shop assistant Tracey Gordon, a restricted, religious virgin, who wants to have sex and learn more about the world. The show earned Coel the BAFTA for Best Female Performance in a Comedy Programme and Breakthrough Talent.

<i>Final Space</i> Adult animated television series

Final Space is an adult animated space opera comedy drama television series created by Olan Rogers and developed by Rogers and David Sacks. The series involves an astronaut named Gary Goodspeed and his immensely powerful alien friend Mooncake, and focuses on their intergalactic adventures as they try to save the universe from certain doom.

<i>Tracey Breaks the News</i> British TV series or programme

Tracey Breaks the News is a British topical comedy programme starring Tracey Ullman. It premiered on BBC One on 27 October 2017 following a one-off special that aired on 23 June.

<i>Prehistoric Planet</i> British-American nature documentary television series

Prehistoric Planet is a British–American nature documentary streaming television series about dinosaurs, that premiered on Apple TV+ beginning May 23, 2022. It is produced by the BBC Studios Natural History Unit, with Jon Favreau as showrunner, visual effects by MPC, and narration by natural historian Sir David Attenborough. The documentary follows dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals recreated with computer-generated imagery, living around the globe in the Late Cretaceous period 66 million years ago (Maastrichtian), just before the dinosaurs' extinction. It set out to depict prehistoric life using current palaeontological research by including accurately feathered dinosaurs, and speculative animal behaviour.

References

  1. ↑ Date: Friday, 5 June 1992, Publication: The Times (London, England) Issue: 64351
  2. ↑ Friday, 7 August 1992 Publication: The Times (London, England) Issue: 64405
  3. 1 2 3 MacLeod, Tracey (5 July 2016). "The TV show I made with Michael Gove still gives me nightmares". The Guardian . Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  4. ↑ Aitkenhead, Decca (5 October 2012). "Michael Gove: the next Tory leader?". The Guardian . Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  5. ↑ Sexton, David (9 August 1992). "TELEVISION / Hard lessons from the autocue: David Sexton on problems met by presenters, Samaritans, chaperones and schoolteachers" . The Independent. Archived from the original on 19 August 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  6. ↑ Skelton, Jack. "Richard Herring's Edinburgh Fringe Podcast". Broadway Baby. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  7. ↑ The Brexit government is lost in a fog of lies, Stewart Lee, The Observer , 2 August 2020.
  8. ↑ @Baddiel (1 July 2016). "there was yes. David Attenborough's included" (Tweet). Retrieved 24 March 2019– via Twitter.
  9. ↑ @Baddiel (1 July 2016). "I did a C4 late night show in 1991 that he was on. It had one series. Very weird not-right-in-so-many-ways programme" (Tweet). Retrieved 24 March 2019– via Twitter.
  10. ↑ @Baddiel (5 July 2016). "thanks L. I actually think bits of it were interesting and funny. But the presentation was appalling" (Tweet). Retrieved 24 March 2019– via Twitter.
  11. ↑ "A Stab in the Dark". All 4 . Channel 4. Retrieved 1 August 2016. Episodes 1–7 & 9.


Union flag tv.svg

This article relating to a television programme from the UK is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.