AFTER DINNER SPEAKERS
PRESENTERS
"Exactly what we hoped for - Ian entertained us all brilliantly."
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WIKIPEDIA
BIOGRAPHY
Ian Hislop is editor of Private Eye, though he is better known to millions of fans as team captain in nearly forty series of Have I Got News For You. The show has won several awards including a BAFTA for Best Light Entertainment; in his own right, Ian has received the highest award from the British Society of Magazine Editors.
Aside from HIGNFY, Ian frequently appears on TV and radio as both commentator and presenter. His long list of credits ranges from Question Time and the grown-up version of University Challenge to documentaries on the scout movement, the history of tax and the popularity of the nation's railways. He has also explored his family roots in Who Do You Think You Are?
Ian originally penned sketches for Spitting Image and Harry Enfield, before turning his hand to screenplays for the likes of Dawn French and Maureen Lipman. He was also co-writer of the BBC sitcom, My Dad's The Prime Minister.
In his after dinner speech, the most sued man in Britain talks about the joys of litigation. He might also mention his ill-fated attempts to drive overseas sales of Private Eye - an object lesson in how not to conquer the export trade. Ian's novelist wife Victoria has enjoyed rather more success in foreign climes.
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MEMBERS' INTERESTS
When he was 21, Gordon Brown won a Daily Express competition for 'A Vision of Britain in the Year 2000.' One of his first acts in office was to insist that the font for No.10 emails be changed from Times New Roman 12 to Arial 14.
Carlsberg Special Brew was created especially for Winston Churchill, as Denmark's thank-you for Britain's help during World War II.
The door to 10 Downing Street has no keyhole. It can only be opened from the inside.
In a study of common characteristics among Prime Ministers, Lucille Iremonger identified a childhood deprived of affection; extreme self-discipline; religious zeal; aggression, timidity and overdependence on the love of others.
The language used in the Chamber must conform to a number of rules. Past and present House of Commons Speakers have taken exception to: blackguard, coward, git, guttersnipe, hooligan, rat, swine, stoolpigeon, traitor and fuck.
Briefcases are not allowed in the Chamber. The reading of newspapers, magazines and letters is also prohibited. Eating and drinking (except for discreet sips to ease the voice) is not permitted, in contrast to previous centuries when visitors observed Members sucking oranges and cracking nuts.
The police shout "Who goes home?" when the House rises. This is an invitation to Members to join together in bands to cross what were the dangerous fields between Westminster and the City, or to hire boats homeward on the Thames.
A Member wishing to raise a point of order during a division was, until 1998, required to speak with his hat on. Collapsible top hats were kept for the purpose. Snuff is still provided, at public expense, at the doorkeeper's box at the entrance to the Chamber.
