A tight 5: March 19

MICHAEL McINTYRE’s chat show has lost 400,000 viewers in a week. Monday night’s episode was seen by just over 2million viewers on BBC One at 10.45pm on Monday, about a sixth down on its opener seven days earlier.

JENNIFER SAUNDERS is to be the first guest host in the new series of Have I Got News For You – the 47th – when it returns to BBC One on April 4. She was a guest on the show last year.

DAVID CROSS is to appear in the American adaptation of Sharon Horgan and Holly Walsh’s prison comedy Dead Boss. The Arrested Development star, who co-starred with Horgan on The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret will play the murdered character of the title. As previously announced, 30 Rock’s Jane Krakowski will take the lead role, played by Horgan in the BBC Three original, as the woman wrongfully convicted of his murder. Filming of the remake starts today.

MILTON JONES, Max & Ivan, Joe Lycett, Paul Foot, The Boy With Tape On His Face, Doc Brown and Jason Byrne are among those taking part in the Melbourne International Comedy Festival opening gala tonight. The show airs on Network Ten down under on Saturday.

TED CHIPPINGTON, the comedian who inspired Stewart Lee, is on tour with the band The Nightingales from next month. The dates are here, and here he is performing on an earlier tour:

Published: 19 Mar 2014