[Steve in Pudsey]

I think they deliberately twisted the format to avoid it looking like a less good version of Cats Does Countdown.

In the US, Whose Line Is It Anyway is the same, the improv game show films large amount of material and then edits them into many shows. This was how that during 2020 and 2021 they were able to fill brand new seasons of new material, when it was impossible to film with such a large studio audience due to the pandemic.

I'm amazed that Cats does Countdown hasn't managed an "unseen bits" special or three. The 2023 Christmas Special definitely felt like it was very tightly edited for time and could have used a little more breathing space. A special focussing on Sean Lock bits that got cut for time would be very welcome.