Here Isn't The News

Here Isn't The News is a new television program in Georgeland. Loosely based on the British show Have I Got News For You, Here Isn't the News is a weekly panel show where news topics are discussed and various 'games' played, between two teams of two guests each. While points are awarded, there is little value to them, and they are awarded on an arbitrary basis. The topical discussion is usually secondary to the humour and banter between guests and host.

2005 Debut
The pilot for the show was produced in 2000, but not picked up by any network. In 2004, the Georgeland Broadcasting Corporation announced it would commission a run of twelve episodes for its 2005 schedule, but this scheduling was pushed back. On October 14, 2005, the show began its run on the GBC, and immediately proved a big success. After eight episodes, the GBC announced a complete, year-long run, which began in March 2006.

Format
HITN is a panel game/quiz show, with two teams, each consisting of a team captain and one guest. For the first series, the team captains are comedian Neil Hobbes and journalist-turned-humourist Kevin Teal. The host of the show, comedian Robin Edmonds, keeps order and announces proceedings, but then usually allows his guests and panellists to 'run amok'.

Games
Name That Pratt, where a political figure or other celebrity is shown in a photograph doing something silly or hunmourous, but with the face blanked out, and panellists must guess the subject of the photo.

'Missing Words, lifted straight from the British version, where panellists fill in the blanks from headlines seen during the week. For example, in the edition broadcast on November 25, the headline read "PARKER TO SINGAPORE: DON'T _________ AUSTRALIAN", to which Hobbes wittily suggested the missing word was 'miss'.

Captions, where a photograph is provided and panellists are asked to provide a caption.

Buzz Off, a quick-fire buzzer round where panellists buzz in to answer news-related questions posed by Edmonds. Correct answers are rarely given. Example: In the November 18 edition, Edmonds asked the question "For what crime was Gary Glitter under investigation this week in Vietnam", and panellist Leroy Hunt responded 'His Music'.

Guests
Listed first are the guests from Hobbes' team, followed by Teal's guest.

2005 season
1. (Oct 14) Ben Yaxley and Owen Sinclair 2. (Oct 21) Elizabeth Sharkey and Stephen Morris 3. (Oct 28) Madeline Woods and Leroy Hunt 4. (Nov 4) Leroy Hunt and Barry Tighe 5. (Nov 11) Arthur Daley-Tyne and Ben Yaxley 6. (Nov 18) Leroy Hunt and Moira Jansen 7. (Nov 25) Nathan Kellerman and Jon Yates 8. (Dec 2) Adam Eckles and Trent Laramie

2006 season
1. (Mar 17) Leroy Hunt and Madeline Woods 2. (Mar 24) Bill Bailey and Julia Moffatt 3. (Mar 31) Ross Noble and Sandra Wood

Robin Edmonds

 * "Prime Minister Zoe Parker is flying off to Malta for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. That's C.H.O.G.M., which also stands for Classy Holiday On Government Money"


 * "Mrs. Parker met with the new German Chancellor, Angela Merkel. Merkel is described as Germany's Margaret Thatcher. Only without the penis."


 * "France is in flames, with thousands of French people rioting against the French government. A French government spokesman says he doesn't understand why people are being destructive to others. Here's an idea: it's because they're FRENCH!"

Kevin Teal

 * "The Princess of Japan, right, got married to a commoner, and now she has to relinquish her royal title. Bloody hell - that's bad news for my wife. She's the Queen of Brazil."

General
Hobbes: "That's about right, isn't it. It's like the kid who drops the baby on its head because he was trying to help."
 * Teal: "I don't understand why the Americans don't say to the Iraqis: hey, guys, we're only trying to help."


 * Edmonds: American Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was subjected to protests in which English city this week?
 * Hobbes: Liverpool.
 * Edmonds: Correct. Not funny, but correct.
 * Ross Noble]: Not funny? Well, neither's Liverpool.