Insiders: The TV Podcast

This week, as the Edinburgh Fringe gets underway, Peter and Jimmy ask whether having success at the Fringe is still a worthwhile route for performers who want to carve out a career on television. And we talk Netflix’s new (but decidedly retro) sitcom Leanne. Given that Friends is still one of the streamer’s most watched shows, is the only surprising thing about Leanne that it’s taken Netflix quite so long to start commissioning audience sitcoms that feel like they were made in the 1990s? Plus, cocaine at Strictly, the weather in Norway, and, at long last, a definitive answer to that most pressing of questions from the world of the TV executive - how to tell the difference between Perrier and San Pellegrino. Jimmy Mulville is the co-founder and Chief Executive of Hat Trick Productions. His list of hit shows includes Have I Got News For You, Father Ted, Derry Girls, Outnumbered, and Episodes. In the US Hat Trick launched Whose Line Is It Anyway in 1997 which ran on ABC for seven years and was the first British series to be recreated for American network television by a British producer.Peter Fincham ran TalkBack, where he executive produced many of their biggest shows including I’m Alan Partridge, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, and Da Ali G Show. He went on to be Controller of BBC1, then he was Director of Television at ITV, before returning to the independent sector as the co-CEO of Expectation, the company behind Clarkson's Farm and Alma's Not Normal.New episodes every Friday.YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@InsidersTVPodcastEmail: InsidersTVPod@expectationtv.com Instagram: @InsidersTVPodInsiders: The TV Podcast is an Expectation and Hat Trick co-production.The producer is Owen Braben.

This week, Peter and Jimmy discuss the news that YouTube has become the second most watched video platform in the UK - what does its inexorable rise mean for both producers and broadcasters? And we talk ITV, and try to look beyond their not-great-but-not-quite-as-bad-as-expected results, and ask if they’re getting the big strategic questions right?Plus, the perils of slow lifts, Jimmy’s efforts at self-immolation in the name of selling a show, and the pilot that Peter made that was so bad, everyone at TalkBack just assumed it was a massive practical joke (it wasn’t, it was just terrible). Jimmy Mulville is the co-founder and Chief Executive of Hat Trick Productions. His list of hit shows includes Have I Got News For You, Father Ted, Derry Girls, Outnumbered, and Episodes. In the US Hat Trick launched Whose Line Is It Anyway in 1997 which ran on ABC for seven years and was the first British series to be recreated for American network television by a British producer.Peter Fincham ran TalkBack, where he executive produced many of their biggest shows including I’m Alan Partridge, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, and Da Ali G Show. He went on to be Controller of BBC1, then he was Director of Television at ITV, before returning to the independent sector as the co-CEO of Expectation, the company behind Clarkson's Farm and Alma's Not Normal.New episodes every Friday.YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@InsidersTVPodcastEmail: InsidersTVPod@expectationtv.com Instagram: @InsidersTVPodInsiders: The TV Podcast is an Expectation and Hat Trick co-production.The producer is Owen Braben.

This week, Peter and Jimmy discuss the smorgasbord of news from the BBC, from the future of Masterchef to the devil in the detail of the annual report. And we talk CBS’s decision to cancel the Late Show, and ask whether the age of the made-for-TV chat show is coming to an end? Plus, Clive Anderson upsetting the Bee Gees, Jimmy’s dinner with Jeremy Hunt, and why you should be wary of any meeting where someone tells you how much they “value” you (you’re almost certainly about to be fired).  Jimmy Mulville is the co-founder and Chief Executive of Hat Trick Productions. His list of hit shows includes Have I Got News For You, Father Ted, Derry Girls, Outnumbered, and Episodes. In the US Hat Trick launched Whose Line Is It Anyway in 1997 which ran on ABC for seven years and was the first British series to be recreated for American network television by a British producer.Peter Fincham ran TalkBack, where he executive produced many of their biggest shows including I’m Alan Partridge, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, and Da Ali G Show. He went on to be Controller of BBC1, then he was Director of Television at ITV, before returning to the independent sector as the co-CEO of Expectation, the company behind Clarkson's Farm and Alma's Not Normal.New episodes every Friday.YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@InsidersTVPodcastEmail: InsidersTVPod@expectationtv.com Instagram: @InsidersTVPodInsiders: The TV Podcast is an Expectation and Hat Trick co-production.The producer is Owen Braben.

This week, in a special Q&A episode, Peter and Jimmy ask whether the audience sitcom has become a dying breed, and if there’s sufficient willingness amongst broadcasters to persist with series while they find their feet? And we discuss the tricky business of cancelling a show, and whether there’s ever a good way to do it. Peter recalls the day his scheduler dared him to cancel Last Of The Summer Wine, and Jimmy talks Episodes, and the time the BBC did their level best to cancel it, only to fail quite completely. Plus, bottle episodes, the nine lives of Room 101, and what happened when Murphy’s Irish Stout rang TalkBack and offered to pay Graham Linehan and Arthur Matthews piles of cash to write a sitcom set in a bar in Ireland. Jimmy Mulville is the co-founder and Chief Executive of Hat Trick Productions. His list of hit shows includes Have I Got News For You, Father Ted, Derry Girls, Outnumbered, and Episodes. In the US Hat Trick launched Whose Line Is It Anyway in 1997 which ran on ABC for seven years and was the first British series to be recreated for American network television by a British producer.Peter Fincham ran TalkBack, where he executive produced many of their biggest shows including I’m Alan Partridge, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, and Da Ali G Show. He went on to be Controller of BBC1, then he was Director of Television at ITV, before returning to the independent sector as the co-CEO of Expectation, the company behind Clarkson's Farm and Alma's Not Normal.New episodes every Friday.YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@InsidersTVPodcastEmail: InsidersTVPod@expectationtv.com Instagram: @InsidersTVPodInsiders: The TV Podcast is an Expectation and Hat Trick co-production.The producer is Owen Braben.

This week, Peter and Jimmy discuss the news that Spitting Image is coming back as a YouTube series, and the ways producers can make premium content for YouTube while still turning a profit. And we ask whether Netflix have missed a trick after spending all that time, money, and effort teaching us all about F1 in Drive to Survive, only for Apple to swoop in and make the F1 movie? Plus, the joys of a bottle episode, how to get your kids to text you back, and The Rime of the Ancient Mariner.Jimmy Mulville is the co-founder and Chief Executive of Hat Trick Productions. His list of hit shows includes Have I Got News For You, Father Ted, Derry Girls, Outnumbered, and Episodes. In the US Hat Trick launched Whose Line Is It Anyway in 1997 which ran on ABC for seven years and was the first British series to be recreated for American network television by a British producer.Peter Fincham ran TalkBack, where he executive produced many of their biggest shows including I’m Alan Partridge, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, and Da Ali G Show. He went on to be Controller of BBC1, then he was Director of Television at ITV, before returning to the independent sector as the co-CEO of Expectation, the company behind Clarkson's Farm and Alma's Not Normal.New episodes every Friday.Email: InsidersTVPod@expectationtv.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@InsidersTVPodcastInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/insiderstvpod/Insiders: The TV Podcast is an Expectation and Hat Trick co-production.The producer is Owen Braben.

This week, Peter and Jimmy discuss the Glastonbury controversy that the BBC has found itself embroiled in, and Peter offers some eye-witness reporting from on the ground at the festival. We talk Disney’s latest non-scripted announcements, including the return of Blind Date. And we ask why, when you sell a format to the Australians, they always seem to try and make it smuttier than anyone ever imagined it could possibly be. Plus, Jimmy’s day at Wimbledon with Johnny Vaughan, a visit to Cilla’s house, and why you should immediately go out and buy a new Mini. Jimmy Mulville is the co-founder and Chief Executive of Hat Trick Productions. His list of hit shows includes Have I Got News For You, Father Ted, Derry Girls, Outnumbered, and Episodes. In the US Hat Trick launched Whose Line Is It Anyway in 1997 which ran on ABC for seven years and was the first British series to be recreated for American network television by a British producer.Peter Fincham ran TalkBack, where he executive produced many of their biggest shows including I’m Alan Partridge, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, and Da Ali G Show. He went on to be Controller of BBC1, then he was Director of Television at ITV, before returning to the independent sector as the co-CEO of Expectation, the company behind Clarkson's Farm and Alma's Not Normal.Our email address is InsidersTVPod@expectationtv.com, or you can get in touch via our socials at @InsidersTVPod. New episodes every Friday.Insiders: The TV Podcast is an Expectation and Hat Trick co-production.The producer is Owen Braben.

This week, as Kate Phillips is confirmed as the new BBC Chief Content Officer, Peter and Jimmy unpack the big issues piling up in her inbox. As the commissioning downturn continues to bite, we discuss the immensely challenging outlook for TV freelancers across the industry.  And we pay tribute to the much loved Joanna Beresford, whose death was announced this week - a woman to whom countless producers owe a vast debt.Plus, Sir Trevor McDonald's Bernard Manning gags, the unlikely part Bridget Jones played in Peter’s career, and what people really mean when they say it’s not about the money (clue: it’s absolutely definitely about the money).Jimmy Mulville is the co-founder and Chief Executive of Hat Trick Productions. His list of hit shows includes Have I Got News For You (series 69 now airing), Father Ted, Derry Girls, Outnumbered, and Episodes. In the US Hat Trick launched Whose Line Is It Anyway in 1997 which ran on ABC for seven years and was the first British series to be recreated for American network television by a British producer.Peter Fincham ran TalkBack, where he executive produced many of their biggest shows including I’m Alan Partridge, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, and Da Ali G Show. He went on to be Controller of BBC1, then he was Director of Television at ITV, before returning to the independent sector as the co-CEO of Expectation, the company behind Clarkson's Farm and Alma's Not Normal.Our email address is InsidersTVPod@expectationtv.com, or you can get in touch via our socials at @InsidersTVPod. New episodes every Friday.Insiders: The TV Podcast is an Expectation and Hat Trick co-production.The producer is Owen Braben.

This week, Peter and Jimmy discuss the complex (and occasionally combustible) relationship between television and the royals. They unpack how the Faustian deal works, and what happens when it goes wrong.Jimmy shares fond memories of the time HIGNFY suggested Prince Harry had taken cocaine, only for the show to find itself in hot water for upsetting an entirely different aristocrat. And Peter talks all things Queen-gate, and tells his side of the story.Plus, Jimmy’s water cooler encounter with Princess Di, the story of the commissioning of Grand Designs, and, for some reason, an honourable mention for Bernie The Bolt. Jimmy Mulville is the co-founder and Chief Executive of Hat Trick Productions. His list of hit shows includes Have I Got News For You (series 69 now airing), Father Ted, Derry Girls, Outnumbered, and Episodes. In the US Hat Trick launched Whose Line Is It Anyway in 1997 which ran on ABC for seven years and was the first British series to be recreated for American network television by a British producer.Peter Fincham ran TalkBack, where he executive produced many of their biggest shows including I’m Alan Partridge, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, and Da Ali G Show. He went on to be Controller of BBC1, then he was Director of Television at ITV, before returning to the independent sector as the co-CEO of Expectation, the company behind Clarkson's Farm and Alma's Not Normal.Our email address is InsidersTVPod@expectationtv.com, or you can get in touch via our socials at @InsidersTVPod. New episodes every Friday.Insiders: The TV Podcast is an Expectation and Hat Trick co-production.The producer is Owen Braben.

This week, as Sir David Attenborough’s new doc arrives on the small screen, Peter and Jimmy discuss the lightning-in-a-bottle that is on screen talent, and explore the peculiarly British appetite for eccentrics on TV. As Netflix set out their ambition to create “unscripted universes” on the platform, we unpack what that really means, and why, as the cost of making high end drama keeps rising, big returnable unscripted formats look all the more appealing. And we ask whether the time has come for the PSBs to consider merging in order to compete with the financial heft of the streamersPlus, Jimmy remembers a lunch with Boris Johnson, Peter commissions listeners to help devise a cooking-dating crossover format, and Richard Osman, renaissance man. Jimmy Mulville is the co-founder and Chief Executive of Hat Trick Productions. His list of hit shows includes Have I Got News For You (series 69 now airing), Father Ted, Derry Girls, Outnumbered, and Episodes. In the US Hat Trick launched Whose Line Is It Anyway in 1997 which ran on ABC for seven years and was the first British series to be recreated for American network television by a British producer.Peter Fincham ran TalkBack, where he executive produced many of their biggest shows including I’m Alan Partridge, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, and Da Ali G Show. He went on to be Controller of BBC1, then he was Director of Television at ITV, before returning to the independent sector as the co-CEO of Expectation, the company behind Clarkson's Farm and Alma's Not Normal.Our email address is InsidersTVPod@expectationtv.com, or you can get in touch via our socials at @InsidersTVPod. New episodes every Friday.Insiders: The TV Podcast is an Expectation and Hat Trick co-production.The producer is Owen Braben.