Wordaholics: The Complete Series 1-3

The Word-Obsessed BBC Comedy Panel Show

By: Jon Hunter, James Kettle

Narrated by: Alex Horne, Dave Gorman, Gyles Brandreth, Jack Whitehall, Michael Rosen, Paul Sinha, Richard Herring, Robin Ince, Stephen Fry, Susie Dent

All 18 episodes of Radio 4's word-obsessed comedy panel game hosted by Gyles Brandreth, where stars from across the world of wordplay come together to guess the meanings of now-obsolete words, invent their own clichés and cockney rhyming slang, discuss their own favourite words and phrases - and suggest words they would like to ban.

This witty and unexpected show brings you toponyms, abbreviations, euphemisms, old words, new words, cockney rhyming slang and Greek gobbledegook. Find out the meaning of words like giff-gaff, knock-knobbler and buckfitches; the difference between French marbles, French velvet and the French ache; hear the glorious poetry of the English language, as practiced from writers varying from William Shakespeare to Vanilla Ice; and spend time laughing and learning with some of the finest Wordaholics in the business.

With top guests including Stephen Fry, Jack Whitehall, Michael Rosen, Susie Dent, Alex Horne, Paul Sinha, Robin Ince, Josh Widdecombe, Natalie Haynes, Dave Gorman, Richard Herring, Ed Byrne, Jenny Eclair and Milton Jones.

Written by Jon Hunter and James Kettle.
Produced by Claire Jones.

©2018 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2018 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Beloved

It’s both intellectual and funny, so it’s smart but not dry. I really wish there were more of this series.

Hilarity for the word nerd who collects words inst

I must confess though we are not Brits, we have spent a lot of time over in the U.K. and are quite hooked on a couple of radio commedies. This series has a delightful host, Gyles Brandreth who has been an MP, a writer, presenter on radio and much more. Four panelists compete in two teams to be the best at explaining the meanings of obscure words which might come from old dictionaries, regional slang, and much more. This is not for everyone, but we have howled over some of the episodes at the dinner table. Yes, we are word nerds and take delight in trying to answer at least a few of the offerings correctly.

Brandreth is very clever and we are continually amazed at the breadth of knowledge of the contestants. I wish there were more of these! This is not a continuous "book" but rather a series of 18 episodes of delight if this is your genre.

A bit dry at times, but an overall amusing program

This is a very British program for sure, so if you don’t like that sort of humor then I would avoid it. If on the other hand you are a bit of a word nerd and have a sense of humor that allows for puns you may enjoy this program very much. Much like in other British panel shows, there are references to places and people that are particular to the UK, but I think that was more of a positive feature rather than a defect as an American listener. I’d say, overall, I was pleased with my use of a credit on this program.