Victoria Coren Mitchell reveals she had to re-record Only Connect scene after ‘spooking’ BBC bosses with joke
VICTORIA Coren Mitchell revealed she was forced to re-record an Only Connect scene – after ‘spooking’ bosses with a controversial joke.
Writer and presenter Victoria, 52, has presented the notoriously difficult BBC quiz show since 2008.
On Monday (January 6), however, viewers were left confused by a strange wardrobe mishap in the episode’s opening.
In her introduction, Victoria quipped about using AI to generate more exciting opening remarks.
She read out: “It came up with this, ‘Good evening and welcome to Connect-Enders, a world of bitter rivalries and long-running feuds. Where devious characters are forever coming and going, amid a bewildering maelstrom of Byzantine promiscuity”.
While holding up her phone, viewers could clearly see Victoria’s nails were polished in a bright red.
However, in the next clip, she had bare nails despite wearing the same outfit.
Eagle-eyed fans soon noticed this, and took to social media to share their observations.
One wrote on X, formerly Twitter: “@VictoeiaCoren hang on, how long does it take to film a show.
“At the beginning you have red nails and then a few moments later they have gone #OnlyConnect.”
Another commented: “Watching #onlyconnect on delay and in @VictoriaCoren’s intro she has red nails holding the phone, yet later with the question cards, no nail varnish.
“The viewers of this show are far too observant and analytical to miss something like that continuity!!”
A third simply wrote: “Did anyone else notice Victoria’s nails?”
Meanwhile, Victoria replied to one of the posts with a possible explanation.
She wrote: “What was the intro?
“There was one where I had to record a whole different start on a different day because I made a joke about Strictly which spooked the powers that be.
“Sounds like must have been this one!”
It comes as Victoria previously left Only Connect fans “traumatised” when she made a VERY rude joke.
She referenced an infamous joke about her having a crush on former politician Michael Portillo.
As the show ended the presenter – who is married to actor and comedian David Mitchell – said: “Coming up next on BBC Two is another episode in that wonderful series sponsored by the RSPB, where celebrities look after birds before handing them on to other celebrities to raise awareness of struggling avian numbers.
Hardest Quiz Show Questions
Would you know the answers to some of quizzing TV's hardest questions
- Who Wants To Be A Millionaire – Earlier this year, fans were left outraged after what they described as the “worst” question in the show’s history. Host Jeremy Clarkson asked: “From the 2000 awards ceremony onwards, the Best Actress Oscar has never been won by a woman whose surname begins with which one of these letters?” The multiple choice answers were between G, K, M and W. In the end, and with the £32,000 safe, player Glen had to make a guess and went for G. It turned out to be correct as Nicole Kidman, Frances McDormand and Kate Winslet are among the stars who have won the Best Actress gong since 2000.
- The 1% Club – Viewers of Lee Mack’s popular ITV show were left dumbfounded by a question that also left the players perplexed. The query went as follows: “Edna’s birthday is on the 6th of April and Jen’s birthday falls on the 15th of October, therefore Amir’s birthday must be the ‘X’ of January.” It turns out the conundrum links the numbers with its position in the sentence, so 6th is the sixth word and 15th is the fifteenth word. Therefore, Amir’s birthday is January 24th, corresponding to the 24th word in the sentence.
- The Chase – The ITV daytime favourite left fans scratching their heads when it threw up one of the most bizarre questions to ever grace the programme. One of the questions asked the player: “Someone with a nightshade intolerance should avoid eating what?” The options were – sweetcorn, potatoes, carrots – with Steve selecting sweetcorn but the correct answer was potatoes.
“I have so enjoyed watching big names on BBC Two passing their feathered dependents on to other presenters, so I decided to join in myself.
“Tonight, I will be eagerly taking several swallows from Michael Portillo. Goodnight.”
Taking to social media, one fan said: “Somewhat traumatised by @VictoriaCoren parting shot on #OnlyConnect tonight!!”
Only Connect airs on BBC Two and iPlayer.