The following is a list of episodes of Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! NPR 's news panel game , that aired during 2023 .[ 1] Chicago 's Fine Arts Building . Dates indicated are the episodes' original Saturday air dates. Job titles and backgrounds of the guests reflect their status and positions at the time of their appearance.
Also unless otherwise indicated, each episode features Peter Sagal as host and Bill Kurtis as announcer/scorekeeper. Sagal announced on January 28 that he would step away from the show on parental leave (after the birth of his 5th child),[ 2]
Date
Guest
Panelists
Notes
February 4
Actor/singer Billy Porter
Adam Burke , Helen Hong , Zainab Johnson Guest host Peter Grosz
February 11
Actress Geena Davis
Alonzo Bodden , Hari Kondabolu , Paula Poundstone Guest host Tom Papa
February 18
Actress/dancer Rosie Perez
Cristela Alonzo , Negin Farsad , Josh Gondelman Guest host Alzo Slade
February 25
Wait Wait 25th anniversary "best of" episode, featuring athletes Mikaela Shiffrin & Ozzie Smith , humorist John Hodgman , entertainers Stephen Colbert , Rob Reiner , & Leonard Nimoy , and astronaut Mae Jemison
Date
Guest
Panelists
Notes
April 1
Actress Michelle Rodriguez
Luke Burbank , Zainab Johnson , Matt Rogers
April 8
Wait Wait 25th anniversary "best of" episode part 2, featuring musicians Bonnie Raitt & Duke Fakir , comedian & current Wait Wait panelist Maz Jobrani , actor Ed Helms , and athlete Jackie Joyner-Kersee , as well as some favorite panelist moments.
April 15
Beatboxer Kaila Mullady
Alonzo Bodden , Negin Farsad , Shane O'Neill
April 22
Comedic musician "Weird Al" Yankovic
Tom Bodett , Josh Gondelman , Robby Hoffman
April 29
Country musician Brad Paisley
Negin Farsad, Maeve Higgins , Faith Salie
Show recorded in Nashville, TN (Tennessee Performing Arts Center )
Date
Guest
Panelists
Notes
June 3
Wait Wait 25th anniversary "best of" episode part 3, featuring actor/comedian & former Wait Wait panelist Keegan-Michael Key , actors Regina King & Colin Hanks , musician Bobby McFerrin , and author Susan Orlean .
June 10
Vanity Fair Radhika Jones Emmy Blotnick, Skyler Higley, Tom Papa
June 17
Actor James Marsden
Karen Chee , Adam Felber , Faith Salie
June 24
Actress Karen Allen
Karen Chee, Roy Blount Jr. , Negin Farsad
Show recorded in Lenox, MA (Tanglewood )
Date
Guest
Panelists
Notes
July 1
Author/relationship coach Aleeza Ben Shalom
Brian Babylon , Adam Burke , Roxanne Roberts
July 8
Wait Wait 25th anniversary "best of" episode part 4, featuring actors Mariska Hargitay & George Takei , TV host/author Martha Stewart , musician Vince Gill , and director Greta Gerwig
July 15
Actress/singer Patti LuPone
Emmy Blotnick, Adam Felber , Joyelle Nicole Johnson
July 22
Portland Trail Blazers point guard Damian Lillard Luke Burbank , Paula Poundstone , Helen Hong Show recorded in Portland, OR (Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall )
July 29
Actor/comedian Randall Park
Tom Bodett , Josh Gondelman , Zainab Johnson Guest host Karen Chee
Date
Guest
Panelists
Notes
August 5
Poet/writer Maggie Smith
Shane O'Neill, Emmy Blotnick, Adam Burke
August 12
Wait Wait 25th anniversary "best of" episode part 5, featuring actors Dax Shepard , Kristen Bell , & Mindy Kaling , writer/television personality Ina Garten , musician Donny Osmond , and rocket scientist Tiera Fletcher .
August 19
Wait Wait 25th anniversary "best of" episode part 6, featuring musicians Brian May , Esperanza Spalding , & Cyndi Lauper , actor/comedians Bashir & Sultan Salahuddin, and ballet dancer Misty Copeland .On demand replay was delayed or unavailable in some platforms due to music licensing issues
August 26
Musician Mark Ronson
Shantira Jackson , Luke Burbank , Alzo SladeGuest host Negin Farsad
Date
Guest
Panelists
Notes
September 2
Musician Bob Seger
Roy Blount Jr. , Josh Gondelman , Helen Hong Show recorded in Ann Arbor, MI (Hill Auditorium )
September 9
Marathoner/writer Martinus Evans
Amy Dickinson , Peter Grosz , Maeve Higgins
September 16
Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
Josh Gondelman, Faith Salie , Dulcé Sloan
September 23
Filmmaker John Wilson
Tom Bodett , Eugene Cordero , Joyelle Nicole Johnson
September 30
Actor/writer Bob Odenkirk and his daughter, visual artist Erin Odenkirk
Karen Chee , Maz Jobrani , Jessi Klein Show recorded in Los Angeles, CA (Greek Theatre )
Date
Guest
Panelists
Notes
October 7
U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar Roy Blount Jr. , Shantira Jackson , Maz Jobrani
October 14
Wait Wait 25th anniversary "best of" episode part 7, featuring previously unaired segments, including an interview with musician/composer Stewart Copeland . John Goodman & Sam Waterston , and actress/comedian Jenny Slate .
October 21
Author James Patterson
Faith Salie , Matt Rogers , Alzo SladeShow recorded in Hartford, CT (The Bushnell )
October 28
Bernie Taupin , lyricist for Elton John Paula Poundstone , Alonzo Bodden , Zainab Johnson Guest host Peter Grosz
Date
Guest
Panelists
Notes
November 4
Ecologist and co-host of Wild Kingdom (2023 revival) Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant
Tom Papa , Maeve Higgins , Adam Burke Guest scorekeeper Lakshmi Singh
November 11
Actor John Stamos
Tom Bodett , Emmy Blotnick, Skyler Higley
November 18
CEO of L.L.Bean Stephen Smith
Hari Kondabolu , Maeve Higgins, Roy Blount Jr. Show recorded in Portland, ME (Merrill Auditorium )
November 25
Wait Wait 25th anniversary "best of" episode part 8, featuring actress/comedian Jane Curtin , former chairman/CEO of Google Eric Schmidt , Olympic mogul skier Hannah Kearney , former host of Mythbusters Adam Savage , and former Notre Dame women's basketball coach Muffet McGraw .
Date
Guest
Panelists
Notes
December 2[ 3]
Actress Dakota Johnson
Alonzo Bodden , Joyelle Nicole Johnson, Adam Felber
December 9[ 4]
Singer & frontman of The B-52's Fred Schneider
Eugene Cordero , Paula Poundstone , Luke Burbank Guest host Negin Farsad
December 16[ 5]
Television personality Bethenny Frankel
Josh Gondelman , Helen Hong , Alzo SladeShow recorded in New York City, NY (Carnegie Hall )
December 23[ 6]
Olympic long distance runner Molly Seidel
Shantira Jackson , Bobcat Goldthwait , Roxanne Roberts
December 30
Wait Wait 25th anniversary "best of" episode part 9, featuring previously unaired segments, including an interview with 5th generation lobster fisherman Jacob Knowles Geena Davis & Karen Allen , and comedic musician "Weird Al" Yankovic
Some stations may altered the segments due to donation drive during the airing.
^ "Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! archive" . npr.org NPR:National Public Radio . npr.org. Retrieved 2022-12-24 .^ Source: Peter Sagal on Twitter (posted 1/28/2023 and accessed 2/3/2023)^ Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me [@waitwaitnpr] (December 2, 2023). "Actress, king slayer, and lover of limes @dakotajohnson joins us on the show this week to talk about her new documentary The Disappearance of Shere Hite! @zofunny @joyellenicole and @adam_felber join us on the panel!! #50shadesofwaitwait" . Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Instagram .^ Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me [@waitwaitnpr] (December 9, 2023). "The Rock Lobster himself @funfred1 of the B-52s takes us to the Love Shack this week with SPECIAL GUEST HOST @neginfarsad and panelists @eugcordero @paulapoundstone and @luke_burbank !!! Get ready to dance, sing, and shout the answers in this extra special ep!" . Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Instagram .^ Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me [@waitwaitnpr] (December 16, 2023). "New York City is her playground and Wait Wait is the show she's on!! Skinny Girl founder, business mogul, influencer, and New York icon @bethennyfrankel joins this week at Carnegie Hall! And we have panelists @joshgondelman @funnyhelenhong @alzoslade to make it all extra fun 🗽🥳" . Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Instagram .^ Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me [@waitwaitnpr] (December 23, 2023). "Olympic marathon bronze medalist, Strava legend, and midwestern native @bygolly.molly joins us for our last live show of 2023! Tune in to hear Molly onstage with esteemed panelists @tira_tira_tira @bobcatgoldthwait and Roxanne Roberts 🏃🏃♀️🏃♂️" . Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Instagram .
