Police are investigating a suspected gun attack on Have I Got News For You star and Private Eye editor Ian Hislop. A taxi driver says his window was damaged by a suspected gunshot while Hislop was in the black cab.
The incident happened as the car was stationary in traffic in Soho, London, close to the Private Eye offices at 10am on Tuesday. Neither Hislop nor the driver were injured, reports The Guardian.
The alleged incident occurred on Dean Street, close to Oxford Street, with the driver saying he heard a gunshot damaging his car window.
Police are reported to be keeping an open mind. Roads were closed on the area of the incident and police are examining CCTV footage.
A police spokesman said: “Police were called at 10.10am on Tuesday, 1 October to a report of a firearms discharge on Dean Street, Westminster. The driver of a London black taxi reported he was stationary in traffic when a shot was fired towards his vehicle, striking the window. There were no injuries. An investigation has been launched.”
Ian Hislop is a British journalist, satirist, and television personality, best known as the long-time editor of the satirical magazine Private Eye and for his role as a team captain on the BBC panel show Have I Got News for You. Born in Mumbles, Swansea, he attended Ardingly College and then Magdalen College, Oxford, where he studied English Literature.
At Oxford, he was involved in student journalism, which laid the foundation for his career in satire. Hislop became the editor of Private Eye in 1986 at the age of 26, and has remained in that position since. Private Eye has a reputation for pushing boundaries, often running stories that other media outlets avoid due to legal risks.
He has been a team captain on Have I Got News for You since its inception in 1990.
Hislop is well-known for his no-holds-barred criticism of politicians, celebrities, and people in positions of power. This often makes him unpopular with those who are the targets of his satire. He has been sued multiple times for libel due to stories published in Private Eye, but the magazine has a strong record of winning or settling cases in its favour.
Hislop has remarked that he’s “probably been sued more times than any other editor in Britain.”
Both Private Eye and Have I Got News for You are known for testing the limits of what is considered acceptable satire. Hislop’s willingness to ridicule sensitive topics, powerful institutions, and individuals in the public eye can provoke strong reactions, both positive and negative.
Hislop has a long history of challenging authority figures, including politicians, royals, and business leaders. His defiance of the establishment in both his writing and television appearances has made him a polarizing figure.