The Russell Howard Hour

The Russell Howard Hour is a British topical comedy news television series that premiered on Sky One on 21 September 2017. The series is hosted by Russell Howard where he gives his thoughts and opinions on current topics as well as featuring special guests and other stand-up comedians. The show is in a similar style to his previous show, Russell Howard's Good News, which aired on BBC Three and then BBC Two from 2009 to 2015.

The Russell Howard Hour
Also known as	Russell Howard's Home Time (2020)
Genre	Topical comedy Stand-up comedy Satire
Created by	Russell Howard
Presented by	Russell Howard
Theme music composer	Sergio Pizzorno
Opening theme	"Ill Ray (The King)" by Kasabian
Composer	Sam Gale
Country of origin	United Kingdom
Original language	English
No. of series	6 (+1 spin-off)
No. of episodes	86 (+9 spin-off)
Production
Producers	Dan Atkinson Jason Dawson Robyn O'Brien
Production locations	Studio TC1, Television Centre, London[1] (2017–2022) Bath, Somerset (Home Time, 2020)
Running time	60 minutes (Regular, inc. adverts, series 1–5) 45 minutes (Regular, inc. adverts, series 6) 30 minutes (spin-off, inc. adverts)
Production companies	Avalon Television[2] Sky Production Services
Original release
Network	Sky One (series 1–4) Sky Max (series 5–6)
Release	21 September 2017 (2017-09-21) – 15 December 2022 (2022-12-15)
Related
Russell Howard's Good News

Production

On 28 November 2017, it was announced that the show had been recommissioned for a second series,^[3] which began on 8 November 2018. Unlike the first series, the second series does not have a stand-up guest. Instead there is a segment titled "Live Forever" where Howard and another comedian test ways to live longer.

On 24 January 2019, it was announced that the show had been recommissioned for a third and fourth series.^[4] In Series 3, there was a segment called "Play Date" (which replaced "Live Forever") which showed Howard spending time with a celebrity.

In spring 2020, shortly after the end of series 3, the fourth series was revealed to be delayed until early Autumn that year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, Howard created a spin-off series called "Russell Howard's Home Time", featuring a similar format as the original show, except for a shorter 30-minute episode runtime.^[5] The programme was filmed at his home in Bath, Somerset due to social distancing measures, and began on 9 April 2020, running for 9 episodes.

The fourth series of The Russell Howard Hour began on 10 September 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the first episode of the series did not have a live audience. From episode two onwards, a live audience returned, albeit split into socially distanced groups.

On 17 December 2020, it was announced that the show had been recommissioned for a fifth and sixth series.

On 8 September 2022, the first episode of the sixth series was originally going to air, but it got pulled off air following the news of Queen Elizabeth II's death that night. After 2 days of delay, the episode was finally broadcast on Sky Max.

With the closure of Sky One, the original channel for The Russell Howard Hour, it was announced that the series would move to Sky Max.^[6]

With the exception of the Home Time spin-off, all episodes of the programme have been recorded at Television Centre in London.^[7]

Transmissions

Series	Start date	End date	Episodes	Notes
1	21 September 2017	21 December 2017	14
2	8 November 2018	28 February 2019	14
3	7 November 2019	27 February 2020	15
HT	9 April 2020	7 May 2020	9
4	10 September 2020	17 December 2020	15
5	9 September 2021	30 December 2021	15
6	10 September 2022*	29 December 2022	15	Series 6 was originally scheduled to premiere on 8 September 2022 but was pulled off of air, following the death of Elizabeth II.

Viewing figures

Episode viewing figures from BARB's Top 10 Programmes until September 2018^[8] and the Four-screen Dashboard for September 2018 onwards.^[9]

Series 1

Episode no.	Airdate	7 day viewers (millions)	28 day viewers (millions)	Sky One weekly ranking	Multichannels rank	Guest	Stand-up comic
1	21 September 2017	0.69	0.83	2	8	Diane Abbott	Kiri Pritchard-McLean
2	28 September 2017	0.70	0.82		14	Adam Kay	Harry & Chris
3	5 October 2017	0.65	0.72	3	18	Greg Davies	Desiree Burch
4	12 October 2017	0.62	0.73		25	Richard Branson	Phil Ellis
5	19 October 2017	0.64	0.69	4	23	Fiona Bruce	Anna Mann
6	26 October 2017	0.69	0.78	6		Ed Sheeran	Rob Auton
7	2 November 2017	0.63	0.75	5	24	Daryl Davis	Harry & Chris
8	9 November 2017	0.69	0.76		23	Harry Leslie Smith	Paul Chowdhry
9	16 November 2017	0.56	0.63	7	—	Naomi Klein	Mo Gilligan
10	23 November 2017	0.58	0.68	3	—	Juan Mata	Julian Deane
11	30 November 2017	0.47	0.57	8	—	Roisin Conaty	Fern Brady
12	7 December 2017	0.58	0.65	6	—	Sarah Millican	Mae Martin
13	14 December 2017	0.62	0.78	3	—	Jamie Oliver	Ed Gamble
14	21 December 2017	0.59	0.75	4	—	John Oliver	Harry & Chris

Series 2

In series 2, the stand-up comic segment at the end of each episode was replaced with 'Live Forever.' In the segment, Howard and another comedian try an activity that is purported to improve health. Episode 7 was a Christmas Special.

Episode no.	Airdate	7 day viewers (millions)	28 day viewers (millions)	Sky One weekly ranking	Guest	Live Forever
1	8 November 2018	0.51	0.55	6	Rukmini Callimachi	Pantsdrunk with Greg Davies
2	15 November 2018	0.48	0.57	8	Alesha Dixon	Chinese medicine with Jimmy Carr
3	22 November 2018	0.29	0.41	8	Louis Theroux	Dead bodies with Rose Matafeo
4	29 November 2018	0.42	0.54	6	Derren Brown	Cryotherapy with Paul Chowdhry
5	6 December 2018	0.48	0.54	4	Michelle Wolf	Ice baths with Paul Chowdhry
6	13 December 2018	0.39	0.45	6	Magid Magid	Shaman with Roisin Conaty
7	20 December 2018	0.53	0.64	6	Chris O'Dowd	Choir singing with Joe Wilkinson
8	17 January 2019	0.40	0.46	7	Rob Delaney	Bungee dance with Jessica Knappett
9	24 January 2019	0.49	0.54	6	Will Poulter	Cuddle therapy with Jon Richardson
10	31 January 2019	0.40	0.46	9	Mark Prince	Art therapy with Jo Brand
11	7 February 2019	0.35	0.41	9	Jon Ronson	Goat yoga with Mo Gilligan
12	14 February 2019	0.35	0.43	7	Stacey Dooley	Boxing with Joe Lycett
13	21 February 2019	0.34	0.39	8	Richard Curtis	Museum of Happiness with Lou Sanders
14	28 February 2019	0.38	0.45	9	Stephen Merchant	Ikigai with Iain Stirling and David Seaman

Series 3

In series 3, the 'Live Forever' segment was replaced with 'Play Date.' In the segment, Howard and another comedian try an activity that they have never done before.

Episode no.	Airdate	7 day viewers (millions)	28 day viewers (millions)	Sky One weekly ranking	Guest	Play Date
1	7 November 2019	0.54	0.59	2	Ant Middleton	Beekeeping with Aisling Bea
2	14 November 2019	0.47	0.51	2	Tyson Fury	Flyboarding with Jon Richardson
3	21 November 2019	0.35	0.43	4	Sinéad Burke and Rapman	None[note 1]
4	28 November 2019	0.52	0.59	1	Kevin Smith[10]	Going to a pub with Elizabeth Banks[10]
5	5 December 2019	0.41	0.46	1	Carole Cadwalladr	Hot tugging with Tan France
6	12 December 2019	0.38	0.42	3	David Baddiel	A perfect night in with Jack Black
7	19 December 2019	0.59	0.69	1	Brian Cox	Trampolining with Emily Atack
8	30 December 2019	0.35	0.37	5	Best Bits of 2019[note 2]
9	16 January 2020	0.30	0.34	13	Jamali Maddix	Stunt school with Paul Chowdhry
10	23 January 2020	0.30	0.33	10	Iman Amrani and Seann Walsh	None[note 3]
11	30 January 2020	0.31	0.36	9	Armando Iannucci and Michael Patrick	None[note 4]
12	6 February 2020	0.38	0.42	8	Guz Khan and Jim Carrey	None[note 5]
13	13 February 2020	0.35	0.38	7	Konnie Huq	Barging with Josh Widdicombe
14	20 February 2020	0.36	0.41	9	Eniola Aluko and Kerry Godliman	None[note 6]
15	27 February 2020	0.31	0.35	8	Daisy Haggard	Driving down the A127 dual carriageway with Joe Wilkinson

Russell Howard's Home Time

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, series 4 was delayed until later in the year. This spin-off series filmed from Howard's home in Somerset features chats with celebrity guests, comedians and musical performances using Zoom. During the finale episode, Howard revealed that the regular show would return sometime in September 2020.

Episode	Airdate[note 7]	Guests	Celebrity/musical guests	Musical performance
1	9 April 2020	Glen Walton	Greg Davies and James Bay	"Hold Back the River"
2	14 April 2020	Aoife Abbey	Jon Richardson and Gavin Osborn	"Born in the NHS"
3	16 April 2020	Ninette Howard	Michelle Wolf, Geraint Thomas and Lady Leshurr	"Quarantine Speech"
4	21 April 2020	Hassan Akkad	Jack Whitehall and Serge Pizzorno	"Lockdown"
5	23 April 2020	Caitlin Grant	Guz Khan and Harry & Chris	"Lockdown Life"
6	28 April 2020	Lucy Craig	Stephen Merchant and Tom Grennan	"Oh Please"
7	30 April 2020	Lisa King	Louis Theroux and Guvna B	"Fall On Me"
8	5 May 2020	N/A	Joe Gilgun, Katherine Ryan and Zuzu	"How It Feels"
9	7 May 2020	The Corona Arms	Marc Maron and Tom Walker	"Leave a Light On"

Series 4

On 7 May 2020, Howard revealed in his spin-off series finale that the fourth series of The Russell Howard Hour would return in September 2020. However, due to the ongoing pandemic situation, this will be the first series to have no audience and only a skeleton crew, due to social distancing requirements.^{[citation needed]}

Episode	Airdate	7 day viewers (millions)	28 day viewers (millions)	Sky One weekly ranking	Guests	Life Lessons[note 8]	Good Deeds
1	10 September 2020	0.60	0.62	4	John Oliver	I Wish I Was An Expert In...	Emdad Rahman, Book Bike London
2	17 September 2020	0.44	0.52	5	Lady Leshurr	The Phrase That Makes My Blood Boil	Imogen, 7 Million Keepie Uppie Challenge
3	24 September 2020	0.42	0.46	5	Elizabeth Day	My Sexual Awakening	Mike Trower, Cooking With Cody
4	1 October 2020	0.37	0.45	6	Kevin Bridges and Jessica Brown Findlay	The Childhood Memory That Just Won't Go Away	Grace Beards and Jodie Larsen, Paws & Pause
5	8 October 2020	0.37	0.42	6	Mo Gilligan and Slim	If I Could Communicate With Animals	Standup by Slim
6	15 October 2020	0.43	0.57	4	Greg Davies, Alex Horne and James Bay	My Weird Obsession	Ali Alzein, Bees And Refugees
7	22 October 2020	0.26	0.40	4	Rosie Jones	A Job I Secretly Think I'd Be Good At	Wesley Hamnett, Glasgow2Manchester
8	29 October 2020	0.44	0.52	3	Dizzee Rascal	My Irrational Fear	Mike Trower, Cooking With Cody
9	5 November 2020	0.41	0.46	3	Brian Blessed	An Award I Should Win That Doesn't Exist	Mark Humphries, Kidmenace Studios
10	12 November 2020	—	—	—	Best of Guests
11	19 November 2020	0.43	0.52	3	Matthew McConaughey	My Worst Business Idea	Emma Walkerdine, Anger Van
12	26 November 2020	0.39	0.49	3	Tim Minchin	Here's Something That Should Have Been Taught In School...	Kaz Foncette, Wigs For Heroes
13	3 December 2020	0.39	—	3	Richard Herring	Something I Would Make Illegal...	Carl Bradley, The Boot Room
14	10 December 2020	0.40	0.42	3	Jamie Redknapp, Matt Forde	I Would Love To Life Swap With...	David Ible & Sachin Rajkumarsingh, Aura Care
15	17 December 2020	0.45	0.53	3	Joel Dommett, Matt Lucas, Flo and Joan	My Favourite Christmas Memory Ever	[note 9]

Series 5

Episode	Airdate	7 day viewers (millions)	28 day viewers (millions)	Sky Max weekly ranking	Guests	Life Lessons	Good Deeds
1	9 September 2021				Katie Piper, Aaron Simmonds, Iain Stirling
2	16 September 2021				Robert Peston, Janine Harouni, Paul Chowdhry, Daniel Ricciardo
3	23 September 2021				Tom Grennan, Paul Sinha
4	30 September 2021				David Harewood, Joy Crookes, Lucy Beaumont
5	7 October 2021				Sophie Willan, Andrew Bird, Andrew Steele
6	14 October 2021				Billy Connolly, Everyone You Know, Isy Suttie
7	21 October 2021				Edgar Wright, Steven Pinker, Fatiha El-Ghorri
8	4 November 2021				Evanna Lynch, Joe Wilkinson, Jordan Brookes
9	11 November 2021				Lou Sanders, Akala, Knucks, Kojey Radical, Swindle
10	18 November 2021				Susie Dent, Paul Merson, Harriet Dyer
11	25 November 2021				Gabby Logan, Jimmy Carr, Jacob Hawley
12	2 December 2021				Jordan Peterson, Guz Khan, Self Esteem
13	9 December 2021				Steven Bartlett, Josh Widdicombe, Cat Burns
14	16 December 2021				Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Fred Sireix, Flo & Joan

Series 6

Episode	Airdate	7 day viewers (millions)	28 day viewers (millions)	Sky Max weekly ranking	Guests	Life Lessons	Good Deeds
1	10 September 2022				Jamali Maddix
2	22 September 2022				Fern Brady
3	29 September 2022				Paul Chowdhry
4	6 October 2022				Maisie Adam
5	13 October 2022				Michelle Wolf
6	20 October 2022				Troye Hawke
7	3 November 2022				Greta Thunberg
8	10 November 2022				Kiri Pritchard-McLean
9	17 November 2022				Glenn Moore
10	24 November 2022				Jordan Gray	Shad Chefs Man Hub
11	1 December 2022				London Hughes
12	8 December 2022				Sam Campbell
13	15 December 2022				Garth Marenghi

Notes

1. There was no 'Play Date' in this episode. Instead, Burke and Rapman were interviewed separately, over two parts.
2. This was a special 2019 in review compilation episode. This episode features interviews clips with Stephen Merchant, Sinéad Burke, Tyson Fury, Rapman, Jon Ronson, and Kevin Smith; 'Live Forever' clips with Mo Gilligan and Jessica Knappett; and 'Play Date' clips with Jack Black, Aisling Bea, and Tan France.
3. There was no 'Play Date' in this episode. Instead, Amrani and Walsh were interviewed separately, over two parts.
4. There was no 'Play Date' in this episode. Instead, Iannucci and Patrick were interviewed separately, over two parts.
5. There was no 'Play Date' in this episode. Instead, Khan and Carrey were interviewed separately, with Carrey's interview being filmed on location, away from the studio.
6. There was no 'Play Date' in this episode. Instead, Aluko and Godliman were interviewed separately, over two parts.
7. Episodes on Sky One are shown on Tuesday and Thursday nights.
8. Aisling Bea, Guz Khan, Jessica Brown Findlay, Iain Stirling, Phil Wang, Joe Wilkinson, London Hughes, Taylor Tomlinson & Paul Chowdhry share their life lessons regarding one given issue.
9. Because of musical guests Flo and Joan no Good Deeds were shown.