Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!

NPR

331 episodes listed below

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Peter Sagal leads NPR's live news quiz, pairing celebrity guests with listener call-in games.

The gist

Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! is a live public-radio comedy game built from real headlines, quick guesses, and panelist pile-ons. News becomes the setup, but the payoff is often a tangent about suburbs, robo-teachers, dimes, dining halls, or boombox romance.

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About Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!

The show is a long-running NPR institution — the sample reviewed here is drawn from a catalog of roughly 299 episodes — structured as a fixed panel format rather than long-form interviews or narrative storytelling. Peter Sagal hosts and moderates, steering the conversation between news-quiz rounds and the week's celebrity interview. Bill Curtis serves as the show's announcer and scorekeeper, reading quiz material and keeping score across the games. A rotating cast of comedian panelists — Negin Farsad and Joyelle Nicole Johnson recur in the sample — supply jokes and read out the 'Bluff the Listener' segment, in which a caller picks the true story out of three tall tales. Each episode also features one celebrity guest, mostly from film, television, and streaming — Olivia Munn, Jon M. Chu, Rhea Seehorn, Andy Richter, and Delroy Lindo appear in the sample — who discusses a current project before playing a trivia game loosely tied to their career. Recurring subject matter includes national politics and Supreme Court news, space and science headlines, awards-season and streaming releases, and local color from whichever city hosts that week's live taping (Chicago is the regular base, with tour stops like Savannah, Georgia). The tone is comedic rather than analytical throughout: news events are treated as premises for jokes and audience games rather than subjects of debate or investigation. The feed also occasionally carries bonus episodes of NPR's companion program 'How To Do Everything,' which applies a similar comic, mystery-solving approach to everyday domestic questions. Listeners get a mix of topical satire, celebrity small talk, and structured trivia games rather than a single sustained theme. The show suits people who already follow current events and want a comedic, radio-variety-show take on the week's news rather than deep analysis or investigative reporting.

Made for: NPR and public-radio listeners who enjoy current-events comedy, trivia games, and celebrity small talk more than hard news analysis.

What sets it apart: Unlike single-host interview or narrative shows, it pairs a scripted live news quiz and listener call-in games like 'Bluff the Listener' with a rotating comedian panel and one celebrity guest per episode.

In their own words

NPR's weekly news quiz hosted by Peter Sagal. Have a laugh and test your knowledge with today's funniest comedians and a celebrity guest.Hate free content? Try a subscription to Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!+. Your subscription supports public radio and unlocks fun bonus episodes along with sponsor-free listening. Learn more at https://plus.npr.org/waitwait

As heard by us

Based on 6 episodes we listened to · September 2026

It turns headlines and guest stories into brisk quiz setups with ample room for contestants, panelists, and punch lines.

Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! turns the news into a live contest, moving from listener quizzes to panel riffs, then through a guest game and closing predictions.

Read our full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

This is the news quiz that lets you lose gracefully while John Cusack discusses boombox romance.

Press play if you want

to test your headline knowledge without being punished for missing the weird one
celebrity conversations where Arden Cho's fan videos and John Cusack's romantic legacy become punchlines

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

news satire panelcelebrity interviewsbluff the listenerlistener call-in gamespop culture triviacurrent events comedylive audience tapingspolitics and government news

Talks about

Comedy

Best episodes of Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!

Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.

Wait Wait goes wild on spring breakApr 11, 2026

Spring-break banter, a perfect quiz run, and a lively return from Andy Richter.

Spring break gives Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! a looser frame than usual, and Peter Sagal and Bill Curtis keep the hour moving with steady timing.

We become friends and neighbors with Olivia MunnApr 4, 2026

Olivia Munn on the deal her immigrant mother brokered before the move to LA.

Olivia Munn's "Not My Job" segment is the reason to find this episode. Her mother, an immigrant who had no clear picture of what a journalist actually did, agreed to back the LA move only after Munn pointed to TV news anchors and promised to work in journalism for a year first.

HTDE: Sheets and BlanketsApr 1, 2026

Ezra from the surveillance store and a possible sleep-twirler help Ian and Mike settle Kevin and Rebecca's nightly cover dispute.

Kevin and Rebecca's nightly cover dispute -- the sheet reliably ends up on her side, the blanket on his, roughly 90 percent of nights -- sends Ian and Mike into genuine investigative mode.

We meet America's robo-teachers and take a nap in coachMar 28, 2026

A lively Savannah stop built on banter, audience play, and a strong guest segment with D.W. Moffat.

Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! comes across as a lively stop in Savannah, with Peter Sagal guiding the crowd through listener games and a conversation with D.W. Moffat from the Johnny Mercer Theater.

We admire dimes and Aasif Mandvi gives breakup adviceMar 21, 2026

A lively news quiz that opens into a loose, entertaining conversation with Asif Manvi.

Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! opens from the Studebaker Theater in Chicago as the NPR News Quiz, then drifts into a conversation with former Daily Show correspondent Asif Manvi, who says he left in 2017 to work in TV, movies, and plays.

John Cusack rides his Vespa straight into our heartsMar 14, 2026

A boombox gag opens into a warm, unruly portrait of John Cusack's long pop-culture afterlife.

Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! turns into a live-audience riff on John Cusack, with the host milking the Say Anything boombox gag before the talk opens out into the kind of career story Cusack himself calls a fever dream.

HTDE: The Breakfast RuleMar 4, 2026

Lorna White, last line of defense, explains what salad and digestion have to do with breakfast radio.

"The Breakfast Rule" is the HTDE episode where Peter Sagal and technical director Lorna White join hosts Ian and Mike to talk through an in-house editing policy.

Our panel heads to Milan and Arden Cho hunts demonsFeb 14, 2026

A Chicago taping that moves from quiz banter into a warm look at K-Pop Demon Hunters and its reach.

Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! is back in its usual groove here, with a Chicago taping of the NPR News Quiz and Bill Curtis and Nagin Farsad steering the show. The conversation with Arden Cho, who plays Rumi in K-Pop Demon Hunters, is the part that sticks.

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Fast riffs from a beautifully chaotic mic.

Find your next episode

About Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!

In their own words

As heard by us

Why you'd press play

Talks about

Best episodes of Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!

Podcasts like Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!

Episodes

We ghost some tech bros with David Byrne

A surprise snow day for the White House press corps

A fond farewell to brunch and also humankind

We fold our phones and get roasted by Leslie Jones

Our panel goes on shore leave with Maggie Smith

Trade wars, what are they good for?

The Wait Wait 2026 summer spectacular, part 2!

The Wait Wait 2026 summer spectacular, part 1!

Falling in love with an octopus, a dog, and Sally Field

Betting on a graveyard of Cybertrucks with Mary Roach

A tick-filled odyssey

We skip the salad bar and have a banana instead

Love Island and Pre-Teen Punks with Jason Narducy

Celebrating the 4th with nothing but bangers!

Reflecting Pools and Construction Zones

The World Cup, Trad Wives, and the Wedding of the Century

Insult Dogs and Emotional Support Alligators

The Alzo Era begins in Austin!

Breaking News from Wait Wait: Our new Judge and Scorekeeper is announced!

Our (early) endless summer with Lucy Dacus and more!

Brandi Carlile helps us say goodbye to Bill Kurtis!

We make Ken Jennings relive the worst moment of his life

Spirit Airlines, The Book of Mormon, and Grunting

We're live in San Diego with Ron Burgundy!

HTDE: Burritos and Handshakes

We go to confessional with Father James Martin

We beef with the pontiff and admire the Stanley Cup

HTDE: Crushes and Smells

Wait Wait goes wild on spring break

We become friends and neighbors with Olivia Munn

HTDE: Sheets and Blankets

We meet America's robo-teachers and take a nap in coach

We admire dimes and Aasif Mandvi gives breakup advice

HTDE: Crickets and Clowns

John Cusack rides his Vespa straight into our hearts

We say "So long!" to Kristi Noem and Benetti plays ball

HTDE: The Breakfast Rule

We tackle the SOTU and Olympian Lilly King talks trash

We hold our own Olympic Games with our favorite guests

HTDE: Curling Stones and Halfpipe Lines

Our panel heads to Milan and Arden Cho hunts demons

HTDE: Forks and Ice Masters

Librarian Mychal Threets talks rebooting Reading Rainbow and our panel eats goo

HTDE: Torches and Ski Jumps

"Wicked" director Jon M. Chu talks Elphaba-branded Swiffers and we preview "Melania"

WWDTM: Kevin O'Leary

WWDTM: Kali Reis

WWDTM: Pedro Pascal, Chris Perfetti, Heather Gay, and more!

WWDTM: Delroy Lindo

WWDTM: Carissa Moore, Bob Costas, and Jim Rice

WWDTM: Rhea Seehorn

We ask Peter about the guest who's most surprised him, plus other listener questions

WWDTM: Lucy Dacus

HTDE: One-Liners and Free Throws

WWDTM: Andy Richter

WWDTM: Paul Giamatti, Laufey, and more!

HTDE: Carsickness And Traffic Jams

WWDTM: Niki Russ Federman and Josh Russ Tupper

WWDTM: Tiffany Haddish

HTDE: Broadway Musicals And Best In Show

WWDTM: Roy Choi

WWDTM: Julia Fox

HTDE: Motivation, Secret Messages, and Stealing Your Thunder

WWDTM: Ally the Piper

WWDTM: Anna Kendrick, Jeff Gordon, and more!

HTDE: Earthquakes, Dentists, and How To Talk To Your Dog

WWDTM: Taimane

WWDTM: Becca Mann

HTDE: AI, War, and Exercise, with Arnold Schwarzenegger

WWDTM: Cynthia Nixon

WWDTM: Chip Caray