The Radio clip, below, is only tangentially related to Jimmy in that there’s a mention of Battle In The Box (here) which Jimmy hosted in 2024 (currently “rested”).

It’s an interesting bit of background, relating to how people end up being booked for shows…or not in this case.

I see people all the time complaining about how X or Y person always being on TV and suggesting that they “must have dirt on someone” – without knowing anything about how the industry actually works.

I’ve never been IN the industry, btw, but have read enough, over the years, to have a grasp of the process.

In brief – Production Companies submit ideas to TV stations and, if it gets commissioned, then they (the show creators) get to choose both the host and who they want to appear.

Someone’s Agent may TRY to get their client in – but the Production Company want to make the best show possible and so they will have the final say in how the show is put together.

I would imagine that there may be some guidelines set by the TV company – but mostly its about getting “big names” to generate viewer numbers.

As examples of the commissioning process the BBC is described here, ITV here and Sky here.

Panel / entertainment shows like Cats Countdown, LOL UK and Would I Lie To You are made by Banijay (here) through Zeppotron (here). Jimmy has worked with Zeppotron since the days of 10 O’Clock Live and 8 Out of 10 Cats (more here).

Now that Cats Countdown, for example, is well established there will probably be a relationship between C4 and Zeppotron/Banijay where it’s just a case of “when can we have the next series” type thing.

Back to the clip.

Back when Jimmy was a “pub, club and festival” level comic he crossed paths with Lucy Porter a few times (see here), although I can’t think of a them being on a TV show together. She did feature in 100 Greatest Christmas Moments (here) but, with that particular show format, they may not have actually met.

She has been on Virgin Radio this week and in the clip below (also here, on Facebook), she mentions being a show booker in the past (finding people for a Production Company) and also (more recently) being asked by her agent about being on a show where “Jimmy Carr puts you in a shipping container” – which is quite a line, all by itself.

I’ll let you watch the Short.