US version in the works

An American version of Have I Got News For You is in the pipeline, one of its creators has revealed.

Jimmy Mulville, managing director of makers Hat Trick, flew to New York yesterday to put together the teams for a pilot episode.

Unlike in the UK, panel games are almost non-existent in the States – although it is hoped the success of satires such as the Daily Show with Jon Stewart and The Onion might have increased Americans’ appetite for Have I Got News For You.

Mulville revealed the news in a Twitter post from his iPhone made in the early hours of yesterday, which read: ‘Off to New York today to cast the pilot of an American version of Have I Got News For You. Any ideas gratefully received.’

Earlier this year it was rumoured that NBC was in talks to produce its own version in conjunction with Hat Trick, although the network refused to comment on any such plans.

Hat Trick previously exported Whose Line Is It Anyway? to ABC, which became a bigger hit than the Channel 4 original, running for 220 episodes from 1998 to 2005.

The British version of Have I Got News For You, which has run for more than 300 episodes, returns to BBC One on the October 16. See our free tickets page to apply to be in the audience.

Published: 21 Sep 2009