Jeremy Paxman's dodgy election night one-liners, including: 'There's something fishy about Nicola Sturgeon - it's her name'

The respected broadcaster proved that being able to grill politicians and being funny don't always go hand in hand

David Mitchell and Jeremy Paxman will be hosting Channel 4's Alternative Election Night on May 7th (PA) (PA)

Last night, we Jeremy Paxman learned the hard way that telling jokes might look easy, but it's actually quite hard.

During Channel 4's Alternative Election coverage, which he hosted with David Mitchell, Paxman scored hits and misses with some of his routine.

In a segment called "The Paxman Perspective", the former Newsnight presenter tried his hand at comedy, but it didn't go down tremendously well.

Here are some of his one-liners:

"Just kidding, guys!": "In the September referendum, at the last minute Scotland decided to stay and the United Kingdom lived happily ever after. The end. Oh no wait, there's more."

On the SNP's Jedi powers: "The SNP are the Obi-Wan Kenobi of politics - if you strike them down, they'll come back more powerful than you could possibly imagine."

On rarefied food (is that the joke?): "By this time tomorrow, Labour MPs north of the border could be rarer than quiche."

On the horror of student comedy: "Scotland used to be at war with England, but now the only troops England sends to Edinburgh are improv troupes from Durham University, and their only battle is to trick American tourists to come to a room above a pub to watch a sketch that they won't understand about Mary Berry."

On the state of the Union: "How many marriages do you know that are still happy after 308 years?"

On Margaret Thatcher's relationship with Scotland: "Scotland erupted in fury, and the Krankies became the Very Krankies."

Umm: "There's something fishy about Nicola Sturgeon - it's her name."