This week, Peter and Jimmy discuss the Glastonbury controversy that the BBC has found itself embroiled in, and Peter offers some eye-witness reporting from on the ground at the festival. We talk Disney’s latest non-scripted announcements, including the return of Blind Date. And we ask why, when you sell a format to the Australians, they always seem to try and make it smuttier than anyone ever imagined it could possibly be. Plus, Jimmy’s day at Wimbledon with Johnny Vaughan, a visit to Cilla’s ho...
Jul 03, 2025•40 min•Season 2Ep. 1
This week, as Kate Phillips is confirmed as the new BBC Chief Content Officer, Peter and Jimmy unpack the big issues piling up in her inbox. As the commissioning downturn continues to bite, we discuss the immensely challenging outlook for TV freelancers across the industry. And we pay tribute to the much loved Joanna Beresford, whose death was announced this week - a woman to whom countless producers owe a vast debt. Plus, Sir Trevor McDonald's Bernard Manning gags, the unlikely part Bridget Jon...
Jun 26, 2025•38 min•Season 1Ep. 12
This week, Peter and Jimmy discuss the complex (and occasionally combustible) relationship between television and the royals. They unpack how the Faustian deal works, and what happens when it goes wrong. Jimmy shares fond memories of the time HIGNFY suggested Prince Harry had taken cocaine, only for the show to find itself in hot water for upsetting an entirely different aristocrat. And Peter talks all things Queen-gate, and tells his side of the story. Plus, Jimmy’s water cooler encounter with ...
Jun 19, 2025•41 min•Season 1Ep. 11
This week, as Sir David Attenborough’s new doc arrives on the small screen, Peter and Jimmy discuss the lightning-in-a-bottle that is on screen talent, and explore the peculiarly British appetite for eccentrics on TV. As Netflix set out their ambition to create “unscripted universes” on the platform, we unpack what that really means, and why, as the cost of making high end drama keeps rising, big returnable unscripted formats look all the more appealing. And we ask whether the time has come for ...
Jun 12, 2025•40 min•Season 1Ep. 10
This week, as the BBC invites indies to pitch for Casualty (made, and soon to be set, in Wales), we unpack the controversy around the nations and regions tender process, and the ways in which producers occasionally push their luck when it comes to the definition of a "regional" production. We talk the future of soaps, and ask how they adapt to a streaming world. And with SXSW arriving in London this week, Peter and Jimmy take the opportunity to remember TV conferences they’ve known, loved, and r...
Jun 05, 2025•40 min•Season 1Ep. 9
This week, Jimmy and Peter ask what Channel 4’s plans to push into in-house production could mean for the UK indie sector. They discuss the BBC’s latest report into the state of British comedy (and whether they might perhaps be better to just commission more comedy, rather than write reports about it). And they talk the art of note giving, and ask whether there’s ever a good way of telling a star they’re anything other than fabulous? Plus, buying Baywatch, the perils of slippery glass bridges, a...
May 29, 2025•37 min•Season 1Ep. 8
With the sad news of the death of Alan Yentob, Peter and Jimmy take the opportunity to remember their old and much-loved friend, to celebrate his life and work, and to pay tribute to the huge impact he had on the world of British television. There's also, inevitably, a plug for the River Cafe in there. We think it’s what Alan would have wanted. Insiders: The TV Podcast is an Expectation and Hat Trick co-production. The producer is Owen Braben. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more info...
May 26, 2025•23 min
This week, Peter and Jimmy unpack the end of Gary Lineker’s time at the BBC, and ask whether the corporation has a more wide-ranging problem when it comes to managing big talent. And we talk the latest changes to the ITV daytime schedule across Lorraine, This Morning, and Loose Women, and ask what the channel are really trying to achieve. Plus, Jimmy’s final day at Goodison Park, the (perhaps overdue) demise of Granada Men and Motors, and the commandment at the BBC that seems to require everyone...
May 22, 2025•33 min•Season 1Ep. 7
This week, Jimmy brings us an eyewitness report from the front line at the BAFTAs, and we talk weird categories, surprising winners, and what this year’s awards tell us about the state of the British television industry. And we unpack the row between Question Time and Reform MP Richard Tice, and ask whether the work of BBC Verify is definitely the right way of supporting the brilliant journalism that the BBC does. Plus Fiona Bruce swearing, the secret canine code of sound designers, and why we'r...
May 15, 2025•34 min•Season 1Ep. 6
This week, Jimmy talks candidly about the Father Ted musical, its difficult and sometimes painful evolution, and where the project is up to now. We ask what Trump’s film tariffs might mean for the British TV industry. And Peter and Jimmy discuss how to sell our homegrown shows internationally, and why some formats work abroad while others, for some reason, just don’t. Plus living next door to John Cleese, set visits to I’m a Celeb and long lunches with Ant and Dec, and buying 100 hours of Flippe...
May 08, 2025•47 min•Season 1Ep. 5
This week, with Alex Mahon’s announcement that she’s leaving Channel 4, Peter and Jimmy assess the challenges a new Chief Exec will face. We talk the alchemy of Top Gear, and when (if ever) is the best time to reboot a hit show from yesteryear. And in the light of the latest batch of M&A rumours around ITV, we ask whether buying the broadcaster and its production arm would actually be good business? Plus, the joy of soft leather car seats, why politicians all end up wanting to be on the tell...
May 01, 2025•43 min•Season 1Ep. 4
This week we’re delving into the Insiders inbox to answer some brilliant questions from listeners. In the age of streaming, what’s the point of the linear schedule? What’s become of the multi-camera audience sitcom? And is there a secret to making successful period dramas? (Answer: not really, but sort of...). And as if that wasn’t enough, we talk Peter’s mother-in-law, Jimmy letting his kids skive off school, and Julian Fellowes being pleasingly odd. Jimmy Mulville is the co-founder and Chief E...
Apr 24, 2025•34 min•Season 1Ep. 3
This week, as Sky announce they’re making a British version of Saturday Night Live, we ask, will it work here? Jimmy and Peter talk the pitfalls and impracticalities of the idea suggested by a committee of MPs to tax the streamers to help fund the UK production sector. And as Angela Rippon (aged 80 years young) prepares to host HIGNFY next week, we recall some of our favourite older hosts, including Brucie, Roger Moore, and the pleasingly bonkers William Shatner. Jimmy Mulville is the co-founder...
Apr 17, 2025•37 min•Season 1Ep. 2
Old friends Peter Fincham and Jimmy Mulville are the ultimate TV insiders, and in their new podcast, they'll share their insights and analysis of the goings on in the world of television - in short, they're going to get together once a week to gossip! This week, Jimmy lifts the lid on the selling of Have I Got News For You to the Americans, Peter attempts to get us sued by both Simon Cowell and Simon Fuller as he tells the the story of Pop Idol and The X Factor , and we discuss the thorny issue ...
Apr 10, 2025•54 min•Season 1Ep. 1
Old friends Peter Fincham and Jimmy Mulville are the ultimate TV insiders, and in their new podcast, they'll share their insights and analysis of the goings on in the world of television. In short, they're going to get together once a week to gossip! Jimmy is the co-founder and Chief Executive of Hat Trick Productions. His incredible list of hit shows includes Have I Got News For You (series 69 now airing), Father Ted , Derry Girls , Outnumbered , and Episodes . In the US Hat Trick launched Whos...
Apr 10, 2025•41 sec
