Television series
Insert Name Here
- Comedy
- Light-hearted
- Dip in and out
A deceptively clever panel show built around a single constraint: each episode explores everyone famous who shares one name, from royalty to comedians to obscure historical figures. Sue Perkins hosts with warmth while Richard Osman and Josh Widdicombe's teams compete to crown the greatest bearer. It's erudite without pretension, genuinely funny, and teaches you things you didn't know you wanted to know.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you enjoy quick-witted panel banter that wanders off into odd corners of history and trivia, the kind where a single name becomes an excuse for digressions.
Skip it if you are after rigour or a steady through-line, since each half hour is a scattershot of jokes and tangents that rarely lands on one point.
What it asks of you: Thirty-minute episodes that move briskly from one fact to the next, so you need to keep up with the chatter and tolerate the jumps between eras and celebrity.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
QI2003
Stephen Fry and later Sandi Toksvig hosting a show built on surprising facts and tangents. Like Insert Name Here, it prizes curiosity and odd knowledge over speed, and finds humour in the gaps between what we think we know and what's actually true.
But The format can feel repetitive across seasons. Some episodes lean too hard on the panellists you've already heard a hundred times before.
Only Connect2008
Victoria Coren Mitchell's quiz show for people who think differently. It rewards lateral thinking and obscure knowledge, prizes wit over speed, and has that same pleasure-in-learning vibe that makes Insert Name Here so satisfying.
But The puzzles can be impenetrably difficult. Watching people struggle for three minutes straight isn't always entertaining.
Would I Lie to You?2007
Rob Brydon and Lee Mack as captains, playing with truth and storytelling. Like Insert Name Here, it hinges on personality and banter rather than quizzing prowess, and the chemistry between panellists matters more than right answers.
But The format is very repetitive—once you've seen a few episodes, you know exactly how each round will play out. Novelty wears fast.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Insert Name Here
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Connections1978
Both celebrate the joy of making links—Insert Name Here between different famous people who happen to share a name, Connections between seemingly unrelated historical moments. Both assume the audience loves surprising information.
James Burke's series tracing how inventions and ideas link across history. Like Insert Name Here, it's about making unexpected connections between disparate things and finding delight in the surprising web that holds knowledge together.
But The production is very 1970s, which means slow pacing and dated presentation. It can feel more like a lecture than entertainment.
More like this (4)
Taskmaster2015
Greg Davies sets absurd challenges; five comedians compete in creative ways. It shares Insert Name Here's love of watching smart people think sideways, and prizes character and humour over competitive edge.
But Later seasons feel padded, and some tasks descend into chaos rather than comedy. The format's novelty has worn thin for some viewers.
Have I Got News for You1990
The gold standard of British topical panel shows. Ian Hislop and Paul Merton's sparring, combined with a team structure and host-led banter, creates the same warm, intelligent comedy vibe.
But Heavily dependent on that week's news cycle. Episodes age poorly, and the show's politics can feel narrow if you don't share the panellists' worldview.
Room 1011994
Frank Skinner (or Paul Merton) as host, guests nominating things they hate. Structured around argument and debate rather than questions, it shares Insert Name Here's focus on banter and the pleasure of intelligent disagreement.
But Feels lightweight compared to panel shows with actual stakes. Without a quiz element, it can drift into mere chat.
The Unbelievable Truth1990
A Radio 4 panel show where one panellist tells three truths and three lies about an obscure topic, and others guess. It's Insert Name Here's quieter cousin—intimate, knowledge-based, and funny in a wry way.
But Radio-only means no visual cues. The pacing is gentler, which some find meditative and others find slow.
People
Cast
Sue PerkinsHost
Production
- Dan GasterExecutive Producer
- Michael MannesExecutive Producer
- Paul McGettiganExecutive Producer