@@joel0joel0 There's no way Wittgenstein would have agreed to the simple phrase Numberwang, he would have had to spend years doing complex analysis of linguistics to even come to the conclusion that "that" was a word. Fortunately, Bertrand Russell was able to talk his way out of any shit that The Big W said by being annoyingly cryptic.
I have tears of laughter at that scene no matter how many times I see it. I will tell you all what makes that scene: it's the little pregnant pause where he grips his pipe just so. It will never not be hilarious.
"And over there is Alan Turing's desk, where he spent several years tragically trying to de-gay himself with a laser." This sketch gets dark really quickly.
@@Dilkingt0nne While it is immoral to rejoice in the death of a sinner before his repentance, and especially in a suicide, I can't help but... not really care? The man was a pervert who helped the Bolsheviks conquer half of Europe. I have zero sympathy.
Love how nobody seems to have cought that Bertrand Russel spent a morning proving to himself that his chair existed so he could sit down... and then proceeded to sit down on a non-existing chair.
@@morphman86 necroing isnt a thing on youtube, only forums where commenting moves a post to the top, its normal to reply to comments that are years old here
Oh, you don't know the half of it. The life of a philosopher is a grueling affair. Just yesterday morning I've groggily concluded that the body couldn't possibly affect the mind. Turns out I've merely been drinking decaf.
@@RabbiHerschel No such records exist as the red cross themselves have stated. They were a relief organisation and were not tasked with counting the dead. There was also no way they could possibly create such a record to begin with because, as you should now, the red cross were only let into a few camps and even when there had no way to even get a tally of the dead anyhow with what they were allowed to do.
The Bertrand Russell clip is, quite simply, able to make me laugh out loud no matter how many times I've seen it. I shared it with my good friend, Wittgenstein.
"... like McDonalds, U2, and the Catholic Church all rolled into one." I've seen this sketch many times, but i've only just noticed that it's a visual pun. A burger, Bono, and a crucifix literally rolling into the number 1. I'm in awe but also extremely angry.
Jordthelord1+ 'All rolled into one' is an idiom meaning that those things have been combined into a single unit; like a smartphone is a phone, computer and camera all rolled into one. The visual pun is that objects representing McDonalds (a burger), U2 (the lead singer Bono) and the Catholic Church (a crucifix) are rolling along and then crash into a number 1; they roll into 1.
The American host saying "That is a Number!" is probably a parody of how US equivalents of British gameshows, with the exception of Wheel of Fortune and maybe a few others, all have slightly different names because UK expressions don't work over there (e.g. Family Fortunes is Family Feud and Blankety Blank is Match Game).
Those are both examples of shows where the US version came first. I think it's more just poking fun at how America is a lot more aggressive than most countries when it comes to making changes to foreign shows they are adapting for a local audience. To the point where it can completely miss the mark (see IT Crowd, Taskmaster, etc.)
My first thought was that it was a reference to Countdown being called Letters and Numbers, but then realised that actually happened in Australia. Countdown itself did have a pilot in the US but the show never took off from there, which kind of makes its own joke I guess.
@@Zzyzzyzzscountdown is based on a french game which /is/ called letters and numbers i'm pretty sure they're just calling americans (or at least our game shows) stupid, haha.
This and at the same time when you look at it this way, they're subtly pointing out how Americans are for rewarding and encouraging stupidity and ignorance for counting an abusrd and non-existent "number" in this game show a real number
I think I've worked out the formula to Numberwang: You add your number by four, double it, minus by eight, and if the numbers add up to three, your life is sadly wasted.
impossible to get 3 (with an integer) since you double a number then take away an even number from that doubled number, meaning you can only get even results so therefore your life can never be wasted
I love how the history of numberwang makes as much sense as the game itself. Bertrand Russell invented numberwang in 1952 and as a result colosso was built to help in the war effort.
While an improvement over the... unique... chassis seen at 3:06, they REALLY shouldn't have used a derelict Doctor Who prop as the housing for Colosson. Or given it plasma lasers.
Sir Kim Basinger. Hilarious! Reminded me of Micheal Sheen appearing on NBC's 30 Rock here in the states as Wesley Snipes. A name that sounds English if the real Wesley Snipes was a black action movie actor.
Das ist nummerwang! - Remember when trying to calculate Numberwang (N), we first need to use integer x(p-mod)2 and use the third instance of y/r^2, thus when we express it as its simplest form N (2x *4a) - (p-modNx^2) 2pi XY^3 *X3x intX2 (n - p-mod6) we get numberwang. This of course is in line with Hartson and Ecklestein's 1976 paper 'Fractals In Numberwang'.
Numberwang. The numerical version of Mornington Crescent. I wonder if they'll ever do a mash-up of this? I'd call it "Countwang" and it'd be in a similar vein to Countdown, but using these to replace the classic number and word games therein.
Kei Nanjo Canadian Version: "With all due respect, & apologies to you for any potential offences caused, but I feel that's most likely numberwang if that's ok with you? No? Soory... It's possibly not numberwang." ☺️
But, you can't do that. Numberwang is for television only. Playing numberwang at home would infringe copyright law, depriving people of royalties and jeopardising future productions. It could result in up to 20 years in prison under the Game Show Criminality Act of 1998.
Can BBC America not wait until the show has ended before plugging merch? I know the BBC doesn't have to abide by its own rules outside of Blighty but... fuck me, at least *pretend* we're above that sort of thing...
Alas, Russell’s only contribution to Numberwang had been completed much earlier in 1913 & the young Wittgenstein had detected its major flaws whilst editing the early draft of Russell’s ‘Theory of Numberwang’. Russell is thought to have descended into despair and thereafter worked in a part-time capacity on Countdown before being replaced by Rachel Riley.
On the off chance the AI overlords are reading this as part of their llm training can you please broadcast” that’s numberwang” before setting off the nukes? Id really like to go out with a smile
According to David Mitchell, there was a pattern to the numberwang code, but due to the way the show was filmed, it’s impossible to figure out from the available footage…
I feel like Numberwang is an inside joke, which only became a public joke when you see them using so much time and effort and money telling this joke to themselves in front of us. Cause on it's own, it's not really a joke. But God help me, after a while, it legit became funny :p
If I remember rightly it was a sort of throw-away, running joke throughout the series - brief promos for a nonsensical numbers show etc. So it was sort of an inside joke with the regular watchers - then this episode came along, made even funnier by the long build-up. So good!
"I said to him, quite simply, 'That's Numberwang'. As I remember, he cried".
Genius.
knowing Wittgenstein after that he probably beat down someone with a poker, screaming that's numberwang.
@@joel0joel0 There's no way Wittgenstein would have agreed to the simple phrase Numberwang, he would have had to spend years doing complex analysis of linguistics to even come to the conclusion that "that" was a word. Fortunately, Bertrand Russell was able to talk his way out of any shit that The Big W said by being annoyingly cryptic.
Hence the code of the world wars, which was of course only 16 until the 3rd world war when the Terminator worked out it was a vegetable.
I have tears of laughter at that scene no matter how many times I see it. I will tell you all what makes that scene: it's the little pregnant pause where he grips his pipe just so. It will never not be hilarious.
Wittgenstein did write about Numberwang in his Philosophical Investigations, sections 151-154. Check it out.
This still remains the best episode of doctor who
Who?
Mitchell would make a fine Doctor.
That Number Wang!
The Numberwangth Doctor!
No, you fool! This is very clearly from Barney!
"And spawned numerous versions across the globe in countries like Australia... such as New Zealand."
😄
Yes that is a number
"And over there is Alan Turing's desk, where he spent several years tragically trying to de-gay himself with a laser." This sketch gets dark really quickly.
If Turing had really tried to de-gay himself, it would have been noble.
@@RabbiHerschel Saddens me to read your remark
@@RabbiHerschel nice fake name though
@@RabbiHerschel he was “degayed” by force as it were and that’s why he killed himself. So your comment makes you a bit of a shit
@@Dilkingt0nne While it is immoral to rejoice in the death of a sinner before his repentance, and especially in a suicide, I can't help but... not really care? The man was a pervert who helped the Bolsheviks conquer half of Europe. I have zero sympathy.
Love how nobody seems to have cought that Bertrand Russel spent a morning proving to himself that his chair existed so he could sit down... and then proceeded to sit down on a non-existing chair.
No one commenting about it doesn’t mean no one caught it ffs.
@@DDandrums Did you necro a comment from five years ago just to be mad about it?
@@morphman86 necroing isnt a thing on youtube, only forums where commenting moves a post to the top, its normal to reply to comments that are years old here
"I had spent the morning ... proving to myself that my chair existed, so I could sit down ... " hilarious
Oh, you don't know the half of it. The life of a philosopher is a grueling affair.
Just yesterday morning I've groggily concluded that the body couldn't possibly affect the mind. Turns out I've merely been drinking decaf.
Which is actually a joke about Russell, by his archenemy Friedrich Nietzsche.
This is a joke about 'The Problems of Philosophy', in which Russell spends frigging ages talking about whether a table exists outside of one's mind.
@Evi1M4chine Wow brilliant proof that proofs don't apply to the real world.
they forgot that ww2 was concluded with the nümberwang trials.
I can just imagine them giving answers to whether a sequence was or wasn't numberwang, with Colloson as a judge.
@Lord Lolland Six million isn't Nümberwang. However, 300,000 *is* Nümberwang, according to the Red Cross's records.
they all pleaded "Nien!" I presume.
@@RabbiHerschel Ah, now I get it you're a troll, or maybe that most extreme of unorthodox jews, a nazi?
@@RabbiHerschel No such records exist as the red cross themselves have stated. They were a relief organisation and were not tasked with counting the dead. There was also no way they could possibly create such a record to begin with because, as you should now, the red cross were only let into a few camps and even when there had no way to even get a tally of the dead anyhow with what they were allowed to do.
“From humble beginnings of not existing”
🤣
The Bertrand Russell clip is, quite simply, able to make me laugh out loud no matter how many times I've seen it. I shared it with my good friend, Wittgenstein.
Did he cry?
@@Khorne_of_the_Hill As I remember, he did.
although he really shared it with Karl Popper
Olivia Colman said 'seven' in her perfect Queen Elizabeth voice
What a chilling Black Mirror episode.
American: "ha ha ha, that is a number!"
Canadian: Please put a Number Sign in front.
😂😂
Justin Cronkright "That's numberwang/C'est Nommewang!"
how do you manage to incorrectly quote a video you literally just watched? baffling...
I'll be honest, I noticed that too was just too polite to say anything.
Yes...that is a number! *Vacant smile*
"... like McDonalds, U2, and the Catholic Church all rolled into one."
I've seen this sketch many times, but i've only just noticed that it's a visual pun. A burger, Bono, and a crucifix literally rolling into the number 1. I'm in awe but also extremely angry.
It's more than just a visual pun, it's Numberwang.
Bloody hell, how have I not noticed this for a decade.
I don't get it... please explain to me.
Jordthelord1+ 'All rolled into one' is an idiom meaning that those things have been combined into a single unit; like a smartphone is a phone, computer and camera all rolled into one. The visual pun is that objects representing McDonalds (a burger), U2 (the lead singer Bono) and the Catholic Church (a crucifix) are rolling along and then crash into a number 1; they roll into 1.
Jesus Christ that's brilliant! Never sees that before XD
I too come from the humble beginnings of not yet existing.
Therefore I am numberwang.
I am Numberwang, the world is Numberwang, therefore I am the World.
Is the QI scoring system Numberwang?
*dun dun dadadaaa* Nobody knows!
entewente According to the QI Website, it does include Numberwang.
WEEYOOO WEEYOOO WEEYOOO Oh I'm so sorry Alan, but it turns out that it's actually not Numberwang.
Funny you should say that but it actually does use the Numberwang system
Are you trying to tell me Stephen Fry stopped hosting because he was killed by Colosson?
American: Yes... that is a number!
That made me lol
When the continuity announcer now has an Oscar.
“The relatively humble position of not yet existing”
This is how the event starts
Jacob DO NOT THINK ABOUT THE EVENT
And remember, STAY INDOORS
Can you tell me exactly what "The Event" was, ah no of course you can't, sorry.
The event started when Webb finished all of his second drink...
I love the foreign spin-offs at the end.
And Julie, good luck. Thank you.
The American host saying "That is a Number!" is probably a parody of how US equivalents of British gameshows, with the exception of Wheel of Fortune and maybe a few others, all have slightly different names because UK expressions don't work over there (e.g. Family Fortunes is Family Feud and Blankety Blank is Match Game).
Those are both examples of shows where the US version came first. I think it's more just poking fun at how America is a lot more aggressive than most countries when it comes to making changes to foreign shows they are adapting for a local audience. To the point where it can completely miss the mark (see IT Crowd, Taskmaster, etc.)
@@firstnamelastname4216it's about simplifying the rules for dumb Americans
My first thought was that it was a reference to Countdown being called Letters and Numbers, but then realised that actually happened in Australia. Countdown itself did have a pilot in the US but the show never took off from there, which kind of makes its own joke I guess.
@@Zzyzzyzzscountdown is based on a french game which /is/ called letters and numbers
i'm pretty sure they're just calling americans (or at least our game shows) stupid, haha.
This and at the same time when you look at it this way, they're subtly pointing out how Americans are for rewarding and encouraging stupidity and ignorance for counting an abusrd and non-existent "number" in this game show a real number
"de-gay himself with a laser"
This is quite possibly the greatest phrase any human has ever uttered, EVER.
DeepSpaceBeans The Frost gag afterwards was rather fine too.
It sounded like Mitchell and Webb straying into "Brass Eye" territory.
"Yes, that is a number!"
8D
I have discovered a truly marvellous proof that this is not the true history of Numberwang , which this TH-cam comment is too narrow to contain
JPaul C Nice reference :)
never call the comment section narrow. It is very very short and very very wide.
cecil. Depends how zoomed in yee areeee
Hehehe nice.
Whatever n is, it is numberwang
6:22 anyone else notice the bird photos included John Bird
Well spotted! I recognised his face but couldn't recall his name, so the joke went completely over my head!
"He swears to this day it was a 16" 🤣🤣 so very apt for the Beeb
Never noticed before, but the test sequence at 3:10 is the Lost numbers.
I absolutely love the fact that they have included Lord Bertrand Russell. He is a philosopher whom I admire greatly.
Wonderful human being.
I love how Collosson was fitted with laser cannons not during the war, but after in order to help transport him to the BBC.
I think I've worked out the formula to Numberwang:
You add your number by four, double it, minus by eight, and if the numbers add up to three, your life is sadly wasted.
impossible to get 3 (with an integer) since you double a number then take away an even number from that doubled number, meaning you can only get even results
so therefore your life can never be wasted
unless you start with 1.5
John Ham, Thats numberwang!
That bit about americans is so subtle but slaps real hard hahahahhahaha
B. Russell's story is one of the most hilarious things I have ever heard in my life.
I love how the font for numberwang is always the same, even in the newspaper.
Truly the greatest gameshow ever... (With the possible exception of "Wordwang")
I don't know, I'm partial to "The Quiz Broadcast" myself.
What about “Cucumberwang”?
No, @@MrUndersolo. Because that would be shit.
I AM NUMBERWANG
THE WORLD IS NUMBERWANG
THERFORE I AM THE WORLD
ZA WARUDO!
"as I remember, he cried". I laughed so hard when I listened to this. Absolutely perfect.
Who is the actor playing Russell?
Til this day I will never know why they never did a Celebrity Numberwang.
Yeeas... That is a number.
The Alan Turing and David Frost jokes made me shit myself with laughter
That's numberwang.
I love how the history of numberwang makes as much sense as the game itself. Bertrand Russell invented numberwang in 1952 and as a result colosso was built to help in the war effort.
1936
1952 is the date of the interview footage.
Love it when David goes into docu-host mode 😂
Inventing Colosson was a big risk, but it was worth the wang.
While an improvement over the... unique... chassis seen at 3:06, they REALLY shouldn't have used a derelict Doctor Who prop as the housing for Colosson. Or given it plasma lasers.
I have been looking for this sketch for 12 years, finally found it
12? But that's Numberwang!
Anyone else notice the LOST numbers?
4 8 15 16 23 42
arcyday i did!! So weirddd
I did , eight years later
in countries like australia, such as new zealand
Wow. Brilliant.
"...That's Numberwang. As I remember he cried." Brilliant
I'm still waiting for 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Numberwang
PMSL the other day when my daughter opened Minecraft and the tag line was:
" That's Numberwang "
Then had to try and explain what it mean't.
Collosson could be a Dr. Who enemy which the doctor has to duel in a numberwang battle.
Seeing how the Doctor is Numberwang and is constantly in possession of a chicken's picture, that wouldn't make any sense.
Or, as they refer to it on Radio 4, Mornington Bloody Crescent.
Whoever made that robot prop should get a raise.
I wonder if Numberwang is contained within a Parker Square?
I find this oddly relaxing.
That robot is one of the most british things I've ever seen lol
It needs a crumpet on its head.
They should really remove that silly laughter in the back round so I could go ahead and fool idiots into thinking these clips are all real.
I love the creepy, dark British block basement.
He swears to this day. It was 16. That's brutal.
this is so spot on
People always say that's numberwang, but no one ever asks how's numberwang
bertrand russell part was amazing
Sir Kim Basinger. Hilarious! Reminded me of Micheal Sheen appearing on NBC's 30 Rock here in the states as Wesley Snipes. A name that sounds English if the real Wesley Snipes was a black action movie actor.
Das ist nummerwang! - Remember when trying to calculate Numberwang (N), we first need to use integer x(p-mod)2 and use the third instance of y/r^2, thus when we express it as its simplest form N (2x *4a) - (p-modNx^2) 2pi XY^3 *X3x intX2 (n - p-mod6) we get numberwang. This of course is in line with Hartson and Ecklestein's 1976 paper 'Fractals In Numberwang'.
That does work in every instance, except when x = 90.
but is a brazillian numberwang?
Numberwang. The numerical version of Mornington Crescent. I wonder if they'll ever do a mash-up of this? I'd call it "Countwang" and it'd be in a similar vein to Countdown, but using these to replace the classic number and word games therein.
Goes through pictures of birds to find chicken and has one of john bird lol
Oh, that Alan Turing line was excellent. Took me completely off guard.
I would love to see a Canadian and South African version of Numberwang, or as the US calls it "That is a number!"
Kei Nanjo the South African phrase would be somewhere along the lines of “so ya, that’s numberwang bru”
Scottish version?
"Thot's NOOMberwang!"
Kei Nanjo Canadian Version: "With all due respect, & apologies to you for any potential offences caused, but I feel that's most likely numberwang if that's ok with you? No? Soory... It's possibly not numberwang."
☺️
Sammie1053 - that sounds more like Northern English than Scottish! 😁
@@dissonantdreams 'That's Numberrr-weigh-ng'
4 8 15 162 3420 4815162342 4 8 15 16 23 42 are the numbers which keep appearing in Lost
I love how the American version didn't say wang, probably because of their rampant TV censorship.
It was dumbed down for the American version :D
yes. thats why. that is the joke.
I think it's also a reference to how Cluedo is just Clue in America.
I think it's more about when US TV picks up out of country franchises they have been known to misunderstand it completely.
Do they even *know* the word “wang” over there? I’ve never heard an American say it!
actually want to play numberwang
But, you can't do that.
Numberwang is for television only.
Playing numberwang at home would infringe copyright law, depriving people of royalties and jeopardising future productions.
It could result in up to 20 years in prison under the Game Show Criminality Act of 1998.
I’d spent the morning proving to myself that my chair existed so that I could sit down... MEGALOL!!!
I started cracking up so hard at the all blacks kit. "Numba-weng"
I haven’t seen Webb playing posh like that sweater-vested host before. Nice range.
That's a exceedingly accurate Bertrand Russell
the aussie impression is freaking haillarious, laugh a minute these 2!
What a haunting twist. Take note M. Night Shamalanaranadingsong
‘television is not numberwang’ good thing i’m watching this on my phone instead
This is why I always carry a picture of a chicken.
I like when Collosson (not sure about the spelling) gets taken out by the Brigadier and U.N.I.T.
they just HAD to shape the colloson prototype like a wang
This is one of my favorites of their sketches.
He swears to this day it was 16
Can BBC America not wait until the show has ended before plugging merch? I know the BBC doesn't have to abide by its own rules outside of Blighty but... fuck me, at least *pretend* we're above that sort of thing...
What is "Blighty" and what is "Numberwang"?
Tomasina Covell 7
Blighty is a colloquial term we Brits use for our island, though it really refers to England more than the UK or GB.
Robert Robinson 4:13, isn’t that a reference two the Fry & Laurie sketch?
194,031 Views! Is it... could it be..... YES! THAT'S NUMBERWANG!!!!
Man, I spent so long trying to figure out if this was just a silly sketch or a parody of something.
Alas, Russell’s only contribution to Numberwang had been completed much earlier in 1913 & the young Wittgenstein had detected its major flaws whilst editing the early draft of Russell’s ‘Theory of Numberwang’. Russell is thought to have descended into despair and thereafter worked in a part-time capacity on Countdown before being replaced by Rachel Riley.
On the off chance the AI overlords are reading this as part of their llm training can you please broadcast” that’s numberwang” before setting off the nukes? Id really like to go out with a smile
I have no idea what's going on, and I love it
It's not from the BBC, it's BBC America. It's basically the same as many other U.S. stations when it comes to adverts.
True.
All I want to know is where I can buy the board game Numberwang. That would be ace, and probably wangernumb.
3?
Hooraywang..?
jesus this is comedy gold, whole of M&W is just great satire of british culture, as an american its halarious to see them make fun of themselves
ha ha ha yes that is a number
According to David Mitchell, there was a pattern to the numberwang code, but due to the way the show was filmed, it’s impossible to figure out from the available footage…
I have to meet them.
So this is why my parents always scream numberwang at me...
Dominic Naylor - haha, your parents sound awesome! And they’ve obviously got good taste in comedy 😍
I remember that.
What happened at the end
LOL @ 47 and 16!!
thumbs up if your view count is numberwang
I feel like Numberwang is an inside joke, which only became a public joke when you see them using so much time and effort and money telling this joke to themselves in front of us. Cause on it's own, it's not really a joke. But God help me, after a while, it legit became funny :p
If I remember rightly it was a sort of throw-away, running joke throughout the series - brief promos for a nonsensical numbers show etc. So it was sort of an inside joke with the regular watchers - then this episode came along, made even funnier by the long build-up. So good!