FIFA World Cup, James Corden on Fox After Hours
A few years before CBS canceled Stephen Colbert’s The Late Show, the same American network canceled James Corden’s The Late Late Show without much controversy. No matter what effect the Trump administration may have had on parting ways with Colbert, the decline in economic sense on network late-night shows is not fake news.
Perhaps pop-up late-night shows tied to major TV events are part of the format’s future? This week, Corden returns to his previous time slot to take part in a short-term experiment hosting a World Cup-related show on the FOX network.
“After Hours” sounds a bit late-night, like a sports version of the “after show,” the all-encompassing chat fest that often follows hit dramas and reality series. Corden, a British football enthusiast, joins former England team captain Rio Ferdinand, comedian Ian Carmel and celebrity guests to discuss all things football after each match. A total of 24 episodes are scheduled to run from June 11th to July 15th.
Crave’s Tom Green Farm
The level of joy I’m receiving from Tom Green’s Talk & Talk Show (new episodes Friday) is unexpected. It combines elements of the eccentric comedian’s recently short-lived Prime Video reality show (a glimpse into his new life raising chickens, riding mules and writing country songs on 150 acres in rural Ontario) with the talk talent he honed over the decades hosting various late-night shows and podcasts.
Animals are a good way to get guests to open up, as is Green himself. In one episode, he makes Stephen Page feel at ease by pointing out that Paul McCartney was also arrested for drug possession and reflecting on his departure from Barenaked Ladies. Other past visitors to the farm, barn and gazebo studio include Michael Cera, Jay Baruchel and the Ottawa Amateur Radio Club.
The influence of Green’s idol David Letterman is obvious, but the musical elements are a throwback to old country can-con such as Don Messer’s Jubilee and Rita and Friends. It was fun to sing the song “Hola Señor Alpaca” that Green and Jesse Reyes wrote together to the two alpacas.
“Keep the Meter” on YouTube
The talk show I watch the most these days is SubwayTakes in short form with Kareem Rahma. Stop scrolling and listen to Rafma talk to just about anyone on the New York subway for about two minutes.
Rama’s seriously funny new YouTube series, “Keep The Meter Running,” is a feature-length documentary series in which social media celebrities hop in a cab in New York and tell the driver to take them to their favorite places. Afterwards, Rama will spend a few hours at a Russian banya or a bowling alley in a less fashionable part of the Big Apple. Part travelogue, part ode to America’s melting pot, the event has a nice Zoran Mamdani-era vibe, and a nice exchange with a host whose raw style and genuine openness have drawn comparisons to the late Anthony Bourdain.
“Weird Al” Yankovic’s Bigger, Weirder Late Night Louvue, Disney+
Weird Al will be one of the featured acts performing at Bonnaroo, which will be streamed on Disney+.Emma McIntyre/Getty Images
The greatest accordionist parodist of all time will host a late night show at Bonnaroo on Saturday night. The show will air on Disney+ as part of four days of livestreamed performances from the music and arts festival in the Nashville suburb of Manchester, Tennessee.
YouTube’s coverage of California’s Coachella festival has become a highlight of the video-sharing website’s annual schedule, with sets from the likes of Justin Bieber and Sabrina Carpenter trending on social media in the weeks since.
So it’s no surprise that Disney+ is looking to get in on the action by livestreaming the second most-watched music festival in the United States. But this year’s Bonnaroo lineup isn’t exactly a blockbuster. And with its focus on EDM, it may be best experienced firsthand. (Headliners include Skrillex, The Strokes, Teddy Swims, and Ke$ha.) But it will be fun to see what Weird Al does when he’s tasked with performing internationally for one night, and what jokes he inevitably tells.
Taskmaster, YouTube, Taskmaster Super Max+
Every year, when Canadian networks and streamers announce upcoming shows, I wait like Linus for the arrival of the Great Pumpkin for the long-rumored Canadian English version of Taskmaster to be announced.
The British version of the long-running original, which combines comedy panel and reality competition show, is hosted by Greg Davies, who goes by the name of the grueling “Taskmaster,” and his diminutive assistant and series creator Alex Horne. In the tradition of great British comedy, Whose Line Is It?, the two present five contestants with bizarre challenges and absurd puzzles, often to score arbitrary points.
The 21st season, which ends this week, includes Marvel star Kumail Nanjiani among the contestants, but the American, who is reasonably famous, has long been ridiculed for still running the show. The four Brits he will face include the cantankerous Armando Iannucci, who becomes the host’s favorite target when he does not rise to the challenge. “Did you ever think someone else wrote Veep?” Davis asked Hawn in the penultimate episode.
Taskmaster can be streamed ad-free in Canada on YouTube or through its own Taskmaster Supermax+ app or website. (By the way, Crave has a Canadian French version called Le maître du jeu, but it doesn’t have English subtitles.)
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