News Knight with Sir Trevor McDonald
Encyclopedia
News Knight with Sir Trevor McDonald, more commonly referred to as simply News Knight was a British television
panel show shown on ITV
, at 22:00 on Sunday nights. Fronted by Sir Trevor McDonald and in a similar style to the BBC One
programme Have I Got News for You
, its format featured three comedians and McDonald satirising the week's news. Marcus Brigstocke
was a permanent member of the "news team".
News Knight is produced by Hat Trick Productions
, the same production company as Have I Got News For You
. The programme's title is a pun on McDonald's knighthood and on the BBC Two
current affairs programme Newsnight
. The show is therefore referred to as "News Knight with Sir Trevor McDonald" to avoid confusion.
, but with a comic agenda.
Throughout the show are other features, which normally feature internet clips from sites such as YouTube
. There are some recurring topics that appear in these clips. These include Planet Stupid, which involves some bizarre and stupid news story from anywhere around the world, and Young People Can Be Idiots, which features clips of teenagers and young adults doing something idiotic. In one episode, there was a spin-off to this feature called Old People Can Be Idiots.
said that, "A legendary, great man (ITV's answer to David Attenborough
), he's surely too dignified to be introducing sections like Saudis Do the Funniest Things, or Gay Or Blind?"
. The Daily Record
said, "Nicely done. But it's basically a rip-off of HIGNFY... ITV really need to get a grip with this copycat malarkey. First they try to pass off Tycoon
as something other than a lazy copy of BBC's The Apprentice
. Now a poor man's take on Auntie's HIGNFY - a TV show of such quality people should be arrested for copying it. Or not watching it."
. In a section called Racist and Dead, McDonald said, "This week it's the turn of incompetent, narrow-minded northerner: Bernard Manning. Personally, I never thought of Bernard Manning as a racist comic; just a fat, white bastard." Amongst the people who complained was Jim Bowen
, who said the comment was, "Appalling." However, an ITV spokesman defended it as satire, saying, "I'm sure Bernard would find the whole thing hilarious."
However, Ofcom
cleared McDonald and ITV of charges of racism, saying the joke was justified in context and that McDonald's was only parody
ing Manning. Ofcom said;
British television
Public television broadcasting started in the United Kingdom in 1936, and now has a collection of free and subscription services over a variety of distribution media, through which there are over 480 channelsTaking the base Sky EPG TV Channels. A breakdown is impossible due to a) the number of...
panel show shown on ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
, at 22:00 on Sunday nights. Fronted by Sir Trevor McDonald and in a similar style to the BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
programme Have I Got News for You
Have I Got News for You
Have I Got News for You is a British television panel show produced by Hat Trick Productions for the BBC. It is based loosely on the BBC Radio 4 show The News Quiz, and has been broadcast since 1990, currently the BBC's longest-ever running television panel show...
, its format featured three comedians and McDonald satirising the week's news. Marcus Brigstocke
Marcus Brigstocke
Marcus Alexander Brigstocke is an English comedian, actor and satirist who has worked extensively in stand-up comedy, television, radio and in 2010-2011 musical theatre. He is particularly associated with the 6.30pm comedy slot on BBC Radio 4, having frequently appeared on several of its shows...
was a permanent member of the "news team".
News Knight is produced by Hat Trick Productions
Hat Trick Productions
Hat Trick Productions is a British independent production company that produces television programmes, mainly specialising in comedy.-History:...
, the same production company as Have I Got News For You
Have I Got News for You
Have I Got News for You is a British television panel show produced by Hat Trick Productions for the BBC. It is based loosely on the BBC Radio 4 show The News Quiz, and has been broadcast since 1990, currently the BBC's longest-ever running television panel show...
. The programme's title is a pun on McDonald's knighthood and on the BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
current affairs programme Newsnight
Newsnight
Newsnight is a BBC Television current affairs programme noted for its in-depth analysis and often robust cross-examination of senior politicians. Jeremy Paxman has been its main presenter for over two decades....
. The show is therefore referred to as "News Knight with Sir Trevor McDonald" to avoid confusion.
Format
News Knight is about the news broadcast that McDonald has always wanted to do. As a result, it is he who sets the news agenda. This is mainly in the form of McDonald's top three stories of the week, which are discussed with the panel. Therefore, it is more akin to a traditional news broadcast rather than a talk showTalk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
, but with a comic agenda.
Throughout the show are other features, which normally feature internet clips from sites such as YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
. There are some recurring topics that appear in these clips. These include Planet Stupid, which involves some bizarre and stupid news story from anywhere around the world, and Young People Can Be Idiots, which features clips of teenagers and young adults doing something idiotic. In one episode, there was a spin-off to this feature called Old People Can Be Idiots.
Episodes
| Episode | Air Date | Guests |
|---|---|---|
| Series 1 - 2007 | ||
| 1. 1-1 | 24 June 2007 | Reginald D. Hunter, Clive Anderson Clive Anderson Clive Anderson is a British former barrister, best known for being a comedy writer as well as a radio and television presenter in the United Kingdom... |
| 2. 1-2 | 1 July 2007 | Reginald D. Hunter, Alexander Armstrong Alexander Armstrong (comedian) Alexander Henry Fenwick Armstrong is a British comedian, actor and television presenter.-Early life and career:Armstrong was born in Rothbury, Northumberland, the youngest of three children, to Henry Angus Armstrong and his wife Emma Virginia Peronnet Thompson-McCausland, daughter of Lucius... |
| 3. 1-3 | 8 July 2007 | Frankie Boyle Frankie Boyle Francis Martin Patrick "Frankie" Boyle is a British comedian and writer, well known for his pessimistic, often controversial sense of humour... , Clive Anderson |
| 4. 1-4 | 15 July 2007 | Sue Perkins Sue Perkins Sue Perkins is an English comedienne, broadcaster, actress, and writer.-Education:Perkins was educated at Croham Hurst School, an independent school for girls in Croydon in South London, at the same time as the BBC Breakfast News presenter Susanna Reid... , Reginald D. Hunter |
| 5. 1-5 | 22 July 2007 | Frankie Boyle, Clive Anderson |
| 6. 1-6 | 29 July 2007 | Reginald D. Hunter, Michael McIntyre Michael McIntyre Michael Hazen James McIntyre is an English stand-up comedian. He is well known for appearing at many British stand-up comedy events and for several roles on television stand-up programmes such as Live at the Apollo and his own show, Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow... |
| 7. 1-7 | 5 August 2007 | Alun Cochrane Alun Cochrane Alun "The Cockerel" Cochrane is a Scottish stand-up comedian. He was born in Glasgow and raised in Mirfield, West Yorkshire.-Stand-up comedy:... , Clive Anderson |
McDonald's credibility
The reaction to News Knight has been mixed. Some have been critical of McDonald's own performances, claiming that he is a newsreader and therefore should not do comedy. Jim ShelleyJim Shelley (TV critic)
Jim Shelley is a British television critic who writes a column for the Daily Mirror each Monday titled Shelleyvision. Prior to writing for the Daily Mirror he wrote for The Guardian and his collection of reviews "Interference: Tapehead vs. Television" was published by Atlantic Books...
said that, "A legendary, great man (ITV's answer to David Attenborough
David Attenborough
Sir David Frederick Attenborough OM, CH, CVO, CBE, FRS, FZS, FSA is a British broadcaster and naturalist. His career as the face and voice of natural history programmes has endured for more than 50 years...
), he's surely too dignified to be introducing sections like Saudis Do the Funniest Things, or Gay Or Blind?"
Similarity with other shows
Other critics have complained about the similarity between News Knight and similar shows such as Have I Got News for YouHave I Got News for You
Have I Got News for You is a British television panel show produced by Hat Trick Productions for the BBC. It is based loosely on the BBC Radio 4 show The News Quiz, and has been broadcast since 1990, currently the BBC's longest-ever running television panel show...
. The Daily Record
Daily Record (Scotland)
The Daily Record is a Scottish tabloid newspaper based in Glasgow. It had been the best-selling daily paper in Scotland for many years with a paid circulation in August 2011 of 307,794 . It is now outsold by its arch-rival the Scottish Sun which in September 2010 had a circulation of 339,586 in...
said, "Nicely done. But it's basically a rip-off of HIGNFY... ITV really need to get a grip with this copycat malarkey. First they try to pass off Tycoon
Tycoon (TV series)
Tycoon was an ITV reality television show, based on the existing Peter Jones/Simon Cowell production American Inventor, which began on 19 June 2007 at 9.00pm. It was fronted by Peter Jones, who searched for entrepreneurs with ideas that he helped turn into profit-making companies. The winner was...
as something other than a lazy copy of BBC's The Apprentice
The Apprentice (UK)
The Apprentice is a British reality television series in which a group of aspiring young businessmen and women compete for the chance to win a £100,000-a-year job as an apprentice to the British business magnate Lord Sugar in series one to six...
. Now a poor man's take on Auntie's HIGNFY - a TV show of such quality people should be arrested for copying it. Or not watching it."
Bernard Manning joke
The first episode attracted around 200 complaints after McDonald made a joke about the late controversial comedian Bernard ManningBernard Manning
Bernard John Manning was an English comedian and nightclub owner. He was born and raised in Manchester in northwest England....
. In a section called Racist and Dead, McDonald said, "This week it's the turn of incompetent, narrow-minded northerner: Bernard Manning. Personally, I never thought of Bernard Manning as a racist comic; just a fat, white bastard." Amongst the people who complained was Jim Bowen
Jim Bowen
Jim Bowen is an English stand-up comedian and TV personality. He is best known as the host of the ITV gameshow Bullseye, which he hosted between 1981 and 1995.-Early life:...
, who said the comment was, "Appalling." However, an ITV spokesman defended it as satire, saying, "I'm sure Bernard would find the whole thing hilarious."
However, Ofcom
Ofcom
Ofcom is the government-approved regulatory authority for the broadcasting and telecommunications industries in the United Kingdom. Ofcom was initially established by the Office of Communications Act 2002. It received its full authority from the Communications Act 2003...
cleared McDonald and ITV of charges of racism, saying the joke was justified in context and that McDonald's was only parody
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
ing Manning. Ofcom said;
"In the case of this programme, Sir Trevor McDonald obviously, and intentionally, drew on Bernard Manning's own style of humour, which frequently played on the real or apparent prejudices of his audience. The comments were clearly intended to parody Manning's own comedy, where he claimed he was not himself racist, but simply made 'jokes' based on racial stereotypes. It was in such a context that Sir Trevor McDonald could therefore state that he did not consider Manning to be a racist but then went on to say that he was '...a fat white bastard'."
External links
- News Knight at Hat Trick.comHat Trick ProductionsHat Trick Productions is a British independent production company that produces television programmes, mainly specialising in comedy.-History:...