Paul Merton Interview Pt. One | Parkinson | BBC Studios

Paul Merton discusses the Angus Scandal and the overwhelming effect it had on 'Have I Got News For You'. Free video clip from the popular british talk show 'Parkinson'.
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[@azapro911]

Angus was a terrific host of HIGNFY and his other work - One Foot in the Grave, KY-TV - was very enjoyable too. But people who say he shouldn't have been sacked as host have to realise the position that he'd put his colleagues in. It's one thing for disgraced guest hosts to come in for a week and get mocked, but for the long time presenter of 12 years to no longer be able to get snotty with politicians and celebrities was a major problem. When I saw Christine Hamilton take a legitimate good shot back at him after the second round of scandals broke, that's when I knew his days on the show were done.

[@AICabal]

Merton is fucking genious and one of the few genuine people that make me laugh out loud.

[@notacaulkhead]

Merton is underwhelmingly unfunny and overwhelmingly overpaid

[@royfr8136]

I respect His honesty, very rare these days.......

[@Captain_Rhodes]

would be nice if angus came back for a guest episode

[@soeffingwhat]

I was thinking that too. I think it would be very cool.

[@zufgh]

There was an interview Angus gave recently, where he said they'd asked him back two or three times over the years, and understandably he's said no on every occasion. So it doesn't look likely. Maybe his attitude would change if it were indeed for the final episode though.

[@soeffingwhat]

@@zufgh He should come on as a guest panellist, and then he could consider it done lol

[@smudger671]

Pity - I would love him to annoy Merton.

[@magicelliotth]

I think he was bang on about Angus. He wasn't being rude about him at all, he was just thinking realistically about the show

[@Schumitastic]

By far the greatest wit on British TV - makes all the other TV panel shows look pathetic.

[@KenAugustino]

Yeah, would love to see the rest of the interview!

[@Joshuadrooney]

I love Paul Merton, both as a comedian and when he does serious shows. Lovely man, we need more like him in our media.

[@TheIkaraCult]

i loved Angus as the host as we all did, but imagine if he hosted every week from then til now, every single time there was a story about sleaze or something he would have had no authority to make jokes about it. The guest hosts have been going for about 5 years now and the show is still great, which demonstrates why its the best show on telly

[@Dustydreams930]

Thank you for that, Merry Christmas!

[@inthenameofjustice8811]

How can so many of these programs be blocked in the UK when the BBC is funded by a compulsory licence fee which, of course means, that the public have been forced to fund and/or purchase these shows and are therefore, the rightful copyright owners of them?

[@TVgeinus90sSim]

Well, to be fair, Whose Line is it Anyway is a British originated program by the same company as HIGNFY. Largely, it may just be production reasons, not to mention competing against yourself

[@Blizdegs]

Excellent statement! Totally agree with you 100%. Deayton was superb at keeping the egos of Merton and Hislop in check and the show has suffered since his departure.

[@whatever20030]

If the background etc doesn’t date this clip, Merton saying found out the news on teletext definitely does....

[@scottishwildcat]

Angus co-wrote Radio Active with the (and it's still unbelievable to say: late, great) Geoffrey Perkins. That makes him a legend in my book :)

[@Tangocow]

I think the look on his face immediately afterwards definitely implies he was being sarcastic.

[@ycantibu]

I think when Hamilton pointed out that when Angus was disgraced, it was different. Her hubby was an MP and his decisions affected the whole country. Deayton's decisions only affected him. The BBC wimped out.

[@Marinamarburg]

Please, please post the rest of the interview!!!!

[@lfcizdabest]

If we're going to argue about Merton, you have to know that in the 90s, he was an utter genius and I don't use that word lightly. His performances have dropped quite a bit since then and his style and delivery has changed but at his best he could rival Peter Cook. For speed, wit and delivery, Merton at his best is one of the best comics around. You only have to see how revered he is among fellow comedians to know how talented he is

[@zammowillson]

he is adorable i love Paul Merton to bits

[@DynamiteKid156]

It still makes me sad that Paul and Ian didn't actually like Angus, cause I get the feeling he did like them.

[@E101ification]

He didn't mention what Angus did in fact respond with regarding he Christine Hamilton situation: When Hamilton said "if he's discraced then what are you...?!" Deayton replied "...discraced." then added: "...but the difference is I haven't been banging on about family values for the last 15 years...." This sentence summed up the whole situation for me, I liked him before, I liked him when he was found out and I still like him now he's disgraced. Merton is a legend though....

[@swarthyjake4433]

is it a toilet duck smoking a cigar on a Whit Monday , ha ha ha , will the laughter never end ?

[@WinterSun1]

It's incredible that even though Angus Deayton was in the wrong initially he actually came out of the scandal with a lot more credit and credibility than Paul Merton did. Merton complaining to the producers about Deayton's behaviour behind his back and demanding he be sacked is an incredibly cowardly and weasely act. It's no wonder Stephen Fry has backed Deayton and promised not to appear on the show again.

[@andrewdemetrius8090]

"Well, we stabbed him in the front!"

[@HarrysSecret]

I first started watching him back in the 80's too! He was on a kind of alternative late night comedy show, the name of which escapes me. I also love HIGNFY, but my favourite on that show is Ian Hislop!

[@mossy642]

It would have become ‘The Angus Deayton show’, every joke would have been about him, or included him in some way. You can’t make a tv show out of one joke, it wouldn’t have lasted!

[@mynameisdumbnuts]

This is really interesting. Paul's right, though, the show couldn't have gone on with Angus in the middle seat. I think he's right to mention the BBC didn't fire Angus because they disliked him but because it was in the best interests of the show.

[@cognitivedissonance4413]

Angus was brilliant - case closed!

[@TAT945]

paul proper makes me laugh!! :) x

[@MatthewMcVeagh]

And yet it was a big deal, to many viewers and fans. Deayton was part of the deal, and the deal was not the same afterwards.

[@synthesizerpatel7405]

+Matthew McVeagh clearly Hislop and Merton weren't big fans of Deayton. I wonder what he was like off-camera towards them?

[@MatthewMcVeagh]

Synthesizer Patel He may well have been aloof because I think he always was. I started to like him back in the 80s in Radio Active on Radio 4. I fell in love with the whole show and had a soft spot for all the team (who were friends at Oxbridge I think). The voice Angus used on HIGNFY is not a million miles from the one he used on Radio Active for all the uptight radio presenter characters. It's funny because Hislop is smug and bumptious at times but Merton doesn't seem to have worked up such a distaste for him, maybe he is friendlier.

[@jackbudgen8858]

Not sure if Paul Merton or Roy Keane...

[@jonathanrice7272]

I had to check again too.

[@stevemcniel5513]

Jack Off just watched it.Exactly wat I thought

[@TruthThanks]

"we stabbed him in the front" classic merton

[@AlphaLab1]

Paul Merton = Legend!!

[@mikelheron20]

The way Merton and Hislop ganged up on Angus was very unpleasant. It was no secret that there was no liking, particularly between Deaton and Merton. Despite what Merton says the situation could have been ridden out. Yesterday's news is fish and chip paper. The fact is that Merton was glad to see him go. Those who dismiss Angus as a mediocre host or (like Merton) as "Zeppo" are quite wrong. Deayton, like many "straight men" (for the more stupid reading this, this is not a sexuality reference) provided an effective foil to Deayton's and Hislop's weekly digs - while often giving as good as he got in acid one-liners. On one occasion he responded to a jibe from a panellist with "Touche" and followed it up with "Or should I say 'touchy'?" Hislop, on the other hand, is to comedy what Wayne Sleep was to all-in wrestling. His quips rarely raise more than a chuckle from the audience. Merton, on the other hand, is genuinely funny (well, he is after all, a professional comic.) I was disappointed in the disloyalty shown by Merton. I was less disappointed with Hislop who, despite fighting a lot of good causes e.g. freedom of the press in Private Eye, has always struck me as a nasty piece of work. So his failure to support Angus was completely predictable and in character.) Since Angus left, the show has been hosted by many people who have generally proved that it is not as easy as Angus made it appear.

[@DeanMoxley87]

i understand what you say and agree to a level but at 2:18 i see that Paul Ian & the whole production crew who WORK on the show were worried they had all lost their jobs, what because Angus is a pleb however it seems now in 2017 that the BBC was rife with that kind of behaviour.

[@dannytoots6635]

what an incredible waste of your time writing such an inane comment

[@mwiinga6052]

mikelheron20 It made me uncomfortable + very mean.

[@deplorabled1695]

Hislop of all people who drags anyone and everyone over the coals; yet he is a very unattractive character, the kind of toady Flashman would have written about.

[@e55exeagle]

Angus should come back as a guest presenter for one week.

[@wonderbhoy1967]

absolutely love merton, think he's a comedic genius.

[@sparkprimeprime]

Guest episodes can be hit/miss but there have been some real gems. Having Angus there every week did somewhat flatline the experience although he was perfect for the job.

[@al28283]

Ha, after this I watched a very early episode and you're right, he did a lot more himself and seemed much more involved and he was much better I think.

[@arumme1]

True. If Angus was still there we would not have had the Brian Blessed episode (my favourite by miles).

[@PBSmithy]

"lost zeppo; not a big deal!" Deayton was the best thing about that show!

[@mico2020]

true ... Angus had a presence that really fitted the show, with him away any other person looks like a puppet and the show is down the drain from that lol

[@joemcloughlin1942]

Has anyone got part 2 of this interview?

[@lapyancantona]

@Kidsgrove49 I completely agree. Without the guest format, we would have never seen in my opinion one of the best and funniest hosts ever, Brian Blessed!

[@moochy]

Is the rest of this interview available anywhere?

[@johnking5174]

Paul was right, it becomes harder for a host of the show to make fun of people in the news and the guests on the show if the host is himself involved in news stories about his private life. Hypocrisy comes to the fore and Angus had to go, there was really no choice. Also remember that for the previous 12 years Angus had acted as a sneering host, regularly taking down guests for their private lives, so it seems a bit of payback was on the cards here for Angus, who I like and think very funny at times. I do not see him coming back to the show even for a guest appearance as both Ian and Paul would not accept it. I think the rotating of guest hosts is good, it is just a shame they recycle the same hosts with not much variety.

[@dannyall8399]

+John King I think it would have been fine long term. Paul Merton used the Christine Hamilton incident as an example, but if you watch that clip Angus actually had a good response to that. He says 'But I wasn't banging on about family values for 7 years'.

[@Ryang403]

I liked all three. Angus was brilliantly rude and paul and ian brilliantly ruthless to angus. The episode after the scandal has to be one of the best tvs panel shows ever. Fair play to angus for being a sport and going on. He had a wife so i feel sorry 4 her and the bbc i guess were under pressure to sack him, but hardly n e i know one including parents family think that snorting some lines of coke in ur private life, warranted his sacking and people judging the guy like that.

[@victorvactor6787]

Love his Frankenstein monster suit

[@routeman680]

Merton looks in much better shape in this old clip. Now (2018) for several years his neck has been wider than his wide head, and when he appeared full-length in an outside-broadcast programme you could see he had let his torso flab and sagging bottom get out of control.

[@9313James]

He's 61 for fuck sake

[@wj2429]

A beard hides a multitude of chins.

[@salzer27]

why can't i find the video of that episode ANYWHERE??!!

[@Lemmy15]

I think because it's BBC Worldwide, the commercial arm of the BBC, and can be viewed by those who don't pay a licence fee.

[@KSRugby]

It was right to sack Deayton because, as this interview says, it was almost impossible to write the shows. He couldn't make jokes about politicians if he's over taken them in terms of news headlines.

[@chocolottie7]

Which series/episode might this have been?

[@dafyddoe]

'we stabbed him in the front', lol.

[@AminTheMystic]

Yeah they do. That is true. Their style is so different. But I can see many comedians doing Merton's role. But not many can do Hislop's - maybe Fry.

[@GiantSandles]

>Did anyone really care what Angus Deayton did? Did you actually watch the video, or did you just click the link, pause the video and leave this comment? That was actually addressed in the video.

[@liljoerox]

anyone know when this is from?

[@Cunnysmythe]

I remember assuming that Merton didn't like Hislop years back when Hislop made some comment that hurt Merton's feelings. Merton called him a "bald-headed shortarse" about three times in quick succession, then remained completely silent for the remainder of the show.

[@MagicalPebble]

He's a staple of the show, a major character whether you like it or not. I imagine on average that is the popular opinion, just like it was for Angus to be kept on the show after the scandal.

[@grimtage]

"Treat others as you would want to be treated." If you treat him with contempt, you're asking to be treated with contempt.

[@EmmyNeander]

@daedralord1 Yes but that's the part 2 they mean. What this video is is one clip from a Merton interview and then the BBC found another clip from a different interview and decided to stick them together under the banner of 'Paul Merton on Parkinson' as parts 1 and 2. For this particular interview there is no part 2, you'll have to find the full version somewhere.

[@nath909]

Ohhh, 'Big' Paul on top form.

[@Kidsgrove49]

I think the guest presenter format works better. Deayton's departure effectively revamped the show. Who can forget the Boris Johnson's episodes ? Paul Merton is quite right (as usual)

[@ArcadianWalnut]

There was a footballer called Paul Merson who used coke in the early 90s, they mentioned it on HIGNFY because people kept confusing the two of them.

[@truemanc]

Merton came across a bit of a nasty bit of work on that episode of HIGNFY... TV is a dirty business and it seems if you mess up the vulchers are ready to pounce.

[@RealityCheck6T9]

It's spelt vultures FYI

[@thehotwombat]

It was a TV show satirising people. What did you expect to happen?

[@KobiLeSaux]

Hahaha, "We lost Zeppo." They did indeed

[@jedaaa]

knappa22. i have never been able to find out why merton and deaton disliked each other. what was it? do you know

[@ELSORD83]

I love how Merton said ''you can't keep talent like that down'' and everyone thought he was being serious.

[@steve5312]

First of all it's been proven that the show can still be tremendously successful without Angus. Secondly, I think part of the reason nobody has replaced him permanently is because guest hosts work extremely well for this format, but also because it doesn't then matter if a guest host is all over the tabloids because they haven't got the same elevated stature on the panel any more.

[@moggoon]

Bring back Angus Deayton!

[@ustickx]

definitely the best bit!

[@TemperatureIndicator]

some people say it was because angus earned more money but i dont think thats why merton hated angus. i just thought they werent friends honestly. like ian and paul are like really good friends. but with angus, it might have just been a difference of opinion. i mean yew dont see every single comedian friends with each other. thats how i saw merton and angus. and tbh without paul merton, there wouldnt be popular episodes of have i got news for you...he adds the wit that we all love ^_^ x

[@Shall5000]

I dont know how i feel about this, I would agree with the fact that yes it would have become difficult for Angus Deton to carry on because the show is all political satire and he would have been called out many times. I agree HIGNFY has gone down without him. But, how can you be on such a show and be a hypocrite. Its just unfortunate that he got caught, because he is talented and the show is not the same.

[@daedralord1]

where's part 2 BBC???......im flagging this for mis advertisment.....there is a part 2 on the right..but a differnt interview

[@dathwampeer]

haha thats quite a good one. lol i like that

[@sternumagnum]

Why would Angus' or anyone's sexual/private life be the cause of losing one's job? He didn't hurt anyone by snorting drugs or screwing a prostitute, did he? Merton helped with the idiotic witch hunt, no doubt about it.

[@jedaaa]

PART TWO?????

[@EmmyNeander]

I know it doesn't matter now and happened ages ago but I do have a couple of things to say about the whole Deayton thing. 1. How can you not like him? He's not a snob, it's called a sly sense of humour for want of a better word. I liked it. 2. Not anyone can read, there's more to it than that. 3. It's nice to have one presenter for a show rather than a different one every time. 4. While I understand their reaction I think Hislop and Merton took things too far with their bullying of Deayton.

[@MagicalPebble]

If you think Hislop is similar in style or humour to Fry, you're severely mistaken. Just because they are both knowledgeable men, does not pertain that their fields of knowledge are similar. That's a pretty simple lesson that I'm amazed you're not aware of. Your conception of Stephen Fry being knowledgeable on politics in anywhere near the same degree as Hislop is highly dubious.

[@johnbr59]

hahaha thats exactly what i was thinking of but i couldnt quite put my finger on it

[@mrchrisdavis09]

With a beard, he looks like a Jedi!

[@Battan9000]

He's married to Suki Webster now. He married Sarah Parkinson in 2003 who sadly died of breast Cancer the same year. I think he was married to Caroline Quentin between. 1990-1998

[@RoxVendetta]

It really just means he was upfront about how he felt, and probably told him himself that he should resign...thus not going behind his back and orchestrating something like that.

[@MagicalPebble]

Already stated that Fry has pretty much nothing in common with Hislop's humour or style. Hislop specialises on political news, being an editor of private eye, it's the reason he's on HIGNFY, not to mention he's hilarious. Fry couldn't compare.

[@TonyMontana-fz4io]

MagicalPebble I know this comment is five years old, but you are not comparing Ian Hislop to Stephen Fry??? That’s like comparing a frozen hamburger to a Kobe Steak. Stephen Fry has more intelligence, charm, wit and comic timing in the last bit of toilet paper he wiped his arse with than Hislop has in his entire body. Come on!

[@04111]

Amen to that! :D

[@alexbowman7582]

HIGNFY was totally fabricated, the contestants were told the questions before the show and given a possible funny response

[@sternumagnum]

@katmac75 ...which is why recreational drugs should be legalised. All that "blood on every ounce of cocaine" is on account of keeping drugs illegal and thus in the hands of criminals. When alcoholic drinks were outlawed in the US by a constitutional amendment, people kept drinking the stuff, even though there was blood in "every drop of alcohol". Angus was demonized and punished for his personal choices as an adult. For shame, I say, to all those who hunted him down.

[@TemperatureIndicator]

they take the piss outta eachother...its just like that...the reason ian and paul dont take the piss outta eachother is because they both have a great amount of respect for eachother and they are both really good friends in real life. i mean tbh ian and paul control both fronts on hignfy: ian with the news and politics and paul with quick witted remarks and a great deal of brilliant improv =) x

[@lovesarita]

hey to be fair it was well known that Ian Hislop and Paul Merton didn't like Angus D., before all this scandal broke in the papers. Anyone who worked on the show would tell you that and it came out in various newspaper articles. So that wasn't for comic effect - it was him being blunt about something he'd know Parky knew the truth about. And good for him for being honest.

[@sanguinus]

Losing Zeppo on HIGNFY would be losing Merton, who spends his entire time sat there with a face like a slapped arse. Deayton may have been sat reading the autocue but he did it extremely well whereas Paul doesn't simply fail to do his comedy part well but in fact fails to do it entirely.

[@toomtoom61]

RIP, Albert

[@MatRix0rk]

I'm ambivalent on Angus - he is quite funny, but creepy as well. I still think that Paul was out of order tho - it just shows you how underhanded even he can be.

[@tswelbourn]

Paul Merton's A Legend .

[@ikea4lifeyh]

i thought it was roy keane from the thumbnail

[@FoodForThought356]

What about all the guest hosts they've had on since..have they been holier than thou without sin or scandal?

[@peteandurnot]

Maybe Deayton should first come on as a Guest Panellist, and maybe that would pave the way for him to come back as a Guest Host. I don't think I could really see him as a Guest Host, but you never know.

[@RazielCuts]

Everybody whining about Paul revelling in Angus's misfortune should stop as he just telling the truth and situation of how the show would of been there on wards. He obviously respects his talent and credited him when he said 'you can't keep talent like that down'

[@AminTheMystic]

"His material is lame, his delivery is stilted, and he completely lacks wit." Bollocks. Merton is there consistently - and he is good. Merton is not there to be like Ian - who mostly does the hard hitting. He pops up with odd quirky bits.

[@queenban]

I am simply astounded tht anyone regular viewer of HIGNFY would consider Paul Mern a 'cuntbag' the man is a comic genius. One in a million.

[@dathwampeer]

thats as cheap as Mertons attacks in Deaytons final episodes. its well known he contributed far more to the show than any one else and Merton (although im still a fan) is a notoriously high maintenance comedian, and also very childish, if the laughs aren't directed at him he'l sulk, quite simply Deayton showed more professionalism in his final days on HIGNFY than Merton was capable of comprehending. and the details of his PRIVATE life should have remained just that.

[@georgedonaldson6252]

Agreed. I thought Merton came across really badly. He only ever seems happy when he's the focus of attention.

[@whitestripebuzz]

from the small picture in the side bar he looks exactly like keane.