QI: Quite Interesting

Series G - Sneak Preview

2009-07-09T16:34:00.002Z

For those of you who cannot wait any longer without seeing something both new and quite interesting, the BBC has posted a preview clip of one of the episodes in Series G on its press office website.

In order to see it, click here, go to the carousel and click the QI entry.

Series G - General Guide

2009-06-13T08:08:00.004Z

Yesterday saw the last episode of QI Series G being recorded, thus seeing the completion of the shows longest series yet, consisting of sixteen editions stuffed full of quite interesting G-related topics, not to mention good gags, glorious guests and General Ignorance.

As well as being the longest series, there are also some quite interesting guests. Nine new faces have appeared on the show. These include three women, two of whom are the first lesbians to appear on the show, our third American guest, our second Irish guest, our second Australian guest and our first Dane. It also sees a guest who has not appeared since Series A. This series also sees the first time where QI is played by more than four panellists.

Here is the list of episodes, in order of recording date:

1) G-Animals: Bill Bailey, Sean Lock, Sandi Toksvig and John Hodgman.

2) Gravity: Barry Humphries, Bill Bailey and Rich Hall.

3) Gothic: Jimmy Carr, Jack Dee and Sue Perkins.

4) Games: Phill Jupitus, Sean Lock and Liza Tarbuck.

5) Gifts: Clive Anderson, Jimmy Carr and Jan Ravens.

6) A Galimaufrey of Gingambobs: Phill Jupitus, Hugh Dennis and Andy Hamilton.

7) Green: Danny Baker, Bill Bailey and Jeremy Clarkson.

8) Greek: Phill Jupitus, Clive Anderson and Rich Hall.

9) Groovy (Christmas Special): Bill Bailey, Lee Mack and David Tennant.

10) Girls and Boys: Ronni Ancona, Sandi Toksvig and Jack Dee.

11) Geometry: Rob Brydon, Johnny Vegas and David Mitchell.

12) Genius: David Mitchell, Dara Ó Briain and Graham Norton.

13) Germany: Jo Brand, Rob Brydon and Sean Lock.

14) Geography: Jo Brand, Rob Brydon and Jimmy Carr.

15) Gardens and Groceries: Dara Ó Briain, Rob Brydon and David Mitchell.

16) Greats: Jo Brand, Sean Lock and David Mitchell.

It is expected that the series will start sometime in the autumn.

Products, Recordings and Other Updates

2009-05-23T07:29:00.007Z

Quite a lot has been going on since the QI Talk blog has last been updated, so I thought it was time to give everyone the latest news.

Series G

QI's seventh series is currently being recorded. Out of the sixteen episodes to be made, seven have so far have been recorded. The details are written below in white so as not to spoil it for those waiting for them to be broadcast. Scroll over the text to read it.

Episode 1) G-Animals: With Bill Bailey, Sean Lock, Sandi Toksvig, and John Hodgman (that's right: four guests!)

Episode 2) Gravity: With Barry Humphries, Bill Bailey, and Rich Hall.

Episode 3) Gothic: With Jimmy Carr, Jack Dee and Sue Perkins.

Episode 4) Games: With Phill Jupitus, Sean Lock, and Liza Tarbuck.

Episode 5) Gifts: With Clive Anderson, Jimmy Carr, and Jan Ravens.

Episode 6) A Gallimaufry of Gingambobs: With Phill Jupitus, Hugh Dennis, and Andy Hamilton.

Episode 7) Green: With Danny Baker, Bill Bailey, and Jeremy Clarkson.

The other recordings will take place on May 26th, 28th, 29th, June 2nd, 4th, 5th, 9th, 11th, and 12th.

You can find out more information from the QI Forums and the British Comedy Guide.

The Museum of Curiosity

The second gallery of The Museum of Curiosity is currently open. The radio "spin-off" to QI, hosted by QI's creator John Lloyd (Professor of Ignorance at the University of Buckingham), now has a new curator, Sean Lock. Three episodes have been broadcast and the series is currently on the BBC iPlayer.

The Museum is also planning to expand. The people behind the show are to open a new website of the series soon, which will include a forum and podcasts, and will even allow users to donate their own exhibits.

You can listen to the new series on BBC Radio 4 on Monday evenings at 18:30, with repeats on Sundays at noon. You can follow the show on The Museum's Blog or at the British Comedy Guide.

Quite Interesting Products

Some new QI goodies are soon to be made available.

The QI Pocket Book of Animals - Following on from the pocket version of The Book of General Ignorance, a new pocket version of QI's second book, The Book of Animal Ignorance has just come out. You can buy it from Amazon and Play.

Advanced Banter (Paperback) - The paperback version of QI's book of quotations is to be published on 3 September 2009, according to Amazon and Play.

QI: The Book of the Dead - The new, fourth book published by the people behind QI to be published on 1 October 2009. Split into 42 chapters, The Book of the Dead will contain sections such as "People who died Penniless", "The One-Legged", "Only Children", "People who failed at School", "Those only Remembered by a Single Quotation" and "The Last People to Know Everything". You can pre-order the book from Amazon.

Secret Britain: The Hidden Bits of Our History: Written by Question Wrangler Justin Pollard, this is a follow up to his previous books The Interesting Bits and Charge! which look at all the quite interesting bits in the history of Britain. The book is listed on Amazon and will be released on 1 October 2009.

The QI Annual 2010: The third QI annual is currently in the making, and will feature a range of G-related topics. Contributions will come from Stephen Fry, Alan Davies, Rowan Atkinson, Jeremy Clarkson, Bill Bailey, Jo Brand, Phill Jupitus, Jimmy Carr and many more. To be released on 5th November, 2009. Per-order from Amazon.

My Favourite People, 1978-1988: Alan's first book! QI's resident panellist and stud muffin has written a memoir of his life growing up in the 1980s. You can find more information about the book here.

QI is also hoping that to make a game for the Nintendo DS, but it is not known if and when it will come out. Sadly, no details are yet known concerning DVDs of any more QI series; Series D is the next one that should be due for release.

Twitter

QI, along with several other related shows and people, is now on Twitter. For those wanting to know information about the shows as they are recorded, these links will let you know live from the scene. He is a list of some quite interesting tweets you may wish to follow.

QI - @qikipedia

The Museum of Curiosity - @Curiositwitty

QI Telegraph - @QITelegraph

Stephen Fry - @stephenfry

Alan Davies - @alandavies1

John Mitchinson - @Tewlop

Justin Pollard - @JustinPollard

Katie Scott - @katiescottscott

Dan Schreiber - @Schreiberland

Jonathan Paul Green - @jpgdesign

QI & MoC Recordings

2009-03-06T14:59:00.002Z

We can announce that the G series of QI is to be extended beyond the normal run of 12 episodes to a minimum of 16. Recordings of Qi are currently scheduled to take place on the following dates at the London Studios:

May 8th, 9th, 14th, 15th, 19th, 21st, 22nd, 26th, 28th, & 29th
June 2nd, 4th, 5th, 9th, 11th & 12th

Bookings for tickets can be made via www.applausestore.com as tickets are made available.

Meanwhile the Museum of Curiosities, presented by the creator of QI John Lloyd on BBC Radio 4 will be returning for a new series later this year. John Lloyd will be joined by Sean Locke who will be tacking over from Bill Bailey as the series' co-presenter and the museum's curator. Recordings will be taking place at the BBC's Broadcasting House on Oxford Circus on the following dates:

March 30th & 31st
April 6th & 13th
May 4th & 19th

Tickets can be booked online here or by ringing 0370 901 1227.

Episode 12 & QI News

2009-02-21T07:44:00.000Z

Episode 12 of QI in the F series will not be broadcast at the previously advertised time due to a clash with BBC1's Comic Relief in Red Nose Day on 13th March. It is currently unclear whether it will be broadcast in QI's old BBC2 slot or the following week on BBC1.

Meanwhile in other news, QI's move to BBC1 continues to create international interest from producers wishing to replicate the format. Following the start of the Dutch series there are now ongoing negotiations regarding the sale of the format to be shown in France. If QI is adapted to a conventional prime time format for French broadcasts it will probably be converted into a 2 hour long show.

Dutch QI episode 3 "Lust and Love"

2009-01-16T03:00:00.001Z

Not content with just two people's opinions of the new Dutch QI, we decided to go a find a third one. This week The Great Prickly of Pear provides us with her opinions of the third show in the new series.

____
This episode was all about "Love and Lust", with guests Claudia de Breij, Ronald Goedemond, Silvester Zwaneveld, and of course Thomas van Luyn. I think that this show was the first in the run to really shine in terms of the comedy. It hasn't only been Arthur Japin (much improved this time) that needed to get used to his role, but the guests as well. The programme has placed too much emphasis on being funny in the early shows. As a result the guests try to answer the questions by leading off with a joke. That created plenty of forfeits, but it didn't lead into much banter. This time however, the panellists tried to answer the questions directly, and the resulting klaxons led into discussions that created a much funnier show.

So this episode was funnier that the previous ones. But was it more interesting? The answer to this question is, sadly, no. Once more, about half of the questions had come from the "real" QI. That makes it less interesting for the fans who've also watched the original. Also, the panellists are not encouraged to be interesting, even if an interesting anecdote is loosely connected with the question. It is quite clear that the panelists are only expected to contribute to the laughter and not the interestingness.

There is also a problem with the way the questions are posed. The question about fans that was asked in the Christmas special was also asked during this episode of the Dutch version. The panelists were asked to show how they thought "I'm already married", for example, would look. Obviously this lead to some funny answers, but how and where and why this fan-language was invented was omitted. This difference in style really demonstrates the lack of interest that the producers pay towards the subject matter's interestingness.

However, perhaps we shouldn't be surprised that this has transpired. The original QI was born out of the rather noble ideologies of John Lloyd, whose primary concern was creating an interesting show (which was supposed to be targeted at Radio 4 before he was persuaded to put it on TV). The Dutch QI has been bought from the BBC as a comedy show; maybe we shouldn't expect the producers to aspire to anything other than that?

One final niggle is that the questions lack linguistic elegance. The writers of the original seem always to do their utmost to write beautifully, making full use of Stephen's oratory skills. However in the Dutch version the question are simple. Maybe this has something to do with the different cultures. There's no eloquence in Dutch.

But why am I complaining that the Dutch version differs from the original? Does it matter that the intro isn't the same; that it isn't as interesting; that the cards Arthur Japin has in front of him don't look as good? QI is broadcast on Nederland 1, which produces cheap viewer-ratings-conscious entertainment, although all the public channels in the Netherlands work like that. Given that environment, QI is a beacon of light in the dark ocean that we call General Ignorance.

QI F Series Broadcast Schedule

2009-01-13T16:27:00.004Z

The full broadcast dates for the remainder of the F series:

16th January - Fight and Flight (Pam Ayres, Sean Lock, Johnny Vegas)

23rd January - France (Jo Brand, Hugh Dennis, Phill Jupitus)

30th January - Fakes (Marcus Brigstock, Jimmy Carr, Sean Lock)

6th February - Fingers and Fumbs (Jo Brand, Phill Jupitus, Dara O Briain)

13th February - Fashion (Clive Anderson, Rich Hall, Reginald D. Hunter)

20th February - Future (Rob Brydon, Sean Lock, Ben Miller)

27th February - Flora and Fauna (Jo Brand, Jimmy Carr, John Sergeant)

6th March - Film (David Mitchell, John Sessions, Emma Thompson)

13th March - Food (Jimmy Carr, Rich Hall, David Mitchell)

F Series Starts Today

2009-01-09T01:00:00.001Z

Don't forget that the first episode of the full run of the F series starts tonight at 9:00pm on BBC One. Tonight's episode is about "Flotsam and Jetsam", with guests Andy Hamilton, Rob Brydon, and returning for only his second episode, former plasterer Charlie Higson.

You can catch an extended edition of the show tomorrow (Saturday) evening on BBC Two at 10:30pm with an extra ten minutes that wouldn't fit into the Friday show.

Also, you may be interested to learn that the Radio 4 series The Museum of Curiosity, starring QI creator John Lloyd and comedian Bill Bailey in a QI-inspired search for the universe's most interesting things, is now available for purchase in the form of an audio CD. You can order it from Amazon here.

Dutch QI Episode 2 - War

2009-01-06T22:06:00.011Z

This week's review is brought to you by Peti.

Last Saturday was the day that VARA broadcast the second episode of the Dutch series of QI, and your reporter was installed by the television at 22:00 sharp.

Let's start at the very beginning with the opening credits. They are not a copy of the original: there is a different theme – not as catchy as the one Howard Goodall composed – and they show a supposedly comical animation of host Arthur Japin and panellist Thomas van Luyn travelling through interesting parts of history and having information put in their heads. It's a bit cheesy for my taste, but it highlights one of the major differences between the original programme and the Dutch version. The focus is on being funny more than on being interesting. As Japin opens the show "This quiz is all about interesting answers. We give out the most points for nice stories and funny anecdotes." What is this? Is interesting the same as funny now?

The set designers have borrowed heavily from the British version, with the panellists sitting around a big "Q" with a lower case "i" in the middle. The big Q seems to be scaled down, so the panellists are sitting much closer together, although it may simply be that it is recorded in a smaller studio. Behind the guests are two large screens used to a similar effect as the British version for displaying the klaxon answers and videos. The klaxon is quieter, or as one of the panellists said, "It's like I've hit the jackpot!"

For the second episode, the panellists sat with Japin and Van Luyn were Diederik van Vleuten, Lenette van Dongen, and Richard Groenendijk. It's good to see that the producers are employing good comedic talents instead of the usual selection of minor actors and television presenters that usually appear on Dutch panel shows. I do really like Van Vleuten and Groenendijk had some of the most amusing answers and stories.

The second episode of the Dutch QI was all about war. Lovely! Some of the questions, like in the first episode, were taken from the BBC programme, like the "kamikaze pigeons" and the number of soldiers under the command of a centurion. However, some of the questions haven't appeared in the broadcasts of the British version so it would seem that they are making an attempt at some original research. For example, one of Saddam Hussein's sons produced a cola drink with a Pepsi logo on it, and SS personnel had their blood type tattooed in their armpits. My favourite was that Napoleon gave his soldiers yo-yos because he thought it was good for the blood flow.

One question concerned a "secret weapon" employed by the ancient Greeks. Van Luyn: "Homosexuality. The ancient ones did that, the younger ones not so much, they thought is was a bit yucky." He goes on mocking hoplites and their stylish outfits, but it turns out his answer was right: there were armies of homosexuals. Plato suggested in his "Symposium" that if two lovers would fight, they would try to protect each other. This is followed by the inevitable mocking of homosexuality.

Groenendijk: "How did they fight? Pulling each other hair?"
Van Luyn: "Throwing handbags."
Groenendijk: "With beautifully styled hair. No, watch out for my hair!"
Van Luyn: "Throwing Gucci shoes."
Groenendijk: "So that was the secret weapon of the Greeks. But were the enemy soldiers all straight? So they turn out to be stronger. If it takes too long for us, we don't finish things."
Van Dongen: "I just have to watch the Eurovision Song Contest now!"

The programme has all the elements: good comedians, interesting facts, gay jokes...So why is it just not as good as the original? Obviously, it doesn't have Stephen Fry, the host of hosts. Also, the entertainment value is rather reduced if you know the answers to the half the questions, because they've been copied from the BBC series. But there are two major problems. One of them I mentioned before: the object of the Dutch QI is not to discover interesting facts. The object seems to be to let the comedians tell "funny anecdotes", and that's just wrong! Points are for interesting facts, whether they're relevant or not. The comedians are supposed to be funny; it's their job. The second problem is the way Japin hosts the show. He's no Stephen Fry, but he doesn't have to be. I just have a problem with him just being there to read up questions, and judge the answers. He is just a bit too serious and stiff. Now, since this is the first time he's done anything like this, it makes sense. I just hope he grows into his role.

Dutch QI Episode 1

2008-12-30T16:08:00.007Z

Since QI is making its first foray abroad, we here at the QI Blog want to keep you up to date about the new series in The Netherlands. Hence we have some new reporters to introduce to you. This review of the first episode is written by Douchegordijn:

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In general, Dutch remakes of British comedy programmes tend to be painful to watch. The Dutch Never Mind The Buzzcocks is quite horrible, and although our version of Have I Got News For You is very popular, I haven’t the faintest idea why. This is why I concluded a long time ago panel-quizzes were just not suited for Dutch humour. Last Saturday, I was proven wrong.

ARTHUR JAPIN: How do guide dogs navigate in a city?
RONALD GOEDEMONDT: Guide dogs usually wear out a couple of blind people before they know the city. They start with five blind people, which they leave at places across the city. These blind people are lost, and you can hear them scream, "Where am I? Where am I?" These lost people are the navigating points for the guide dogs. They think: "Oh, that’s Harry who’s lost at the cathedral. Here we go left." It’s not that difficult.

They decided against beginning with an A-series, opting for a theme per episode instead. The theme of the first episode was "senses". The participating comedians were Diederik van Vleuten, Ronald Goedemondt, Jetty Mathurin, and recurring panel member Thomas van Luyn. The Dutch version of QI is still very much a work in progress. Usually the comedians were able to come up with a couple of decent anecdotes or witty jokes. They were, however, still searching for the best way to deliver them. Sometimes the jokes or stories seemed a bit forced, but I still found myself laughing out loud a lot.

Host Arthur Japin is no Stephen Fry. At the moment, his prompter skills aren’t good enough. When he’s presenting, you can hear he’s reading the prompter aloud. He’ll probably get better at this, though. He is a lot more bitchy than Stephen and when the contestants are making fun of him, you often see a him looking very much "not amused" (JAPIN: "I had a dog who would do anything for me. He’d get the newspaper, carry my groceries…" GOEDEMONDT: "…write books…"). However, there were moments when Japin demonstrated some strong comedic skills. It proves that even without Fry, the format works.

The editing of the programme was sometimes a bit strange, and this will be one of the areas that needs to be targeted if the show is to become a lasting success. At times, they editing gave the impression that the contestants came up with the correct answer very quickly, which is a bit strange with impossible questions like these. This created the feeling that the show was scripted even though it isn’t.

The Dutch version of QI is not up there with the English version yet, but that’s not a really fair comparison, because the first episode of QI had the same feelings of being a little forced. I found the first episode quite enjoyable, and I think the show can grow to something very good, especially for those who don’t watch the English version.

The opening credits from the Dutch version.

Dutch QI

2008-12-16T11:06:00.001Z

A Dutch version of QI will begin broadcasting in the Netherlands on the 27th December. Details are thin on the ground at the moment but we do know that it will still be called QI and it is presented by Arthur Japin, a popular Dutch author and regular guest comedian Thomas van Luyn. This is the first time that QI's format has been sold abroad.

Some parts of The Netherlands already receive the British QI because some parts of the country receive BBC TV broadcasts from over the channel. More details if and when we get them (unfortunately the language barrier has prevented us from learning about this until now).

Edit (18/12/08):

Thank you very much to the people who have added a few comments about the Dutch show. To reiterate those comments, there may well still be tickets to recordings. Unlike the British version it would appear that the Dutch version is being produced with a much shorter edit time so if you're in the Netherlands you might have a chance to go and see one. The website you want is here. Also, for non-residents of the Netherlands, you may find that the show is available outside of the country here after it has been shown (much like iPlayer). Lets hope for some English subtitles.

In the meantime, we'd love for someone who's fluent in Dutch and English to get in touch about writing some reviews of the show when it airs towards the end of this month. Obviously we'd prefer fans of the British version who can give us a comparison between the two. If you're interested send us an email and we'll get in touch.

QI F Series Broadcast Dates

2008-12-12T19:18:00.000Z

News just in, we now have confirmed broadcast dates for the rest of the F series. The Christmas Special will be broadcast on 22nd December on BBC1 at 21:00. The remaining ten episodes will be broadcast every Friday on BBC1 at 21:00 followed by an extended edition of QI on Saturday on BBC2 at a time yet to be confirmed between 21:00 and 22:00.

A full list of dates and times as they are currently know (with the exception of the Christmas special we don't yet know which show is which).

22nd December 21:00 BBC1 (Fire and Freezing)
9th January 21:00 BBC1
10th January BBC2 (Extended QI)
16th January 21:00 BBC1
17th January BBC2 (Extended QI)
23rd January 21:00 BBC1
24th January BBC2 (Extended QI)
30th January 21:00 BBC1
31st January BBC2 (Extended QI)
6th February 21:00 BBC1
7th February BBC2 (Extended QI)
13th February 21:00 BBC1
14th February BBC2 (Extended QI)
20th February 21:00 BBC1
21st February BBC2 (Extended QI)
27th February 21:00 BBC1
28th February BBC2 (Extended QI)
6th March 21:00 BBC1
7th March BBC2 (Extended QI)
13th March 21:00 BBC1
14th March BBC2 (Extended QI)

F Series

2008-11-07T20:03:00.000Z

Apologies for the huge gap between updates to the blog. Things up in York have been hectic with the QI society's first new intake of students.

Anyway, if you've not heard already, the first episode of the F series will be broadcast next Friday at 10:00pm on BBC2. It will be the Children In Need special starring Roni Ancona, David Mitchell and Sir Terry Wogan. Unlike previous years this episode is a one-off. The rest of the series will kick off with the Christmas special in December and the rest of the series will follow throughout January. A broadcast schedule will be avilable here as soon as we get it.

QI C Series DVD - A Review

2008-09-07T10:00:00.002Z

The third series of QI is now available on DVD. Here's a review of what you'll find on it.

2 Disks
All episodes from the C series, as broadcast.
Deleted scenes including questions cut from the show and bloopers.
Commentary on all episodes.
A compilation of all of the buzzers from the series.
Peter Cushing featurette including QI's remix with Alan Davies and the original version by the Jellybottys and a new remix by the band. Plus a short audio feature about the discovery of the band which Alan mentions in the show.

The first thing that presents itself as you start the DVD menu is a backdrop of cumulus clouds in a late evening sky. I was almost expecting some Monty Pythonesque animation to emerge onto the screen when floating into the foreground comes a cuckoo clock where the dial has been replaced with the backdrop to the QI set with 5 little puppets sat around a QI style desk infront. Meanwhile some fairly pleasant music performed by a brass band plays. The menu doesn't really present itself as a theme that I would associate with the show but it's all very safe and won't offend anyone like the A series menus did.

Now if you're buying this DVD or reading this blog there is little point in me insulting your intelligence by telling you what a great show QI is. Therefore I'll skip straight to discussing the extras. Most striking about these are the several hours of audio 'commentary'. Use of the word commentary here is quite loose since it does not accompany the programme as it does on many other DVDs. Instead the commentary is restricted to briefer discussions (approx 15 minutes) focussed around several topics discussed in each show. I am pleased to say that this really cuts down on the faff that people associate with DVD commentaries. You really mustn't be embarrassed to listen to all of them since you'll learn plenty from the experience.

A key topic for each show is a discussion of the "retractions" where the elves got something wrong in their research. If you are a member of the QI forums then you should be aware that there are several name checks associated with the retractions. Most of the other topics discussed are the questions that failed to make it past the cut into the shows. If you watch QI for the interestingness then these discussions should prove of great value to you. As is explained in the commentaries, not everything can illicit a comedic response and it ends up on the cutting room floor.

One of the key extras that most people buy DVDs for are the outtakes. You'll certainly find a good measure of them here on disk 2. It is slightly irritating that the bloopers have been intermixed with the additional material (usually whole questions that were cut from the show for time). However, you'll still find some very cheeky laughs (in more sense than one) in all of the additional scenes.

Perhaps the strangest aspect to the DVD is the Peter Cushing extra. The QI remix that is advertised on the front of the DVD (and which you can view online from the link in the last post) is a little bit of fun. Still, I'm not sure I can agree with the assessment that Alan's rendition of the song was the funniest moment in the series. However, I'm sure that plenty of people will have been curious about the band that performed the song from Whitstable and the inclusion of the original is rather entertaining.

The C series DVD is well worth buying if you haven't already. There are some classic moments in this series and the extras, especially the commentaries, are great. I hope you enjoy it as I have.

Some QI Things

2008-08-28T10:00:00.004Z

Firstly, my sincerest apologies for leaving you all in the dark for so long. There hasn't really been that much for me to talk about recently but we're now entering the build up for the next series and also Christmas. All this means that there will soon be lots for you to spend your hard earned cash on so that you can squeeze every last ounce of enjoyment out of QI.

Here's a run down of what you can expect:

1. September 1st

It's probably the most anticipated release from QI of the lot amongst the fans of QI. The best thing is that it's already on the shelves. This one really can't wait for the Christmas list.

Check out this video to get an idea of some of the slightly more surreal contents of the DVD.

Order from Amazon.

2. October 1st/November 17th

Last year Stephen Fry jetted off to the USA for a tour of all of the 50 states to form a 6 part series that will air on the BBC this Autumn. The accompanying book goes on sale on October 1st and the series will be available on DVD from November 17th.

Pre-order the book on Amazon.

Pre-order the DVD on Amazon.

3. October 2nd

Justin Pollard - QI's resident historian releases the second of his quite interesting books this Autumn. I probably can't beet the blurb from amazon so here is what it's all about:

"It is a book about the smaller tragedies and triumphs of war - toilets that sink U-boats, unsporting attacks on Christmas day, armies that stop for tea, bombs on renegade balloons, drunk generals, blind kings, blind drunk generals, circular warships, and all the joy and misery that such things bring with them. "

Pre-order from Amazon

4. October 2nd

Have you ever been at that ever important dinner party or social gathering and embarrassed yourself when you just didn't have the right words to mind? Or perhaps you've committed a terrible faux pas when you were the only one that didn't know who originally said that amazingly funny line? Well if so then this book isn't just for you but a whole lot of other people too.

QI: Advanced Banter is more than 450 pages of funny and humorous quotes organised into an A to Z of 250 useful topics. You'll never be found wanting again when the moment is right for the witty one liner.
Pre-order from Amazon.

5. October 30th

Wonders of the Ancient World is Justin Pollard's second book to be published in the space of a month. Back in the days of the Romans and the great Greek poets, lists of the great wonders of the World were rather popular. Historical figures ranging from Antipater of Sidion to the Roman geographer Strabo created such lists but none of them had the luxury of travelling the world with the freedom that we have today. This book could quite easily be a travel guide for the time traveller who plans to visit all of the great wonders of the world in the past. But for the rest of us this book is a brilliant journey of the imagination to see the sights that would have adorned the ancient lists if only Boeing had decided to build the 747 a couple of millennia earlier.

Pre-order from Amazon.

6. November 6th

This one truly is primed for your Christmas list. If last year's annual is anything to go by then you really will have a whole year's worth of reading material here. As with the 2008 edition there will be lots of sections written by QI's many varied comedic guests and researchers, and potentially a few little snippets from the QI forum members.

* If you're hunting for it on the book shelves later in the year, do note that this is not necessarily the final version of the cover.

Pre-order from Amazon

7. January 8th 2009

The CD of the first series of The Museum of Curiosities, starring QI's John Lloyd and Bill Bailey will be available early next year. No album cover as yet, but that would give away who won the competition to design it.

*This post was edited on 01/09/08

QI Recordings: Behind the Scenes

2008-08-25T10:00:00.001Z

Hi there. As some of you already know I’m a student of media and hoping to work in London one day. Through a series of delightful coincidences I was offered the chance to come down and have a look at how QI is made from a floor-managers perspective.

I arrived at the production office at precisely 12pm. After being given a special pass I was shown through the maze of corridors leading to the QI offices (and almost knocking poor Paul O’ Grady off his feet for which I do apologize). Having arrived in the office I was greeted by several members of the team and then it was down to business. I was shown the script and how the fact cards are produced.

One of QI's researchers (known as Flash to members of the QI forums) then led me through to have a look at the studio, which looked great. After being given a radio microphone I assisted the team with some sound effects that they were making (You’ll have to wait for the 11th recording to air to find out what they were). The whole process was fun, if a little messy. Then it was time for the first rehearsal . 5 stand-ins sit on set and read through the script as if it was Stephen and the guests themselves. This allows the video (VT) operators time to check their audio and visual effects and make sure they all appear on screen properly.

After a quick lunch it was time for the second rehearsal with Stephen. This is the time that Stephen Fry has to familiarize himself with the questions when the entire script is read through again.

The third rehearsal involves Stephen and the 4 guests, however it is NOT the same script that will be used when the audience are in. These are just a few teaser questions to warm the guests up and to allow the wardrobe staff to select shirts for them. It was made very clear to me that it is essential that the clothes don’t clash with the set or make the guest look too “washed-out”.

Dinner was provided for all of us after the fourth rehearsal, Fresh vegetable kebabs, hot rice and a delicious raspberry tart for afters. I was able to have a quick chat with the guests whilst we ate, and everyone was quite looking forward to the show. The guests then vanished off to their dressing rooms for make-up, whilst I nipped outside to see a few forum friends. I was then called back in to help with the set before the audience came in.

Despite what the audience saw on the night, a floor manager is a very busy person during the day. My main tasks when the audience were seated was placing the guests notepads up on set and making sure that the space behind set was free of obstacles. Then the show begins. When Stephen's microphone broke halfway through the show we had to call up for some sound engineers, they remedied the problem swiftly. By now I knew the script off by heart, having read it and watched it being rehearsed so many times in the seven hours before the show. However, the recording itself is an entirely different entity. There is such a huge transformation from a script of questions to what you see on the show.

All in all, I really enjoyed my time working as a crew member. The team have gave me priceless experience that will help me through my HND and I must wish a massive thank you to all of them.

Mandibles

QI Series F, Episode 11 Recording Review

2008-06-25T10:00:00.000Z

Hello everyone, apologies for the late reviews but we just couldn't post them up in the wrong order now could we? I'm back with the review of the penultimate recording. Now as some of you already know I was allowed backstage on this to get a better insight as to how the show is made, there will be a review of that coming very soon..

Having spent the majority of the day inside the studio I didn't get a very good look at the queue, however I did nip out and talk to a few familiar faces from the forum. It was also nice to have Stephen Grant back doing his magnificent warm-up.

Onto the spoilers!

Tonight's theme was "Fame and Fortune" The guests were David Mitchell, newcomer Emma Thompson and returning from the earlier seasons John Sessions. The designers had added a lot of flourishes to the set for this episode. The centre of the Q was decorated with red carpet and red rope barriers surrounded the bottom half of the symbol. Two large BAFTA style "happy and sad" faces sat either side of the screens facing inwards towards Stephen. If that wasn't enough, two giant Oscar statuettes either side of Stephen. However they bore shields rather than the traditional swords due to copyright issues.

Topics for discussion included Marlon Brando, patents, Stanley Gibbons, foleys, double F, Carnegie Hall, Oscars, publicity stunts, Greek statues, cheese, hedgehogs, Shakespeare, headlice (Stephen Fry and much of the audience began to scratch his head when the topic was discussed), flu vaccines, depression, and film. The lineup was perfect, John Sessions was on top form and I really hope that his brilliant impression of Alan Rickman will be included in the final edit. Another moment that will hopefully make the cut is the banter between Emma and Stephen regarding bikini-line waxes and anal bleaching! Watch out for Luvee Alarms and Teacher's Pet awards as well.

The show went very well and then I was off into the Green Room once more to chat with the stars. I also met QI Fanatic (Lord and master of the blog) and Glenn (Known to forum members as Gluben).

I'll be back in a few days with the final episode review! Ciao for now!

QI Series F, Episode 10 Recording Review

2008-06-21T10:16:00.004Z

I apologize even more for not having done this review weeks ago; it is ever exams and ever shall be exams. Exams will be the death of me, just as they were the birth of me. That strikes me as somehow not quite right, but I can't remember a life without them. Forgive a drowned woman.

This review is for the QI recording of 5th June, 2008.

We saw, upon entering the studio, that the set was dappled with tiny Pudsey bears, and a giant eyepatch had strung its way across the circular backdrop. It was clear that we had a Children in Need special in store for us, even though the episode isn't going to be able to be broadcast for months yet. Gordon Southern provided us with the warm-up, which was interrupted part of the way through when a life-sized Pudsey entered the room. Pudsey was guided to a seat in the audience, after choosing a woman to displace (Gordon, ominously: "Pudsey has chosen his bride."), and Guy, the floor manager, directed a small bit of film in which the bear we all love enthusiastically waved his telephone number above his head.

That finished, Pudsey left the audience and took the seat to Stephen's left, and this is where the spoilers begin.

Stephen came on (to tumultuous applause and cheers, as always; there is no one who doesn't love that man), and introduced the two other mystery guests: David Mitchell and Ronni Ancona. The show started--buzzers demonstrated and guests introduced--with no indication that Pudsey wasn't going to be a permanent panellist. Very soon, however, Stephen was interrupted by a booming voice from off-stage, and in walked . . . Terry Wogan. Let it not be said that QI is not apropos. Terry took Pudsey's place at the desk so that the show could really begin.

The theme of the day was "Families", and the first topic discussed was old wives' tales and what they are associated with. Stephen disclosed that he has a novel way of preventing macular-degeneration-by-shortness-of-zinc, but his method might not be for everyone. The next discussion centered upon one of the most popular fads of the early 20th century, which was followed by a question on foundling wheels. Some Jelly Babies were brought out during the course of the next question, although the panellists declined to share with the audience. Then came a topic about Tarzans of film; Ronni Ancona was asked outright to do impressions of Jane-as-various-people, for which she was taken aback at first, but rose to the challenge admirably, starting with a pitch-perfect impression of Renee Zellweger.

Further topics discussed: Relatives of famous people, Micronations, Dan Dare, the Eurovision song contest ("It's united the nations of Europe!" Terry stated loudly; "Has it, arse . . . it's divided east and west!" Stephen shot back), the Swiss Family Robinson, boomerangs, kangaroos, lions manes, and a specific mathematical proof.

Although Terry Wogan would seem to be a rather unexpected choice of guest, he rose to the task wonderfully and was very funny, and took many opportunities to verbally spar with David. He did sneak in one long Children (are) in Need(!) speech in the first third of the show, but it was well-received by the audience. Ronni Ancona's return to guesthood was also very good; when she had something to say, whether joke or anecdote, it was unerringly sweet. She kept a running tab throughout the show of how many times something particularly racy was mentioned, pondering the appropriateness of the jokes for a CiN special. Although QI does not usually hesitate to be ribald, many of the more risqué jokes are going to have to be dropped in order to be shown on the night. The innuendo alone could have made up an entirely separate show! Despite the necessary lack of knob gags, it was a great recording that will no doubt yield a tight and extremely entertaining cut.

QI Series F, Episode 9 Recording Review

2008-06-05T21:00:00.000Z

It was quite an achievement in the end that anyone was there to review this recording. Applause store is hard enough to get tickets out of and at this stage in the series the production lists are pretty much fully booked now.

Having taken my seat the warm-up soon got underway. Stephen Grant is still touring with his Edinburgh previews so enter Ben Norris again. His performance is too repetitive for the regulars but some of the jokes are still good (the panda joke continues to get a very big laugh). Stephen Grant will be back for the last two recordings next week.

As usual Stephen Fry walked onto the set to huge applause and sat down in his seat to give his usual introduction. It is at this point that I should explain that my guest at recording this week was Tom Scott. He is possibly someone that the readers of the QI blog will be familiar with. He co-founded the official website for the UK leg of International Talk Like a Pirate Day. Indeed he has recently been elected to the post of the Student Union President at the University of York - mainly by virtue of the fact that he campaigned as his pirate alter ego Mad Cap'n Tom. However, his greatest association with QI comes from a video that he made last December in which he attempts to remove his fingerprints using a pineapple because it was something claimed on QI in the last series. Having delivered his usual introduction, Stephen declared that we had a very important person in the room "Tom Scott, where are you?"

Tom was of course rather surprised, I had only told him that he would be able to come about 6 hours before the recording when he was still in York. Stephen quickly explained Tom's video to the audience and his attempts to remove his fingerprints. Tom explained how the experiment had failed and then it was time to introduce the guests so time for the spoilers:

The guests this week were Clive Anderson, Rich Hall and newcomer Reginald D Hunter. The topic of the night was fashion, so whilst the set had not been decorated with anything special for this show, Alan was wearing a very chique outfit. The topics discussed included; haircuts, engagements, the Duke of Wellington, trousers, head wear, bollocks, canals, macaroni, month, Michelin and balls.

Justin Pollard had invited his friend - a Romanian mathematician - to come to the show and bring a rather remarkable object with him. You'll have to watch it in the autumn to find out what that item was. At the start of the show the panelists were given the task of picking a catch phrase that they will attempt to popularise by repeating through out the recording. Alan went with "Has your mother sold her mangle", Clive Anderson decided to use "Who are you?", Rich chose "Dumber than a bag of wet mice" and Reginald used one from back home "Do what you do best". It's recommended that you try to start using them now so that you're ahead of the game when all your friends are repeating them after the episode airs.

That's my last recording review this series, Mandibles returns next week with a rather special review. She will be heading behind the scenes to get a closer look at how the show is produced.

The QI Test

2008-06-05T19:00:00.001Z

On Tuesday I attended the first of 5 run-throughs of a new show being produced by QI called the QI Test. In attendance were several forum members including Andrew, Neotenic, Mr and Mrs Tetsabb and Smiley_Face.

Upon our arrival we were soon shepherded down to the basement studio, not a particularly large room and certainly not somewhere that you could fit an audience. There were 16 chairs placed in two concentric semi-circles. After we were introduced to Justin Gayner (one of QI's senior elves - in experience and not age I should add) we all sat down and got to business. The format of the show was explained to us and we began playing the game.

This unfortunately is where things get a bit vague. This was the first of five run-throughs before a proper pilot is produced and pitched to the BBC. There will likely be some big format changes anyway so what I could say here wouldn't be that informative. Plus, for obvious reasons, the producers will not want the format ti be known to the public until the time is right. What I can probably tell you is that in its current guise there is a very inventive take on the pun at the heart of QI's name (the IQ test) but frankly that's probably something you'd already worked out for yourselves.

After the show there was some quick chat and then we headed over to the pub where Justin Pollard (historian, author and QI elf) joined us for a few drinks. I was quite impressed by the idea for the QI Test, it definitely has the potential (and a show at this stage of development can have nothing more than that) to become very entertaining viewing. I am pleased to say that when the show does come to fruition, you'll be able to hear about it first on the QI blog.

P.S. A review of Wednesday's recording will be available Friday.

QI Series F, Episode 8 Recording Review

2008-06-05T08:00:00.001Z

Yet another guest reviewer today. Hello! I'm Kate -- long-suffering friend of MinervaMoon's, and watcher of QI. I will be reviewing the recording of May 29th, or at least, what I can remember of it. Memory like a sieve, me!

This recording's warm up comedian was Tom Price. Lovely chap, and definitely NOT a paedophile (this is a joke based on his skit, not a standard disclaimer).†

On to the show itself, where I will try not to ramble too much:

It was the Christmas episode, the title of which was "Fire and Freezing", so the set was decorated with snowflakes, two trees and some fake snow (or cocaine as Stephen dubbed it). The guests, Dom Joly, Clive Anderson, and Rob Brydon (and, of course, Alan and Stephen) came out in assorted winter hats and stripy scarves looking lovely, as Stephen managed to point out at least three times (plus commenting on Rob's "chocolatey wells of love")! The buzzers were songs on the theme of fire, and Alan's was a specially made recording of Alan Sugar telling Alan he was disgrace.

Dom made a very good debut and I'd be glad to see him make some more appearances. Clive was, if I remember rightly, also very good, and Rob was on fire (not literally, although it would fit with the theme). There were some jokes about the fact that the show will be aired many months in the future: Gosh, remember when it rained on the 100m at the Olympics? Gosh, remember when it rained on the 200m? Gosh, remember when it rained on the shotput? Etc. . . .

The guests all had fans, and were following rules of fan-etiquette or something to flirt and send each other coded signals. There was also lengthy discussion of smoke signals, firemen and smoke. I should stop now though because this runs the risk of being really rather long as more things come back to me.

† Sarah notes: He didn't introduce himself with "Hello. You may remember me from such roles as P.C. Andy from Torchwood." But he should have.

The Museum of Curiosity 2nd Series

2008-06-04T08:00:00.002Z

The Museum of Curiosity has been commissioned for a second series. The radio 4 comedy is loosely based on QI and stars John Lloyd (QI's creator) as the professor and Bill Bailey (a frequent guest) as its curator. Guests are asked to contribute an item to the museum. Items already added to the museum have included silence and the Battle of Waterloo.

QI Series F, Episode 7 Recording Review

2008-06-03T12:00:00.002Z

This recording was the first outing of the Quite Interesting Society at the University of York, so whilst I was writing this review I also had the minor concern of getting 10 students to the recording on time. After what turned out to be a 6 hour drive from York to London (due to traffic on the M1 and central London) our two cars arrived outside the studio at 7:18, and we walked into the studio as the floor manager was giving the safety briefing. We ended up seated all over the place, I myself was sat on a chair in front of the curtain at the back of the studio. It was by far the worst seating I had ever had in that studio but it was still better than sitting on the far side of one of the wings.

Before I could get the notepad out, Ben Norris strolled on to warm-up the audience. It was a competent skit but if I'm to be honest the adrenaline was only just wearing off from having been minutes from turning round and heading straight back to York; I wasn't precisely concentrating at the time.

Stephen Fry walked on and I was rather pleased that my request for him to shout out the society was successful. There was a quick wave from our scattered members and Stephen told us to "get a life" (fair comment) and told the audience about York's claim to fame - the largest plastic-bottomed lake in Europe.

After Stephen had introduced the guests there was some quick banter about how he was stalked by Courtney Love and a rendition of "Peter Cushing Lives in Whitstable" it was soon time to start the tape rolling for the recording. Thus here begin the spoilers:

The guests for this recording were Jimmy Carr, David Mitchell and Rich Hall. This episode will be one of a minority this series formed only from regular guests. The topic of the episode was Food. The topics of oysters and fruit machines introduced a running joke into the show about oral sex and this was probably how this episode will have become one of the funniest of the series (not that one is in a position to judge having seen only two of them).

Other topics discussed included; tongues, yakult, tape worms, crabs, Scottish drinks, oysters, melons, Russian service, chips, muscle, teeth, snakes, cheese, cake and the Internet. David Mitchell was given two Teacher's Pet awards throughout the recording.

After the recording we all headed into the green room where we were all introduced to Stephen Fry and Alan Davies plus a number of the elves. After enjoying the free bar (except for the drivers) it was then time to head back home. The dawn had come before we were in our beds.

QI Series F, Episode 6 Recording Review

2008-06-01T19:53:00.004Z

Hello, I'm Erin. MinervaMoon, through whose awesomeness I was able to go to two QI recordings during the week I was in London,[1] asked me to do this review so she doesn't completely die from exams. I, being done with that sort of thing for the time being, agreed.

This is the review for the Tuesday, May 20 recording. As at the May 12 recording, Rufus Hound did the warmup. This was my second time at a QI recording, my first time having been the day before. I had a brilliant time both nights, and am already going through withdrawal and fantasizing[2] about moving to the UK.

[Footnote 1: All right, the main reason I went was to go to QI.]

[Footnote 2: Sorry for the spelling -- I'm an American.]

Now for the spoilery bits:

The guests for this episode were Jimmy Carr, Jo Brand, and John Sergeant, whose surname I hope I am finally spelling correctly. It was John's first time on the show, and yes, Stephen did bring up his resemblance to Jo.

The theme was "Flora and Fauna," and the center of the set was decorated with grass, flowers, and two garden gnomes.

The show began with a question about camellias (Stephen was wearing one). The answer involved a really precious line from Stephen (for which Jo made fun of him) that I hope makes the edit. Other subjects included flea circuses, tree-dwelling fish, flamingos (repeating some information from series B episode 2), naïve rhinoceroses, frogs and toads, fairy rings, more frogs, lice and the animals they live on, ferrets helping to build aircraft (segueing into ferrets and trousers), the fastest thing in nature, slugs, peacocks, albatrosses (Alan told the "albatross burger" riddle), and mushrooms. So it was mostly fauna rather than flora, but there were a few good plant questions.

Thanks again to MinervaMoon for giving me the opportunity to see QI and for entrusting me with the writing of this review.

[Erin, you're brilliant. Thank you and you're welcome. Sarah]

The QI Annual 2009

2008-06-01T12:25:00.003Z

The next QI Annual 2009 has now been placed on amazon for pre-order here. Following on from the success of the first QI annual which covered a range of subjects beginning with “E”, this annual will cover “F” topics. The synopsis given by amazon claims that topics covered in the Annual will include ferrets, Fiji, Finland, fish, flags, flamingos, fleas, floods, flowers, fog, food, football, forests, fossils, Freemasons, fungi, fur and furniture.

It is not yet known who will contribute to the guide, but chances are it will be come from a range of QI guests, panelists and crew who wrote for the Annual last year with some extra contributions from those newly arrived to the QI world.

The QI Annual for 2009 is to be released on the 6 November 2008, and is to be 96 pages long (because 96% of the universe is missing). Currently priced at £12.99.

P.S. QIfanatic gives his apologies to the delays in posting the QI reviews this year. A busy exam schedule for a number of the reviewers is making life difficult.