History Radio / ImSorryIHaventAClue

* SophisticatedAsHell: From a round of ''Closed Quotes'', using insults:

There are also some musical rounds in the show. While the most popular musical game in the early years was the "Blues" (where each team has to create one on the spot), the three most popular throughout most of the show's run are "One Song to the Tune of Another" (which is [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin self-explanatory]], although [[RunningGag Humph thinks]] [[ExpospeakGag otherwise]]), "Pick-Up Song" (where each of the team members have to sing along to a song which is muted half way through and still be in time with the lyrics when the sound is turned back up) and "Swanee-Kazoo" (where each team has to play a given song with a swanee whistle and a kazoo). There was usually a RunningGag at the expense of the late Jeremy Hardy whenever he was on the show as he was a hilariously terrible singer (which extended to jokes about said singing even [[ButtMonkey when he wasn't present]]).

* NamesakeGag: Coco Chanel, inventor of the popular bedtime drink.

* LongRunner: It's been going for forty years, making it one of Radio 4's longest running programmes and the longest running Radio 4 panel game after ''Radio/JustAMinute''.

-->'''Butler''': This is Lord Bedside.
-->'''Lord Bedside''': How do you do. Welcome to Bedside House.
-->'''Butler''': I thought you were going to say "Manor", sir.
-->'''Lord Bedside''': Yes, so I was. Welcome to Manor House.
** Also, from "Late Arrivals To The Television Ball":

-->'''Barry:''' Cancan: couple of tins. Toucan: couple of tins. Comic/{{Tintin}}: famous cartoon character.

* OrphanedPunchline: Inverted during the usual TakeThat against Colin in an introduction to "One Song to the Tune of Another". Humph read out "Even after all these years, the sound of Colin's playing still makes me want to clap"; this alone was enough to get laughter and a round of applause from the audience, and he decided not to bother with the punchline.[[note]]It wasn't until the episode was released as part of the "Live" CD range that the punchline was revealed as part of the retakes between shows: "Both hands over both ears!"[[/note]]

* NeverMyFault: If the music comes back in "Pick-up Song" to reveal that the panellist was significantly out of time with the original, they will make some comment about the original singer "losing it".

* AccidentalMisnaming: In an episode when Tony Hawks was the guest, Humph pointed out an oddity in the buzzers.

The chairman was Humphrey Lyttelton, a jazz trumpeter (the thinking being that improvisational comedy owed a lot to jazz), who created the persona of a curmudgeonly DeadpanSnarker who would rather be doing something else. ''Anything'' else [[note]]except playing the trumpet[[/note]]. The regular teams for most of the show's history were Barry Cryer and Graeme Garden versus Tim Brooke-Taylor and Creator/WillieRushton (the third Goodie, Bill Oddie, was in the first two series). After Rushton's death in 1996, the fourth panelist became a rotating position[[note]]Jeremy Hardy usually appeared once a series before his death, and some of the more frequent guests have included Rob Brydon, Susan Calman, John Finnemore, Stephen Fry, Andy Hamilton, Tony Hawks, Miles Jupp, Paul Merton, David Mitchell and Sandi Toksvig[[/note]]. Guests also deputise for Barry, Tim or Graeme if they are unable to make a recording; in recent years there have been many editions where only one of the regulars has been able to make the recording, and all three appear together only once a series at most. Because of the show's pedigree, and the fact that the regulars have the final say in who the guests are, being asked to appear on the show has a certain amount of prestige attached to it (and many have turned down the opportunity for fear they might ruin it).

There are also some musical rounds in the show. While the most popular musical game in the early years was the "Blues" (where each team has to create one on the spot), the three most popular throughout most of the show's run are "One Song to the Tune of Another" (which is [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin self-explanatory]], although [[RunningGag Humph thinks]] [[ExpospeakGag otherwise]]), "Pick-Up Song" (where each of the team members have to sing along to a song which is muted half way through and still be in time with the lyrics when the sound is turned back up) and "Swanee-Kazoo" (where each team has to play a given song with a swanee whistle and a kazoo). There's usually a RunningGag at the expense of guest Jeremy Hardy whenever he's on the show as he's a hilariously terrible singer (which has extended to jokes about said singing even [[ButtMonkey when he's not present]]).

The show has won three Golden Sony Awards, including one for ''I'm Sorry I Haven't A Christmas Carol'', a ChristmasEpisode which cast all the regulars and guest panelists into a version of ''Literature/AChristmasCarol'' and somehow managed to force most of the games into the storyline. This was followed a couple of years later with ''Humph [[Literature/AliceInWonderland In Wonderland]]''.

The chairman was Humphrey Lyttelton, a jazz trumpeter (the thinking being that improvisational comedy owed a lot to jazz), who created the persona of a curmudgeonly DeadpanSnarker who would rather be doing something else. ''Anything'' else [[note]]except playing the trumpet[[/note]]. The regular teams for most of the show's history were Barry Cryer and Graeme Garden versus Tim Brooke-Taylor and Creator/WillieRushton (the third Goodie, Bill Oddie, was in the first two series). After Rushton's death in 1996, the fourth panelist became a rotating position[[note]]Jeremy Hardy usually appeared once a series before his death, and some of the more frequent guests have included Rob Brydon, Stephen Fry, Andy Hamilton, Tony Hawks, Paul Merton, David Mitchell and Sandi Toksvig[[/note]]. Guests also deputise for Barry, Tim or Graeme if they are unable to make a recording; in recent years there have been many editions where only one of the regulars has been able to make the recording, and all three appear together only once a series at most. Because of the show's pedigree, and the fact that the regulars have the final say in who the guests are, being asked to appear on the show has a certain amount of prestige attached to it (and many have turned down the opportunity for fear they might ruin it).

The [[WordAssociationTest word disassociation game]]. One team exchange a random series of words with no connection whatsoever. The other team may challenge if they spot a connection, and if the chairman agrees with the challenge, they take over. Words with a ''direct'' connection are usually ignored in favor of [[RuleOfFunny words with a roundabout, absurd connection]]. ("Kangaroo." "Hop." "''(buzz)'' A kangaroo might go to a dance...which, in America, is known as a hop.") Barry has [[RunningGag made a habit]] out of buzzing in on any two words and claiming they were a sixties rock band. Still played.

Other people on the show include Colin Sell, the long-suffering pianist, and Samantha, the entirely fictional scorer, about whom many [[DoubleEntendre Double Entendres]] are made. On one occasion, Colin Sell's stand-in as duty pianist was veteran jokester musician NeilInnes, best known for the ''BonzoDogDooDahBand'' and ''Music/TheRutles''. Humph introduced him as 'a man whose royalty payments on "I'm The Urban Spaceman" have just run out', to which Innes responded with several bars of the Death March from ''Aida''.

The chairman reads a barcode aloud (such as "thick white, thick black, thin white, thin white, thin black, thick white") and the panellists give humorous suggestions as to what it can be. Only played once.

The chairman says a famous historical event, and invites the players to come up with headlines. This round typically plays on the different viewpoints of different newspapers -- running gags include ''the Sport'', with its focus on supernatural events and sightings of Elvis, ''the Daily Mail'', with its obsession with house prices, ''the Evening Standard'', with its concentration on London-centric news, and the ''Independent'' with its no-nonsense, fact-stating reports. [[RunningGag Inevitably]], Graeme will do a "''The Guardian'' corrections and clarifications" joke, which poke fun at the ''Guardian'''s reputation for bad spelling by replacing a misspelled headline with an equally misspelled headline. (E.g. "Yesterday's headline 'bishops tickle Darwin's monkey theory' should have read 'bishops ''tackle'' Darwin's donkey, Terry'.") The last time it showed up was in 2008.

The chairman gives one of the panellists a song which they must sing [[Radio/JustAMinute without hesitation, repetition or deviation]]. (The songs are always picked to make this as ridiculously difficult as possible, such as ''Old Macdonald Had A Farm'' or ''It's Not Unusual''.) Other panellists may challenge at any time if they detect hesitation, repetition or deviation, and if the chairman judges that their challenge is correct, they take over from the point where the previous singer left off. Takes its inspiration, rather obviously, from ''Radio/JustAMinute'' -- Jack has taken to chairing the game using a caricature of Nicholas Parsons' energetic, enthusiastic speaking style. Still played occasionally, often as a substitute to Swanee-Kazoo.

Formerly known as ''New Definitions'', and renamed after a book containing the best definitions. The panellists say a word, then give a definition of the word, usually by breaking it down into smaller words or making a pun on an already-existing word. (Such as "Impolite: [[note]]Imp alight[[/note]] To set fire to a pixie.") Barry will occasionally say a word and define it as how Creator/SeanConnery would pronounce something. ("Pastiche: [[note]]pasties[[/note]] What Shean Connery eatsh in Cornwall.") Finest ever example was by Stephen Fry, who defined "Countryside" as "to kill Piers Morgan". Basically, HurricaneOfPuns at its maximum. Still played.