Evening Urgant / Вечерний Ургант

Evening Urgant (Вечерний Ургант) is a Russian late-night talk show, the (intentional) equivalent of American shows like Letterman and Jimmy Fallon. It began airing in 2012 and is often called the first Russian show of its kind. It airs every day, Monday to Friday, at 11:30 on Perviy Kanal (Первый канал). The host of the […]

Pozner / Познер

Pozner (Познер) is a Russian talk show hosted by Vladimir Pozner (Владимир Познер). It’s been airing weekly since 2008: there are 9 seasons and almost 250 hour-long episodes. The show features Pozner interviewing major figures in Russian society: politicians, artists, athletes, scientists, and others. The guest discusses various topics, often contemporary events, with Pozner, and […]

Dr. Komarovskiy’s School / Школа доктора Комаровского

Dr. Komarovskiy’s School (Школа доктора Комаровского) is a weekly Russian health/educational show. It is actually produced and filmed in Ukraine and airs in both Ukraine and Russia, but it is entirely in Russian. It has been on since 2010 and has more than 250 half-hour episodes. The host, of course, is Dr. (Yevgeny) Komarovskiy (Евгений Комаровский […]

Laikykites Ten / Hold On There

Laikykites Ten (Hold On There) is a Lithuanian comedic talk show that began in 2016. It’s also something of an experiment in Lithuanian television-making: it exists only on YouTube and is crowdfunded through Patreon, where it has more than 4,800 patrons. Despite its unorthodox production, it’s becoming quite popular. It airs on the YouTube channel […]

Let Them Talk / Пусть говорят

Let Them Talk (Пусть говорят) is a Russian talk show reminiscent of the classics of American daytime TV—particularly Jerry Springer. The show has been airing since 2001, when it was called The Big Wash (Большая стирка—because you could watch it while you did the laundry); after a few years it was changed to Five Evenings (Пять вечеров), and then […]

Let’s Get Married! / Давай поженимся!

Let’s Get Married! (Давай поженимся!) is a Russian talk matchmaker show—kind of like the American Dating Game, but slightly more family-friendly. The show has been around since 2008, but it feels like it’s been much longer. Indeed, there have been more than 1,500 episodes. It doesn’t seem to have good critical reviews, or even good viewer […]

Live Well! / Жить здорово!

Live Well! (Жить здорово!) is a Russian talk show that Russians seem to love and hate in equal measure, and at the same time. It’s only been on since 2010, but it airs every morning and there are well over 1,000 episodes already. The show is basically about health, though with a somewhat ridiculous, unintentionally […]

Wait for Me / Жди мне

Wait for Me (Жди мне) is a Russian talk/reality show, though quite unlike what that that genre usually means. It’s not only a TV show but a government service for finding missing people. It’s termed an international social project, just just a TV show—the show notes that “We search throughout the entire world and unite […]

While Everyone’s Home / Пока все дома

While Everyone’s Home (Пока все дома) is a TV entertainment/talk show that’s been airing since 1992. There are now 25 seasons. The show follows the host, Timur Kizyakov (Тимур Кизяков), who also writes the show, as he visits various famous people and their families at home. As the show’s website notes, “While Everyone’s Home is […]