Community hub
Recent from talks
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Mock the Week
Mock the Week is a weekly British topical satirical celebrity panel show, created by Dan Patterson and Mark Leveson. It is produced by Angst Productions and was broadcast on BBC Two from 5 June 2005 to 4 November 2022 and TLC since 1 February 2026. Presenter Dara Ó Briain and panellist Hugh Dennis appeared in every episode of the BBC series, with a variety of other stand-up comedians being regular, frequent, occasional or one-off guest panellists during the show's history.
The format of the programme sees six comedians divided into two teams and performing on a faux game show, in which the quiz aspect of answering questions relating to major and regional news items, all taken from the week before each episode's filming, is sidelined to focus on satirical, topical discussions on news items, stand-up routines, and the use of improvisational comedy. Every series on the BBC included a compilation episode showing notable scenes, out-takes and additional footage cut out after filming, with repeats of episodes being frequently shown on the channel U&Dave, with high viewing figures.
After a three-year absence, the series, again presented by Dara Ó Briain but without Dennis, was revived for the digital channel TLC, with an extended runtime; new episodes were broadcast from 1 February 2026.
Two teams of three panelists each, all comedians, competed on Mock the Week over four rounds, presided over by host Dara Ó Briain. Although the programme maintained a quiz aspect to the format, which featured questions on news items taken from those made during the week before an episode's filming, it was 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 did not use team captains or maintain a proper scoring system – teams generally win a round depending on who Dara, the host, deemed won it.
Each episode on the BBC was edited to include about four rounds from those filmed, to fit a 30-minute timeslot. Some content not used was often retained for use in a compilation episode, which also included 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 BBC episode:
On occasion the BBC programme included an additional round, mainly shown during a compilation or special episode of the programme:
The TLC version introduced another new round:
The panellists were primarily comedians, including stand-up comedians, many of whom made multiple appearances. Hugh Dennis appeared in all BBC episodes since the show's premiere in 2005, except for a special episode broadcast as part of David Walliams' 24 Hour Panel People. Alongside Dennis and Ó Briain, others appeared as regular panellists, including Rory Bremner (Series 1 and 2), Frankie Boyle (Series 1 to 7), Andy Parsons (Series 3 to 14), Russell Howard (Series 4 to 9), Chris Addison (Series 10 to 12) and Angela Barnes (Series 21).
Hub AI
Mock the Week AI simulator
(@Mock the Week_simulator)
Mock the Week
Mock the Week is a weekly British topical satirical celebrity panel show, created by Dan Patterson and Mark Leveson. It is produced by Angst Productions and was broadcast on BBC Two from 5 June 2005 to 4 November 2022 and TLC since 1 February 2026. Presenter Dara Ó Briain and panellist Hugh Dennis appeared in every episode of the BBC series, with a variety of other stand-up comedians being regular, frequent, occasional or one-off guest panellists during the show's history.
The format of the programme sees six comedians divided into two teams and performing on a faux game show, in which the quiz aspect of answering questions relating to major and regional news items, all taken from the week before each episode's filming, is sidelined to focus on satirical, topical discussions on news items, stand-up routines, and the use of improvisational comedy. Every series on the BBC included a compilation episode showing notable scenes, out-takes and additional footage cut out after filming, with repeats of episodes being frequently shown on the channel U&Dave, with high viewing figures.
After a three-year absence, the series, again presented by Dara Ó Briain but without Dennis, was revived for the digital channel TLC, with an extended runtime; new episodes were broadcast from 1 February 2026.
Two teams of three panelists each, all comedians, competed on Mock the Week over four rounds, presided over by host Dara Ó Briain. Although the programme maintained a quiz aspect to the format, which featured questions on news items taken from those made during the week before an episode's filming, it was 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 did not use team captains or maintain a proper scoring system – teams generally win a round depending on who Dara, the host, deemed won it.
Each episode on the BBC was edited to include about four rounds from those filmed, to fit a 30-minute timeslot. Some content not used was often retained for use in a compilation episode, which also included 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 BBC episode:
On occasion the BBC programme included an additional round, mainly shown during a compilation or special episode of the programme:
The TLC version introduced another new round:
The panellists were primarily comedians, including stand-up comedians, many of whom made multiple appearances. Hugh Dennis appeared in all BBC episodes since the show's premiere in 2005, except for a special episode broadcast as part of David Walliams' 24 Hour Panel People. Alongside Dennis and Ó Briain, others appeared as regular panellists, including Rory Bremner (Series 1 and 2), Frankie Boyle (Series 1 to 7), Andy Parsons (Series 3 to 14), Russell Howard (Series 4 to 9), Chris Addison (Series 10 to 12) and Angela Barnes (Series 21).