Well, that's quite interesting, isn't it?

December 11, 2023 4:48 PM

Need something to put on in the background of a gathering? Not music, but not sports? Here is 5 hours of curated [by whom? no clue] QI! rounds from across its run. Guaranteed to have moments that are interesting and moments that are funny. Not sure if it will trigger your problematic drunk uncle, but everyone else should find it quite fine.
posted by hippybear (25 comments total)

Oh, I love QI. I've re watched it many many times because it's one of the few shows my elderly mother likes. Glad to see others find it!
posted by The otter lady at 4:59 PM on December 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

Yech. They intermixed the Stephen Fry and Sandi Toksvig series. Very inconvenient. :-(
posted by Tell Me No Lies at 5:36 PM on December 11, 2023 [2 favorites]

Why would they need to be separated?
posted by axiom at 5:55 PM on December 11, 2023 [2 favorites]

Not sure if it will trigger your problematic drunk uncle,

That's a feature, not a bug.
posted by mhoye at 6:10 PM on December 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

While it is not illegal to be Jimmy Carr in most countries in the world, it is in reality generally discouraged as the existing one is already quite enough.

And now, Alan, turn to the camera and look like an overripe strawberry.
posted by zaixfeep at 6:18 PM on December 11, 2023 [3 favorites]

I would also recommend "Would I Lie To You", if you like QI. Both are available on Britbox.
posted by The otter lady at 6:23 PM on December 11, 2023 [2 favorites]

There are some whole seasons of WILTY on the official channel now (ymmv in regard to geo-blocking).
posted by juv3nal at 6:29 PM on December 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

They say of the Acropolis where the Parthenon isssss….what do they say, what do they say?
posted by Abehammerb Lincoln at 6:31 PM on December 11, 2023 [5 favorites]

> Yech. They intermixed the Stephen Fry and Sandi Toksvig series. Very inconvenient. :-(

Why would they need to be separated?

So I won't break another TV reflexively punching the avatar of everything bad about Oxbridge in the face.
posted by Tell Me No Lies at 6:38 PM on December 11, 2023 [3 favorites]

So, "here is 5 hours" or "here are 5 hours"?

Like, one refers to the 5 hours as a single unit of video... "here... here's 5 hours of that"

The other one treats each hour, maybe even each minute as a separate thing, so it's a group of things not a single thing.

What is NOT up for debate is that when you have anything that can be definitely counted, like 5 hours, you use FEWER, not LESS. You are free to use less when what you are referring to cannot be enumerated, like the amount of laughter gleaned from watching the 5 hours.
posted by hippybear at 6:46 PM on December 11, 2023 [2 favorites]

Hippybear, your logic is impeccable -- meaning all computer programming languages having a 'less than' operator are deficient. They should have an integer 'fewer than' operator and a floating-point-only 'less than' operator. Also, Perl creator Larry Wall, being a linguist by original profession and failing to make this distinction in the Perl specification, is even fewer correct because he should have known more. Or better. Or less.

But 'more' remains for both countable and uncountable... or is it 'morer' for countable? My brain hurt. Hurts.
posted by zaixfeep at 7:16 PM on December 11, 2023 [8 favorites]

I cannot help that programming languages were created by people who had no actual training in linguistics. And the "less/fewer" thing is a settled issue in that realm.

As for the "more" problem, I think you'll find that Madonna has been addressing the question.
posted by hippybear at 7:21 PM on December 11, 2023 [1 favorite]

I'm going to start using "the fewer-than character" (and "greater-than") in my future programming conversations. We can turn this around.
posted by rhizome at 10:26 PM on December 11, 2023 [2 favorites]

For the last several years, my go-to has been EXP TV. Courtesy of mefi of course.
posted by neuracnu at 11:01 PM on December 11, 2023

Larry Wall, being a linguist by original profession and failing to make this distinction in the Perl specification, is even fewer correct because he should have known more. Or better. Or less.

If Larry Wall knew better (or more) he wouldn't have created Perl to begin with. By process of elimination we can therefore assume he knew less. Or fewer.
posted by howbigisthistextfield at 6:07 AM on December 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

If you had QI on in the background, surely everyone would stop talking to each other and just watch the show instead? I certainly would.
posted by Paul Slade at 8:44 AM on December 12, 2023 [4 favorites]

Speaking as a problematic drunk uncle, I watched a half hour of this show and found it quite charming.
YMMV, of course, depending upon your personal brand of problematic drunk uncle.
posted by coolxcool=rad at 10:19 AM on December 12, 2023 [2 favorites]

What is NOT up for debate

I'm a descriptivist, not a prescriptivist. Everything is up for debate.
posted by axiom at 1:41 PM on December 12, 2023

I'm a descriptivist, not a prescriptivist.

It's like you've never watched a single episode of QI.
posted by hippybear at 3:36 PM on December 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

So I won't break another TV reflexively punching the avatar of everything bad about Oxbridge in the face.

I believe they both are Cambridge-educated and from relatively well-to-do families - which do you mean? They're also both pretty far from the worst Oxbridge has to offer.
posted by ecreeves at 3:54 PM on December 12, 2023

(sees reference to WILTY) Is this where we get to talk about James Acaster and his arch nemesis and the cabbages? No? (slinks out)
posted by queensissy at 5:50 PM on December 12, 2023

I believe they both are Cambridge-educated and from relatively well-to-do families - which do you mean?

Fry. I enjoy him as an actor but he was more of himself when hosting QI and he is an absolutely grating personality for me.

They're also both pretty far from the worst Oxbridge has to offer.

Fair enough. Let’s say there are different realms of annoyance, and that Fry is a master in his field.
posted by Tell Me No Lies at 6:51 PM on December 12, 2023 [1 favorite]

Well, according to EmpressCallipygos there are more women on the Toksvig episodes, which is obviously a plus. (I'm watching them in reverse order by season and haven't hit the Fry episodes yet.)
posted by The corpse in the library at 6:35 AM on December 13, 2023

Yeah, the gender balance has gone from having a token woman on the panel to having Alan on the panel.
posted by hippybear at 2:38 PM on December 13, 2023 [1 favorite]

And now that I've typed that, I want Alan Davies to meet up with Michael Cera to have an awkward Alan/Allan competition.
posted by hippybear at 4:05 PM on December 13, 2023