Don't Call Me Stupid
Contents |
Host
Broadcast
ITV Productions for ITV1, 4 September to 9 October 2007, 9 and 23 June 2009 (8 episodes in 1 series)
Synopsis
Two fairly well-known people attempt to bone up on each other's specialist subject. In essence, it's Celebrity Swapheads.
A lot of the programme is taken up with footage of the celebs attempting to introduce each other to their respective subjects, which provide a few comedy moments. Each celeb gets about two minutes on the other's specialist subject (we doubt it's strictly timed, since the host cracks jokes with the clock supposedly running) and then at the end they go head-to-head in an on-the-buzzers general knowledge round.
It's a bit light on quiz content, but jolly good fun, and Alexander Armstrong once again demonstrates why Talkback were fools not to give him the HIGNFY job. We slightly wonder whether they would keep certain elements were it to go to a second series (instead of lights on their desks or anything like that, the players have plain unadorned lightbulbs hanging over their heads, and there's a rather odd framing device of gallery chatter and backstage footage at the beginning and end of the show) but since it's in ITV's 10pm kiss-of-death slot, it's all somewhat academic anyway.
Trivia
Thanks to the parliamentary register of members' interests, we know that Michael Howard was paid a fee between £5000 and £10,000 for appearing on this show, while George Galloway commanded a fee of between £10,000 and £15,000.
For some reason, the show featuring Michael Howard and Wayne Sleep wasn't broadcast in the original run, and crept out of the cupboard almost two years later.
