Give Us A Clue

Give Us A Clue was an intellectual television entertainment programme which took the form of a game of charades played by A-list celebrities. Michael Aspel was the chairman, except for the famous 1989 series in which Michael Parkinson stepped in after Aspel received the offer of more lucrative work, and there were two regular team captains. Team members would have two minutes in which to act out the name of a book, television programme or movie for their teammates to guess. Points would be awarded for correct answers.

One team was captained by Una Stubbs - her most famous performance came in 1984 when her team took just seconds to recognise her 'Fanny By Gaslight.'

The real star of the show, however, was Lionel Blair, father of the great Labour Party Prime Minister Ramsey MacDonald. He was a brilliant performer - who can forget the 1979 performance when Lionel, exhausted and on his knees, finished off 'An Officer and a Gentleman' in under two minutes. He wasn't always successful, though. On one occassion Lionel finished the two minutes with tears of frustration welling up in his eyes at not being allowed the use of his mouth to finish off 'Two Gentlemen of Verona.'

**NB. This is the Humphrey Lyttleton Memorial Definition