Whispers: The Complete Series 1-3

Whispers: The Complete Series 1-3

A BBC Radio 4 Comedy Panel Game

Summary

Gyles Brandreth presents the quiz show with scandal on its mind

Hosted by the least discreet man in Britain, broadcaster and national treasure Gyles Brandreth, Whispers is the panel game that celebrates all things scurrilous and salacious. Running the gauntlet of gossip are two teams of two guests, who test their wits and wit as they try to tell the difference between fact, fiction and outlandish speculation.

In the opening round, they are challenged to work out whether a given allegation is true, false or a 'whisper' (a rumour that was widely circulated, but never proven). Subsequent rounds include 'Scandal of the Week', in which they must flesh out the bare bones of a celebrity biography by buzzing in with the missing information; and 'Loose Connections', where their task is to pinpoint the sensational or bizarre link between two well-known personalities. At the end of each show, five bonus points are allocated to anyone who can identify a fib told by Gyles earlier in the game.

Team captains Anthony Holden, Stella Duffy and Lucy Moore are joined by panellists including Lynne Truss, Jennie Bond, Julian Fellowes, Richard Herring, Louise Doughty and John O'Farrell to probe the follies and foibles of the famous and infamous. Did Queen Victoria take cannabis? What's the connection between Salman Rushdie and The Beatles? And was Bonaparte really attacked on his wedding night by Josephine's dog? Find out in the quiz that puts naughty before nice and dishes the dirt on the bad boys and girls of history.

Production credits
Devised and presented by Gyles Brandreth
Written by Nick Hildred and Hugh Rycroft
Produced by Elizabeth Freestone and Victoria Lloyd

Series 1 featuring: Anthony Holden, Stella Duffy, Rosie Millard, Jenny Colgan, Lynne Truss, Rowan Pelling, Jennie Bond, Geoffrey Durham

Series 2 featuring: Anthony Holden, Lucy Moore, Geoffrey Durham, Valerie Grove, Lynne Truss, Michèle Brown, Simon Fanshawe, Charles Collingwood

Series 3 featuring: Anthony Holden, Lucy Moore, Penny Junor, Julian Fellowes, Richard Herring, Louise Doughty, Dan Tetsell, John O'Farrell

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 29 October-10 December 2003 (Series 1), 15 September-20 October 2004 (Series 2), 5 October-9 November 2005 (Series 3)

© 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd.

About the author

Gyles Brandreth

Gyles Brandreth is a writer, performer, former MP and Government Whip, now Chancellor of the University of Chester and probably best known these days as a reporter on BBC1's The One Show and as a regular on Radio 4's Just a Minute. On TV he has featured on Have I Got News For You, QI, Room 101, Countdown, and This is Your Life. As a journalist he writes for the Telegraph and Daily Mail and is a columnist for The Oldie. The founder of the National Scrabble Championships, his books about words and language include four best-sellers, The Joy of Lex, Word Play, Have You Eaten Grandma? and Dancing by the Light of the Moon.
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