Have I Got a Bit More News for You

Paul Merton (Team captain)

Born: January 17, 1957 in London

Best Known For: Have I Got News For You.

Early-life: Born Paul James Martin in Parsons Green, London, on January 17, 1957. He grew up in Merton, South London, and took his stage name from the district because somebody else called Paul Martin was registered with Equity when he tried to join. His father was a guard on the Underground in Fulham, his mother was a nurse and he has a sister, Angela. Paul was inspired to become a comedian at the age of three following a trip to the circus. After failing his 11-plus he went to a Catholic comprehensive school where he gained two A-levels but decided against going to university.

Career: Merton worked at the Tooting Employment Office while gaining experience at the London Comedy Store before moving onto the cabaret circuit. He made his TV debut in a small role in a 1984 episode of The Young Ones. After 10 years of performing, his TV career took off thanks to Whose Line Is It Anyway? He then wrote Paul Merton, the Series for Channel 4. Have I Got News For You made him a household name. He claims a highlight of his career was performing at the London Palladium. Merton also hosted Room 101 and is a regular on TV and radio. He has filmed travelogues to China and India for Channel 5 and presented various documentaries on the subject of comedy and silent film for the BBC.

Quote: 'I don't suffer from pre-show terror or anything like that. I assume if people have paid money to see me they already think I'm funny and that does give you confidence.'

Trivia: In 2014, he published his autobiography, Only When I Laugh.

Ian Hislop (Team captain)

Born: July 13, 1960 in The Mumbles, Wales

Best Known For: Being a team captain on Have I Got News For You.

Early-life: Born July 13, 1960, in The Mumbles, Wales, but moved around a lot due to his father's job as a civil engineer. The family spent time in Nigeria, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Hong Kong. Hislop was educated at boarding school before studying English at Oxford, where he performed in revues and edited the magazine Passing Wind. During this time he met Peter Cook for the first time, who then owned satirical magazine Private Eye.

Career: Hislop began submitting articles to Private Eye in 1980, eventually becoming deputy editor. When editor Richard Ingrams, one of the magazine's founders, quit in 1986, Cook offered him his job. Hislop has also regularly contributed to numerous publications, including The Listener, The Sunday Telegraph, The Spectator, Financial Times, The Guardian, The Literary Review and Time Out. Hislop's TV work began in 1983 with an appearance on Loose Talk and scripts for Spitting Image. He became a familiar face thanks to Have I Got News For You, which began its run in 1990. He also co-wrote family sitcom My Dad's the Prime Minister.

Quote: 'It is no longer acceptable in British politics to be fat or eccentric or religious.'

Trivia: Hislop had a small role in the Greek TV series The Island, which was based on his wife's bestselling novel.

Mel Giedroyc (Host)

Born: June 05, 1958 in Epsom, Surrey

Best Known For: Being the blonde half of TV personalities Mel and Sue.

Early-life: Melanie Clare Sophie Giedroyc was born on June 5, 1968, in Epsom, Surrey, and grew up in Leatherhead. Her father is a Polish-Lithuanian history writer who settled in England in 1947. Mel also has Belgian and Belarusian ancestry. She attended Oxford High School before going on to Trinity College, Cambridge, where she studied Modern Languages. Her sister, Coky, is a TV director whose credits include The Hour, Blackpool and What Remains.

Career: Like bread and butter, Giedroyc and Sue Perkins go well together - in fact, they're almost inseparable in professional terms. They were a hit at the Edinburgh Festival in 1993, and went on to write scripts for French and Saunders before presenting comedy chat show Light/Late Lunch and RI:SE. She was also in the children's sketch show Sorry I've Got No Head. More recently she has scored another hit with The Great British Bake-Off, alongside Sue, and daytime ITV show, Mel and Sue. Her radio work has included The 4 O'Clock Show on Radio 4 Extra.

Quote: On her relationship with Sue Perkins: 'She's like Don Corleone with her friends, which I must say can at times be trying: she will always get the truth out of you, you can't hide anything.'

Trivia: She has written two books: From Here to Maternity and Going Gaga.

Jamie MacDonald (Panellist)

Anushka Asthana (Panellist)

Martin Lord (Director)

Jordan Reed (Producer)

Mike Rayment (Series producer)

10:00 pm - 11:00 pm, Sunday, June 7 on U&Dave ja vu (74)

About this Broadcast

Season 68, Episode 9

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