White House Correspondents dinner 2023: who is the host, who will be attending and can you watch it in the UK?

The great and the good of Washington came together for the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner. 

The black tie event took place at the Washington Hilton in Washington D.C. on Saturday (29 April). It returned for the second time since the Covid-19 pandemic, which resulted in large gatherings during 2020 and 2021 to be put on hold. 

In the past, the dinner has attracted high profile names, featuring A list actors and comedians, as well as politicians and has led to several viral jokes. So what is White House Correspondents dinner, who hosted this year and can you watch it in the UK? 

Here is what you need to know. 

What is the White House Correspondents dinner? 

According to the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA), the dinner is the main source of revenue to finance all of its work, which includes the support of the journalists working to cover the president, as well as events and programs to educate the public about the value of the First Amendment. It also oversees free press, and helps fund many scholarships. 

The organisation was formed in 1914, and is made up of journalists who cover the administration of the US president and get access to the White House briefing room. The first dinner was held in 1920, and the sitting president would put in an appearance and usually be asked to speak - where they would poke fun at themselves. 

Women were allied to attend for the first time during John F Kennedy’s presidency in 1962. In the 1990’s presidential ‘roast’ format became the norm as comedians took to hosting - which have included Jon Stewart, Conan O’Brien, and Al Franken. 

Who is hosting the White House Correspondents dinner this year? 

The headlining act for the dinner is Roy Wood Jr, a stand up comedian, humorist and correspondent on The Daily Show. To continue with tradition, Wood Jr roasted the sitting president, as well as the two political parties, and the media - including CNN and Fox News.

This year, former governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger delivered a surprise cold open to begin the dinner with former Twins co-star Danny DeVito. They appeared in a pre-recorded clip thanking members of the press for their pursuit in delivering truth to power, as they were feeding Schwarzenegger's pony and donkey pets.

The dinner was attended by president Joe Biden and Dr. Jill Biden, as well as vice president Kamala Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff. According to Deadline, the guest line up featured: 

ABC News: Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), Liev Schreiber, and perhaps CEO Bob Iger. 

CBS News: Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, FBI Director Chris Wray, Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC), Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL), Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden, Rosario Dawson, BD Wong, Justin Hartley, Sofia Pernas, Jerry O’Connell and Rebecca Romjin. Paramount Global chair Shari Redstone and CBS President and CEO George Cheeks also are planning to attend, as well as Paramount streaming president Tom Ryan and CBS News president Neeraj Khemlani.

Daily Mail: Lisa Vanderpump, Ariana Madix.

NBC News: Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, UN ambassador Linda Thomas Greenfield, Small Business Association administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman, Citizens United’s David Bossie, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), White House Communications Director Ben LaBolt, Deputy White House Press Secretary Emilie Simons, John Leguizamo, John Legend, Chrissy Teigen.

NPR: Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn, White House Covid-19 Response Coordinator Ashish Jha, Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl.

The DailyMail reports an array of stars were also expected to make an appearance, such as Julia Fox, Tiësto, Succession's J. Smith-Cameron, Game of Thrones' Lena Headey, Zooey Deschanel and her Property Brothers partner Jonathan Scott will be coming as guests of CNN. 

Cory Booker - Rashida Jones, Bradley Whitford of West Wing fame, Sophia Bush, Fran Drescher and Justin Theroux, who's starring in the Watergate HBO series, White House Plumbers is reportedly attending as well as Wings' and Madam Secretary's Tim Daly, the president of the Creative Coalition, which lobbies Congress for arts funding.

How to watch the 2023 White House Correspondents’ Dinner and Red Carpet Arrivals?

The White House Correspondents’ Dinner aired live at 8 p.m. EST, which is 1am BST, on C-Span on Saturday 29 April. For people in the UK, the dinner live streamed on c-span.org which can be accessed here. C-Span provided coverage of the red carpet as well.