BBC America To Air Special TV Edition Of NPR's 'Wait Wait.. Don't Tell Me'

Kasell and Sagal

NPR's long-running comedy game show "WAIT WAIT... DON'T TELL ME!" will come to television with a "2011 Year in Review" special on BBC AMERICA in DECEMBER.  The special, to air DECEMBER 23rd on BBC AMERICA, will also air on NPR the weekend of DECEMBER 24th and 25th.  Host PETER SAGAL and judge/scorekeeper/announcer CARL KASELL will be joined by frequent panelists PAULA POUNDSTONE and ALONZO BODDEN for the show, which will be taped on DECEMBER 2nd at the radio show's regular home, the CHASE BANK AUDITORIUM in CHICAGO and is being produced by BBC AMERICA, NPR, and CHAUNCEY STREET PRODUCTIONS, with ALBIE HECHT and DOUG BERMAN as Executive Producers.

BBC WORLDWIDE AMERICA GM, Channels PERRY SIMON said, "The comedy panel show has been a staple of British television and WAIT WAIT... DON'T TELL ME! is the gold standard of the format on radio in the US. This year-end special offers the perfect opportunity to join forces with our friends at NPR and is a great addition to our new original programming development stable. As a long-time listener of WAIT WAIT... DON'T TELL ME!, I think its television debut is long overdue and I can't wait to see what PETER, CARL and the team look like."  (SIMON is no relation to ALL ACCESS VP/Editor, News-Talk-Sports PERRY MICHAEL SIMON, who has written for the BBC AMERICA website through his association with NERDIST INDUSTRIES, which also produces NERDIST specials airing on the network)

BERMAN added, "It's going to be pretty much what we do every week, except NPR has to add a budget line for pants."

SAGAL, longtime host of the show, avid runner, and author of the story that, greatly altered, became the screenplay for "DIRTY DANCING: HAVANA NIGHTS," said, "This is terrific, because I always assumed that the only way I could get on the BBC would be to have DAVID ATTENBOROUGH narrate my mating rituals. Glad this happened instead."

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