TV Show and Tell

Graham Stuart is the Managing Director of So Television, the independent production company that he founded with the chat show host Graham Norton 25 years ago. He talks about how he made the transition from sports presenter to running things behind the scenes, and how he keeps his business relevant in a fast-changing media landscape. Justin and David discuss emergencies - both the 'freelance emerg...

Luke Shiach has series- and exec-produced quizzes, comedy panel games and other formatted entertainment, including 'Celebability' for ITV2, 'Quizness' for Channel 4, 'A League of Their Own' for Sky, and 'Comedians Giving Lectures' for Dave. In a highly entertaining and candid interview, he explains how he builds consensus between the various stakeholders to keep the show on the road. Sometimes tha...

'The Format Doctor' Justin Scroggie reports on location from MIP TV in Cannes. What are the hot ideas of the moment and, as real-life meetings continue to evolve after the pandemic, what is the overall feel of the market? Additional music: Liborio Conti. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/tv-show-podcast . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Matt Edmondson's career has spanned children's TV, roving reporter roles and presenting for BBC Radio 1. He's also developed his own formats, and found unusual outlets for them in the form of board games. Justin and David discuss the benefits of skilling up, and divulge their top tips for getting through a studio filming session unscathed. Plus there's a bumper crop of news, and a highly curi...

Phil Gurin is a writer-turned-producer who's gone on to work in a huge range of entertainment sub-genres, from beauty pageants to business formats, quizzes to stunt shows. We discuss his role as chairman of format rights body FRAPA, and why he's setting up a new distribution company. David and Justin chew over whether criticising popular formats misses the point, and discuss what's the best practi...

From early on in her career, our guest Dawn Airey has been marked out as a talent in scheduling and commissioning. From a regional ITV station, she held high-profile posts at BSkyB and Channel 4. We also discuss what it was like to set up Channel 5 - the UK's first new channel for 15 years - from a blank piece of paper. David and Justin list the many and various ways that things can go wrong in a...

With traditional TV channels often having an average viewer age of over 60, and new media on the hunt to feed their spectacular growth, how can you build a bridge between the two? TV 'futurologist' Sandra Lehner talks to us about her work in navigating the future, from the metaverse to NFTs. In a long-awaited catch-up, Justin reports back from the Content London conference, and he talks to David a...

Contestants and contributors - where do they come from, and how are they selected? Our guest Andy Mallon is a casting Executive who has over a decade of experience finding people for quizzes, reality shows, dating shows and factual entertainment formats. Justin reports on the state of the streaming industry, while David recounts a recent trip to Manchester. Plus all the usual news and features. Su...

Award-winning format devisor and international media lecturer Axel Fiacco writes 'Friday's Espresso', a weekly blog on the latest format trends (https://www.formatespresso.it/blog/). He joins Justin and David to unpack all the latest news and formats from the 2022 MIPCOM, the major European market for buying and selling formats and completed programming. They discuss what's new in unscripted genre...

Our special guest is multicamera TV director Tony Gregory, who's worked around the world on many major TV formats around the world, such as Big Brother, the Voice and Lego Masters. Justin and David argue about whether cricket or golf is the best sporting format, and we examine whether a Netflix show has a major flaw in it. Plus all the usual news and features. Support this show http://supporter.ac...

James Harkin's career has led from doing accounts in a portacabin near Manchester to performing at the Sydney Opera House. He's responsible for a myriad of output from the offices of 'QI', from books and TV shows to radio programmes and live performances. He's also one-quarter of the international hit podcast 'No Such Thing as a Fish'. Justin and David finish off their mini-series on pitching, and...

At the end of every show of 'TV Show & Tell', we ask our special guest for an anecdote related to a particular object. As we approach our first anniversary, we present a special compilation of the curious & varied objects that our guests have brought with them. Thanks to everyone who's been part of the show in our first year. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/tv-show-podcast . H...

David and Justin bring more news stories from the world of TV production. There's more from the 'How to Pitch' mini-series, this time taking a Hamiltonesque look at what happens in the room where it happens (assuming the commissioner turns up). We have more from our interview with the MD of Mighty Productions, Lynn Sutcliffe, and we take a trip down Scheduling Memory Lane. Support this show http:/...

TV and radio presenter Ross King MBE is a winner of 4 News Emmys and 2 Sony Awards whose easy-going style has proved popular with audiences on both sides of the Atlantic and beyond. Ross gives some amazing insight on breaking into a highly competitive field, and how he's mastered a vast range of genres including news, magazine shows, quizzes, weather presenting, magazine formats and showbiz report...

No matter where you live, there's a very good chance that you've seen the name of our special guest, Chris Goss, in the credits of a TV show. Chris has provided the computer systems that control the game play for a vast number of game shows including 'Who Wants to be a Millionaire' (in 60 territories), 'Deal or No Deal', 'The Weakest Link', '5 Gold Rings' and 'Million Pound Drop'. We also touch on...

Aaron Solomon has been a writer, format consultant and co-executive producer on a wide-range of US network shows, including Mental Samurai, Weakest Link, $100,000 Pyramid, and the version of The Joker's Wild presented by Snoop Dogg. He explains the hidden mechanics that are used to make game shows such as these tick. Meanwhile, David and Justin put their best foot forward for a job at the BBC, and...

Justin reports from Copenhagen, where he catches up with the experienced Danish TV executive Pia Marquard. She talks about co-creating 'Expedition Robinson' (the format now known internationally as 'Survivor'), as well as 'The Lyrics Board' and 'Race to Mars'. David poses a quiz about whether you could cut it as an executive producer, and there's a discussion on the best (and worst) ways of networ...

With 'The Chase' winning an award at the recent BAFTA TV awards, it's a good time to talk to the show's original series producer Sue Allison. She describes how the format was tweaked days before recording, and how the Chasers were cast. Justin and David discuss the pros and cons of the recently-announced sell-off of the UK's Channel 4. We use the metaphor of David's new television to discuss wheth...

In this bonus episode Justin Scroggie is in Cannes, where he gives us a flavour of the atmosphere around the MIP TV festival and the formats being sold there. Also, we've got a bonus clip from our Bob Boden interview, where he talks about the infamous incident in 1984 when Michael Larson found a way of beating one of his shows. A copy of Bob's documentary "Big Bucks: The Press Your Luck Scandal" c...

Bob Boden knew he wanted to work in game shows from the age of 6. He since worked on shows such as The Price is Right, the $25,000 Pyramid, Card Sharks, Match Game, Press Your Luck and (currently) Funny You Should Ask. He also takes us through how he helped to develop Greed at the height of Millionaire Mania in a matter of days. Justin and David finally get around to talk about what a format actua...

Jonathan Coad is a media lawyer who is an expert in format rights, having worked on notable cases for 'I'm A Celebrity...' and 'The Great British Bake Off'. He explains how those formats were defended, and what practical steps devisors can take to protect themselves. Later, he also gives us a glimpse into the world of 'crisis PR' - being the person that celebrities turn to when a negative news sto...

We talk to Paul Farrer, whose extensive musical career as a TV composer spans more than 150 shows, including 'The Weakest Link', 'The Wheel', 'Dancing on Ice' and 'The Chase'. Paul's also the devisor of his own ITV game show format, '1000 Heartbeats', which has sold internationally. With Big Jet TV hitting the news recently, David and Justin take a look over the threat posed by niche broadcasting,...

Olivia van der Werff from adjudication company Beyond Dispute tells us about how she keeps things fair, and how she kept Britain's love for cake going even during lockdown. Justin explains what happens at a TV formats market, while David's quiz is a cautionary tale in how even the easiest questions can have the most surprising answers. Plus all the latest TV news, Olivia's "Show & Tell" item a...

Chris Curley chats about his interesting and colourful career in TV to date, from working with Peter Kay to founding his own production company, CurleyVision. He also talks about his time as the commissioner for Comedy Central UK, and gives his views on how the industry needs to change. Justin and David dive into the basics of pitching your ideas to commissioners, and try to demystify where rating...

YouTube and TikTok star Nick Uhas explains how he has built a modern entertainment career, from inline skater, to science communicator, to contestant on Big Brother and AGT, to presenter of the Netflix glass blowing competition "Blown Away". Donna Luke, who produces that show, joins us later to explain how they triumphed despite hugely challenging conditions. Regular hosts Justin Scroggie and Davi...