Bill Raftery: Last News

Bill Raftery yells “Onions” in March, it has a double meaning for me. Yes, there’s the ballsy, clutch late-game heroics. But also: Cue the crying.

It’s a big “dill”! CBS announced the eight celebrity teams competing in the two-hour sports comedy special Pickled. The pickleball competition includes big names such as Emma Watson, Kelly Rowland and more.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV Editor Each weeknight, Stephen Colbert takes the stage at CBS “Late Show” to find the lighter side of the latest headlines. In November, he’ll be doing something similar with sports. The comedian will host a two-hour pickleball tournament, “Pickled,” that will feature 16 celebrities competing for a coveted “Colbert Cup” and benefit the non-profit Comic Relief U.S. “If you love pickleball and you love celebrities and you love helping people, you’re going to love watching these celebrities help people by playing pickleball,” said Colbert in a prepared statement. “Pickled” will debut on Thursday, Nov. 17 at 9 p.m. ET on CBS. Celebrities taking part in “Pickled” include Jimmie Allen, Murray Bartlett, Dierks Bentley, Jaime Camil, Will Ferrell, Max Greenfield, Luis Guzman, Phil Keoghan, Daniel Dae Kim, Sugar Ray Leonard, Tig Notaro, June Diane Raphael, Kelly Rowland, Paul Scheer, Aisha Tyler and Emma Watson. Cari Champion, John Michael Higgins and Bill Raftery serve as announcers and add commentary.

Kelli Raftery, a veteran CBS communications executive who has worked in many different roles over more than two decades at the company, is poised to leave, one of several executives departing in the wake of the company’s recent merger with Viacom.