EXCLUSIVE: It was the bust-up that was long predicted, but spectacular nonetheless. Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s steady separation suddenly went thermonuclear on Thursday, with the former MAGA mates exchanging Molotovs across two social media platforms.
Deadline hears that the fireworks broke out as Hat Trick Productions was recording the final episode in the current season of BBC comedy series Have I Got News For You. Cameras were about to be shut down for the night when producers decided to throw the Trump-Musk meltdown at presenter Richard Ayoade and teams led by Ian Hislop and Paul Merton.
Have I Got News For You is always filmed up to the wire to maintain its topicality, but it’s rare that producers toss a breaking news story into the mix. We hear that Trump vs Musk will feature towards the end of the show, with Merton and Hislop offering their typically withering commentary on events in the U.S. Their teammates on the night were comedian Jack Dee and Kelly Cates, one of the new presenters of Premier League highlights show Match of the Day.
Have I Got News For You will air at 9PM on BBC1 on Friday. The timing was somewhat auspicious given that the show is about to bow out for its 69th season. HIGNFY first launched in the UK in 1990 and continues to attract around 3M viewers, often making it BBC1’s most-watched show of the day.
Hat Trick Productions, run by Jimmy Mulville, has recently established Have I Got News for You on CNN in America. Filming has concluded on Season 2, and CNN has renewed the comedy show for a third run, which will begin screening in September. Hosted by Roy Wood Jr., along with team captains Amber Ruffin and Michael Ian Black, the show was ultimately greenlit by Mark Thompson, who is entwined in the history of Have I Got News for You, having served as the BBC’s director general.
Mulville would have loved for the Musk-Trump imbroglio to play out while the CNN series was in production, but for now, he will have to make do with the story gatecrashing the UK show.
