Hypothetical (TV series)

Hypothetical is a British television comedy panel show created by British comedian Josh Widdicombe, with Tom Craine and Matthew Crosby.[1] Widdicombe hosts the show alongside fellow comedian James Acaster. The TV series features teams of celebrity guests (often comedians), who are presented with a bizarre hypothetical situation by Widdicombe. The guests must explain how they would deal with the situation, following the rules given by Acaster, who then awards points based on how well he thinks they have done. The show was first broadcast on Dave on 6 February 2019.[2]

Hypothetical
Title card for Hypothetical
Genre	Comedy Panel game
Created by	Josh Widdicombe Tom Craine Matthew Crosby
Written by	Tom Craine Matthew Crosby
Presented by	Josh Widdicombe James Acaster
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language(s)	English
No. of series	2
No. of episodes	16
Production
Producer(s)	Sophie Le Good Joe McVey Stu Mather Josh Widdicombe
Running time	60 minutes (inc. adverts)
Production company(s)	Hat Trick Productions
Release
Original network	Dave
First shown in	United Kingdom
Original release	6 February 2019 (2019-02-06) – present
External links
Official website

Format

The general format of the show involves the host, Josh Widdicombe presenting the guests with a hypothetical situation to which they must provide their take on the best way of approaching the given situation, following the rules laid out by Acaster. The guest is then awarded points by Acaster, from 0 to 5, based on the quality of their answers, and the team with the most points at the end of the show wins. After awarding the points Acaster may present his solution to the hypothetical situation that would have gained all 5 points.[3]

In addition to general discussion between the hosts and guests, the show also features pre-recorded filmed inserts, and some role-play of the guests' suggested solution with James Acaster in the studio.

Production

Hypothetical was devised by Widdicombe with Matthew Crosby and Tom Craine, who also act as writers.[4] The initial idea of the show was pitched via a WhatsApp conversation,[5][6] and subsequently developed by London-based Hat Trick Productions and commissioned as a UKTV Original for Dave by Richard Watsham, UKTV’s director of commissioning and Steve North, genre general manager for entertainment and comedy, in July 2018. Joe McVey was announced as executive producer alongside Stu Mather at Hat Trick Productions with Sophie Le Good as producer.[7]

The show is filmed in front of a live audience at Pinewood Studios.[8] The first series was filmed in August and September 2018.[9] Acaster and Widdicombe have previously worked together, with Acaster appearing often as a guest on Widdicombe's XFM (now Radio X) show.

Widdicombe said of the TV show, and working with Acaster:[9][10]

“I have spent the last decade of my life annoying other comics with these questions in cars and dressing rooms so I am delighted Dave have allowed me to claim that I was in fact researching a show and not just wasting everyone’s time. More to the point I cannot wait to work alongside the man who makes me laugh more than anyone else in comedy. I just hope this goes better than our 2009 Edinburgh show (one star, Three Weeks magazine).”

This 2009 Edinburgh show was the work of Widdicombe, Acaster and Nick Helm, and, according to Widdicombe, the criticism they received for it was read out during filming of Hypothetical to warm up the audience.[11]

The announcement of Hypothetical caused controversy due to a perceived similarity to the Danielle Ward podcast Do The Right Thing which had been made into a television pilot but not commissioned.[12]

Episodes

Series 1

Series 1 was broadcast on Wednesdays at 10pm on Dave, with episodes available On-Demand at UKTV Play. Each episode features four guest panellists in two teams of two, alongside the hosts Widdicombe and Acaster.[13]

No. overall	No. in series	Guests	Original air date	UK Viewers [14]	28-Day Viewers
1	1	Rob Beckett & Jessica Knappett Liza Tarbuck & Tom Allen	6 February 2019 (2019-02-06)	475,755	731,572[lower-alpha 1]
2	2	Romesh Ranganathan & Rachel Parris Jon Richardson & Rose Matafeo	13 February 2019 (2019-02-13)	538,776	596,816
3	3	Sara Pascoe & Lou Sanders Nish Kumar & Ed Gamble	20 February 2019 (2019-02-20)	379,690	420,727
4	4	Romesh Ranganathan & Rosie Jones Kerry Godliman & Matt Forde	27 February 2019 (2019-02-27)	233,800	273,701
5	5	Dara Ó Briain & Kiri Pritchard-McLean Suzi Ruffell & Nish Kumar	6 March 2019 (2019-03-06)	270,149	318,436
6	6	Roisin Conaty & Phil Wang Victoria Coren Mitchell & Darren Harriott	13 March 2019 (2019-03-13)	347,271	383,325
7	7	Katherine Ryan & John Robins Ivo Graham & Cariad Lloyd	20 March 2019 (2019-03-20)	288,989	325,941
8	8	Sara Pascoe & Guz Khan Cariad Lloyd & David O'Doherty	27 March 2019 (2019-03-27)	321,061	332,838

Series 2

No. overall	No. in series	Guests	Original air date	UK Viewers [14]	28-Day Viewers
9	1	Maisie Adam & Jonathan Ross Sara Barron & Rob Beckett	5 February 2020 (2020-02-05)	390,544	TBA
10	2	Richard Ayoade & Sindhu Vee Ed Gamble & Chloe Petts	12 February 2020 (2020-02-12)	N/A	TBA
11	3	Tom Allen & Felicity Ward Sue Perkins & Alex Brooker	19 February 2020 (2020-02-19)	N/A	TBA
12	4	Angela Barnes & Guz Khan Tom Davis & Harriet Kemsley	26 February 2020 (2020-02-26)	N/A	TBA
13	5	Nish Kumar & Jen Brister Rob Beckett & Lou Sanders	4 March 2020 (2020-03-04)	N/A	TBA
14	6	Stephen Mangan & Tessa Coates Charlie Brooker & Shappi Khorsandi	11 March 2020 (2020-03-11)	N/A	TBA
15	7	Johnny Vegas & Zoe Lyons Sara Pascoe & Richard Osman	18 March 2020 (2020-03-18)	N/A	TBA
16	8	Jamali Maddix & Laura Lexx Rosie Jones & Joe Lycett	25 March 2020 (2020-03-25)	N/A	TBA

Notes

1. Also includes pre-transmission viewers, as the first episode was released on UKTV Play prior to first linear broadcast.

References

1. Guide, British Comedy. "Hypothetical - Dave Panel Show". British Comedy Guide. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
2. "Hypothetical TV Guide from RadioTimes". Radio Times.
3. Bennett, Steve (6 February 2019). "Hypothetical: TV Preview". Chortle.co.uk. Retrieved 28 March 2019.
4. "TV Review: Hypothetical, Dave". Beyond The Joke. 6 February 2019.
5. "Josh Widdicombe and James Acaster get Hypothetical with Dave | News | UKTV Corporate Site". corporate.uktv.co.uk. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
6. Creamer, Jon (25 July 2018). "Hat Trick creates new panel show Hypothetical for Dave". www.televisual.com. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
7. "UKTV's Dave preps "Hypothetical" comedy panel show". Realscreen.com.
8. "Pre-registration for HYPOTHETICAL with JOSH WIDDICOMBE & JAMES ACASTER from SRO Audiences". www.sroaudiences.com. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
9. "James Acaster and Josh Widdicombe to host new panel show : News 2018 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide". www.chortle.co.uk. 25 July 2018. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
10. White, Peter (25 July 2018). "Josh Widdicombe & James Acaster To Host UKTV Comedy Format As Virgin Media Carriage Dispute Rumbles On". Deadline. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
11. Carson, Sarah (5 February 2019). "Josh Widdicombe interview: 'Worrying is what drives people to be good'". inews.co.uk. Retrieved 9 February 2019.
12. "TV Review: Hypothetical Series 1 Episode 1". Comedy to Watch. 27 March 2019.
13. "FIRST LOOK: Hypothetical on Dave". UK Air Dates. 21 January 2019. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
14. "Four-screen dashboard BARB". www.barb.co.uk. Retrieved 8 December 2019.

External links

• Official website
• Hypothetical at British Comedy Guide
• Hypothetical on IMDb