BBCCheeky, chatty and not afraid to tease guests silly, Jack Whitehall was the perfect guest host in Graham Norton’s absence.
However, the 30-year-old comedian found himself in a very sticky situation when an audience member called him out on his ‘rude’ behaviour on the very same show eight years ago.
Audience member Celine was the very first person to sit on The Graham Norton Show’s ‘big red chair’ that evening, and she appeared delighted to be finally getting her payback.
After Jack introduced her, Celine was practically rubbing her hands together as she confessed she had sat in the chair before:
Well, this is my second visit to the red chair, actually. I was here eight years ago. And I told a story that I thought was really good, about when I was living in France and something happened with my daughter.
However, a certain guest on the sofa that night really did not like my story and he was rather rude.
He actually said ‘is that the best story she could come up with? Who does she bloody think she is?’
She continued:
Funnily enough, my daughter met this person at a nightclub recently.
The dawning realization on Jack’s face as he twigged he was the person she was speaking about (‘Oh my god, it’s me!’) was hilarious.
Jack Whitehall is smashing the Graham Norton show tonight. Seriously funny. Definitely should have his own late night talk show.
— Tom Munns (@TomMunns1) May 17, 2019
Jack Whitehall was the perfect choice as a stand in for Graham Norton. He's actually smashed it 👏👏
— Cranjis McBasketball (@jodibwithoutane) May 17, 2019
A-List guests Gwendoline Christie, Luke Evans, Peter Crouch, David Walliams and Sam Fender couldn’t control their amusement as Jack squirmed with embarrassment, clapping a hand over his mouth.
After ejecting a Celine from the chair, Jack said:
Oh, that was so awkward.
I have to say… I thought @jackwhitehall was excellent filling Graham Norton’s enormous shoes @TheGNShow tonight. That was a really enjoyable, relaxed show. I like and respect him a lot more now. #grahamnortonshow pic.twitter.com/K1WWixNVkd
— amyrobyn (@amyrobyn) May 17, 2019
Oops. Despite this hiccup, fans of the show were very impressed by Jack filling in for Graham, with some arguing that he was an even better host than the Irish funnyman.
One person tweeted:
Sorry but the Graham Norton show is much more funnier with @jackwhitehall at the helm. Please get a talk show of your own and take over the telly!!
Another said:
Graham Norton might be joining Jeremy Kyle at the job centre next week. Jack Whitehall is hilarious.
Graham Norton might be joining Jeremy Kyle at the job centre next week. Jack Whitehall is hilarious 😂
— 𝒟𝒶𝓃𝒾𝑒𝓁𝓁𝑒 (@daniellepagxx) May 17, 2019
Sorry but the Graham Norton show is much more funnier with @jackwhitehall at the helm. Please get a talk show of your own and take over the telly!!
— Dan Brockman (@BrockmanDan) May 17, 2019
The Graham Norton Show airs on Fridays at 10.35pm on BBC One. Graham will be making his return next week.
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Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.