Graham Norton and Holly Willoughby have been named king and queen of chat show hosting, Although Ms. Willoughby came in 9th, she was the highest ranked female on the list. (Quite rightly so in our opinion, following last week’s post NTA hangover episode of This Morning!)
Norton pipped chat show legend Michael Parkinson to the top spot, pushing Jonathan Ross into third. Chatty Man’s Alan Carr and national treasure, Sir Terry Wogan made up the rest of the top 5.
Although Parky and Wogan may not have been on our screens for years now, the calibre of their performances may explain their high rankings, as 1 in 3 UK adults believe the quality of chat shows has declined in recent years.
So why do people keep tuning in?
Our survey found that 54% watch chat shows for the host, while 44% tune in for the guests. Over a third believe that more A-listers would help improve the shows. A quarter stated that they want more serious topics of conversation.
The study of 2,000 people also looked at the top 10 chat show moments of all time and this time there was no rivalling Parky with his assault at the hands of Emu claiming top spot. Other treasured moments include Tom Cruises’ ‘I LOVE KATIE’ moment on Oprah, the BeeGee’s storming off Clive Anderson’s show and George Best’s drunken interview with Wogan.
Read some of the media coverage here Mirror.co.uk.
Top 20 chat show hosts of all time
- Graham Norton
- Michael Parkinson
- Jonathan Ross
- Alan Carrr
- Terry Wogan
- James Corden
- Paul O’Grady
- Dave Allen
- Philip Schofield
- Holly Willoughby
- David Frost
- Frank Skinner
- Piers Morgan
- Des O’Connor
- Jeremy Kyle
- Ricky Gervais
- Ellen DeGeneres
- Michael McIntyre
- Dame Edna
- Oprah Winfrey
Top 10 chat show moments of all time
- Rod Hull and Emu attacking Michael Parkinson
- Bee Gee’s Storm off on Clive Anderson Talks Back
- Grace Jones slapping Russell Harty
- Tom Cruise’s ‘I love Katie’ outburst on Oprah
- Drunk George Best slurring on Wogan
- David Icke’s predicting natural disasters on Wogan
- Jonathan Ross asking David Cameron about Margaret Thatcher sexual fantasies on The Jonathan Ross show
- The Sex Pistols swearing on The Today Show
- Drew Barrymore flashing on David Letterman
- Oprah gives away cars to the studio audience on Oprah
