The Big Fat Quiz of the 90s (2012)

This edition of the show that plays out like a pub quiz was part of the series of programmes for the 30th anniversary of Channel 4, but this one was not about the channel programmes like before, it was the first part of three shows based on the popular decades that brought about many talked about events in the 1980's, the 1990's and the 2000's, and this was a great show to watch and have fun with. Hosted by Jimmy Carr, with celebrity panellists in three teams, the players were Alan Davies, Phil Jupitus, Dara O'Briain, Denise Van Outen, Jack Whitehall and Claudia Winkleman, this quiz decade the 1990's with all sorts of questions to answer about the ten years about headlines, music, lifestyle (fads, fashions, technology, trends and toys), television, movies, sport, toys and games and people. These questions are asked as they are, with video and sound clips, with pictures (including Say What You See), and by celebrity and mystery guests on screen or in the studio, so it really does feel like a proper quiz that you can take part in. Events in the 1990's that were questioned and joked about included: John Major and Tony Blair as Prime Ministers, Deidre arrested in Coronation Street for a crime she did not commit, Jurassic Park, the death of Princess Diana, the Channel Tunnel opening in 1994, the police chasing O.J. Simpson (suspected of the murder of his wife) on the highway which was broadcast live on the news, the repair of the Hubble Space telescope, the breakout of BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy) better known as "mad cow disease" and a politician proving beef was safe to eat by making his daughter eat a burger, Nelson Mandela released from prison after 27 years and meeting the Spice Girls, Tamagotchi, The Shawshank Redemption, Chumbawamba, Sinead 'Connor, Vengaboys, the breakup of Take That with a Samaritans phone line opened to help people, Vanilla Ice, the Madonna coffee table book Sex, Steps, a1, Cleopatra, B*Witched, Irish river dancer Michael Flatley insuring his legs, "I'm Too Sexy" by Right Said Fred, "Macarena" by Los Del Rio, Boyzone, Westlife, East 17, Five, Roseanna Barr, the launch of lads' mags FHM and Loaded, Viagra, Danny Dyer, Leonard Nimoy in 1999 warning of the consequences of Y2K aka "The Millennium Bug", the invention of the internet/world wide web, Eva Herzigová appearing in the Wonderbra advertising campaign with the slogan "Hello Boys", Chat Back – 0891 50 50 50, Teletubbies, docusoap Airport, The Cruise with Jane McDonald, Noel's House Party, The Crystal Maze, Pride and Prejudice, TFI Friday, Gladiators, Changing Rooms, The Naked Chef, Byker Grove with Ant and Dec, The Fast Show, Friends, Driving School, Cracker, Father Ted, The X-Files, Ghostwatch with Sir Michael Parkinson, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air with Will Smith, the films Pulp Fiction, Home Alone and Basic Instinct, WWF wrestling, Frankie Dettori, Eric Cantona, Gary Lineker defecating at the 1990 World Cup, Andre Agassi, an American woman calling 911 to say that she had thrown her husband's penis out of a moving car, environmental activist and campaigner Daniel Hooper better known as Swampy, artwork The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living (a tiger shark in a glass and steel box filled with formaldehyde solution) by artist Damien Hirst, Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding being the biggest selling book of the decade, Titanic being the biggest box office film of the decade and (What's the Story) Morning Glory? by Oasis being the bestselling album of the decade. Other celebrity and special mystery guests in the show included the children of Mitchell Brook Primary School in Neasden who act out well known news stories, B*Witched members Lindsay Armaou and Keavy Lynch, Mr Blobby who was a big star on children's TV and had a Christmas number one in 1993, Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, Linford Christie, John Craven who reads news related to lyrics from a song of the decade, Charles Dance who reads passages from a celebrity autobiography of the decade (Mel B aka Scary Spice), Chesney Hawkes who had a one hit wonder number one single with "The One and Only", Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer, John Simmit who played Dipsy and Nikky Smedley who played Laa-Laa in Teletubbies and Zig and Zag. The jokes and the questions are what make this show so much fun, they chose the right celebrity panellists, and it also works as a funny way to reminisce on the years good and bad for a great channel, a great comedy quiz show. Very good!