About this episode

Josh and Craig discuss the making of 'The Bracket' with writer Joe Kelly, exploring the challenges and creative processes behind the episode.

Josh and Craig welcome writer Joe Kelly for a lively look back at “The Bracket,” Joe’s very first How I Met Your Mother episode. They reminisce about Joe joining the staff just before the Writers Guild strike, the frantic race to restart production afterward, and how the episode evolved into one of the show’s most memorable Barney stories. Joe reflects on learning to balance broad comedy with emotional storytelling—a lesson that later shaped Ted Lasso and Detroiters—while Craig and Josh discuss building the writers’ room, crafting Barney’s outrageous persona without losing audience sympathy, and turning a March Madness promotion into a mystery episode. They also dive into behind-the-scenes stories about the show’s collaborative writing process, memorable jokes, the creation of TedMosbyIsAJerk.com , and how the pressure of the post-strike schedule forced everyone to trust their instincts, resulting in one of Season 3’s funniest and most ambitious episodes. CONNECT WITH THE SHOW: Official Website (Send us your audio and written messages) Instagram Tiktok READ JOSH’S MUSELETTERS ON SUBSTACK: Subscribe HERE CRAIG’S BOOK IS AVAILABLE! Head over to CRAIG’S WEBSITE to order your copy of…

People in this episode

Hosts: Josh Radnor, Craig Thomas

Guest: Joe Kelly

Topics covered

• writing process
• comedy
• television
• How I Met Your Mother
• Barney Stinson
• March Madness
• collaboration

Keywords

• How I Met Your Mother
• Joe Kelly
• Barney
• Writers Guild strike
• comedy writing
• March Madness
• Ted Lasso
• Detroiters

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Writers Guild, TedMosbyIsAJerk.com

Books & works: How I Met Your Mother, Ted Lasso, Detroiters

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