The final Crossed Wires Festival headline show at Sheffield City Hall was No Such Thing As A Fish. In this hugely popular podcast four writers, researchers and script editors from BBC’s QI unite to delve deep (and very deep!) into their favourite fact of the week. On a warm Sunday afternoon, enthusiastic podcast listeners filled the City Hall for a special live recording of the podcast.
Dan Schreiber hosts the podcast. He guides the conversations well, although it would not have harmed if he had moved the conversation onto the next fact of the week a little quicker sometimes. He is joined by James Harkin, Andrew Hunter Murray and Anna Ptaszynski. Each No Such Thing As A Fish podcast contributor has a different personality and different style of humour, whilst still having a fantastic rapport with each other, making for an entertaining afternoon. Each contributor is clearly mind-blowingly intelligent, which can sometimes be entertaining as the conversations are so surreal but at times, the conversations are overly intelligent for a little too long, making it challenging to stay fully engaged. Being part of this live recording felt even more special as it was Ptaszynski’s final appearance before going on maternity leave.
It is clear to see why No Such Thing As A Fish has become such a popular podcast over the years. It is a great way to gain some random knowledge about the world we find ourselves in, whilst having a laugh along the way.
Reviewed on 6th July 2025