For Facts Sake
(BBC1, Mondays, 9.30pm)
At one point in this new comedy panel show hosted by Brendan O’carroll – of Mrs Brown’s Boys fame – someone says the word “mushrooms”, and the entire studio audience seems to collapse into a hysterical laughter. Obviously, we’re all capable of following the crowd, sheep-like, and forgetting that we have free will, but this does feel like an amazing example of mass delusion. The format of the series features O’carroll hosting as himself, rather than as Mrs Brown. You can tell it’s him, and not Mrs Brown, because he’s got eccentric facial hair and isn’t in drag. Other than that, O’carroll trots out exactly the same schtick as his hugely popular comedy creation, with a series of double entendres, puns and, when all else fails, using the word “f**k”.
The format for the show sees the two team captains, Danny O’carroll (son of Brendan) and his best mate Paddy Houlihan, joined by members of the audience to take part in a series of rounds about little-known facts. It’s basically QI meets the “come on down” element of The Price Is Right. To be fair, the show’s use of real people on the panel, rather than celebrities, does feel different.
But while the non-famous guests in this week’s opening show were quirky and likeable, O’carroll and his family and friends manage to be weirdly charmless and unfunny. Even the items of trivia featured throughout the half hour failed to ignite any interest. Maybe they’re the facts already rejected by QI for not even being quite interesting. I’m sure Mrs Brown’s Boys will be back this Christmas, as usual, but I can’t see this dire, tired excuse for a panel show lasting much longer.