Weekly Newsletter

Monday 13th June 2022

Latest comedy news

Starstruck Series 3 confirmed

Starstruck Series 3 confirmed

BBC Three has ordered another six episodes of Starstruck, the sitcom starring Rose Matafeo. The recommission follows the news the rom-com has now clocked up over 8 million streams on iPlayer.

Robin Ince lands Radio 4 stand-up show

Robin Ince lands Radio 4 stand-up show

Robin Ince has recorded a two-part Radio 4 special, Robin Ince's Reality Tunnel. He is also publishing Bibliomaniac: An Obsessive's Tour Of The Bookshops Of Britain, about his obsessive love of books.

Michelle de Swarte pilots comedy drama High End Homeless for Channel 4

Michelle de Swarte pilots comedy drama High End Homeless for Channel 4

Former catwalk model Michelle de Swarte is channeling her experiences of the fashion scene into pilot comedy drama High End Homeless.

Lily Allen stars in Sky comedy from Sharon Horgan

Lily Allen stars in Sky comedy from Sharon Horgan

Lily Allen will star in Dreamland, a comedy drama for Sky made by Sharon Horgan's production company Merman, based on the 2017 short Morgana Robinson's Summer.

Live At The Moth Club coming to Dave

Live At The Moth Club coming to Dave

Dave is to air Live At The Moth Club, a five-part series in which comedians including Jamie Demetriou, Natasia Demetriou, Ellie White, Cardinal Burns, Arnab Chanda, Ben Ashenden and Alexander Owen will perform on stage.

Joe Lycett to host C4 Big Pride Party

Joe Lycett to host C4 Big Pride Party

Joe Lycett is to host a live two-hour "big queer party" this summer on Channel 4.

Channel 4 tests comedians' Razor Sharp wits in improv show

Channel 4 tests comedians' Razor Sharp wits in improv show

Katherine Ryan, Joel Dommett and Guz Khan are among the stand-ups competing in Razor Sharp, a new improv show for Channel 4, in which they must improvise their way out of unusual situations.

Holly Walsh pilots apocalyptic hen party sitcom for the BBC

Holly Walsh pilots apocalyptic hen party sitcom for the BBC

Holly Walsh has directed Henpocalypse, a BBC pilot about a hen party caught up in a zombie pandemic.

Screw Series 2 coming to Channel 4

Screw Series 2 coming to Channel 4

Channel 4 has announced the recommission of its prison comedy drama, Screw.

Advert

The Bike Project

Grab your mates for an evening of stand-up comedy in support of refugees and asylum seekers! The Bike Project's line-up includes James Acaster, Tiff Stevenson, Josh Pugh, and Yuriko Kotani. All ticket proceeds go towards The Bike Project charity – they refurbish second-hand bikes and donate them to refugees.

7:30pm (doors 6:30pm) to 10:30pm at Union Chapel, London, N1 2UN on Tuesday 28th June. Tickets.

Features

Comedy Chronicles: An Englishman abroad: Frankie Howerd's Commonwealth comedies

Comedy Chronicles: An Englishman abroad: Frankie Howerd's Commonwealth comedies

The many ups-and-downs of comedy icon Frankie Howerd's long career are well noted, but his endeavours with home-grown television sitcoms in Canada and Australia are stories less well-told.

Matt Forde: Which Footballer Are You?

Matt Forde: Which Footballer Are You?

He's crossing the footy/political streams by talking politics with Gary Neville, but which England full-back is Matt Forde's spirit animal?

British Comedy Quiz #206

British Comedy Quiz #206

Michael McIntyre, Greg Davies and Jack Dee are amongst the subjects of our questions this time.

Random 8: Sid Singh

Random 8: Sid Singh

Heading back to the Edinburgh Fringe, Sid Singh gets almost teary about a tiny keyboard.

TV listings

TV Flashback

TV Flashback

Monday 8:30pm, BBC One Wales

Another series of the show in which Kiri Pritchard-McLean looks for funny clips in the BBC Wales archive to discover iconic Welsh people, places and things.

The Chris & Rosie Ramsey Show

The Chris & Rosie Ramsey Show

Monday 9pm, BBC Two

Episode 5 is on telly tonight, but - as of this afternoon - there was still no news as to which guest couple will join the hosts this time. All we can therefore say here now is that you can expect the usual mix of chat and interaction from the central comic duo.

Rhod Gilbert's Growing Pains

Rhod Gilbert's Growing Pains

Tuesday 9pm, Comedy Central

Shaun Ryder, Ninia Benjamin and Fatiha El-Ghorri revisit their teenage years, revealing one of them had a bathroom accident on a school trip and one believes in UFOs.

Everything I Know About Love

Everything I Know About Love

Tuesday 10:35pm, BBC One

The girls settle into their new lives in London, as the comedy drama continues. Birdy continues to date Nathan. As things between them start to get serious, Maggie realises that Birdy is starting to slip away.

Hypothetical

Hypothetical

Wednesday 10pm, Dave

Esther Manito, Jon Richardson, Rosie Jones and Frank Skinner are the guests taking on the format this week.

Taskmaster

Taskmaster

Thursday 9pm, Channel 4

The Series 13 finale. Why is Chris rapping about aubergines? Can Bridget whistle? And can Judi finally win an episode?

CelebAbility

CelebAbility

Thursday 10pm, ITV2

Series 6 of the show in which Iain Stirling oversees a series of games in which Scarlett Moffatt leads three friends hoping to win a slew of prizes by defeating celebs (this time: Megan McKenna, Melvin Odoom, Jamie Laing and Josh Jones).

PRU

PRU

Thursday 10:45pm, BBC Three

The future of The Spring is under threat as the school inspector visits, whilst the kids take part in the annual PRU 'Bake Off'. What could go wrong? Straight after is a documentary going behind-the-scenes on the production.

Avoidance

Avoidance

Friday 9:30pm, BBC One

Episode 2 of the new sitcom. When Spencer gets invited to a Laser Quest party, Jonathan is so distracted by over-parenting the situation that he risks embarrassing Spencer and losing his job.

The Lateish Show With Mo Gilligan

The Lateish Show With Mo Gilligan

Friday 10pm, Channel 4

Actor Luke Evans is set to be amongst the guests on the entertainment show this Friday.

Ministry Of Offence

Ministry Of Offence

Saturday 8pm, GB News

Episode 10 of the format in which two teams of politically-opposed comedians go head to head on the news and discussion channel.

Billy Connolly's Funniest Moments

Billy Connolly's Funniest Moments

Saturday 8pm, Channel 5

A new documentary that celebrates some of the best routines from the stand-up star. Jimmy Tarbuck is amongst the talking heads explaining why the Scottish comedian's work is so great.

The Outlaws

The Outlaws

Sunday 9pm, BBC One

The outlaws' illicit business begins to run like a well-oiled machine. An old dog struggles to learn new tricks, and a protest erupts at the community centre.

For a complete list of TV and radio broadcasts, including repeats, see our full schedule.

Shop

The Phantom Of The Open

The Phantom Of The Open

Monday 25th July 2022. Blu-ray and DVD

The Phantom Of The Open tells the remarkable true story of Maurice Flitcroft, a crane operator and optimistic dreamer from Barrow-in-Furness who, with the support of his family and friends, managed to gain entry to the 1976 British Open qualifying, despite never playing a round of golf before.

With pluckiness and unwavering self-belief, Maurice pulls off a series of stunning, hilarious and heart-warming attempts to compete at the highest level of professional golf, drawing the ire of the golfing elite but becoming a British folk hero in the process.

Co-written by Simon Farnaby (Ghosts, Paddington 2), Flitcroft is played by celebrated British stage star Mark Rylance.

Lucy Hancock, Tim Gibbons & Tim Elms - Tony Hancock: Inside His Life In Words & Pictures

Lucy Hancock, Tim Gibbons & Tim Elms - Tony Hancock: Inside His Life In Words & Pictures

Thursday 18th August 2022. Hardback

Tony Hancock was one of our best-loved comics and his legendary Hancock's Half Hour series for the BBC was the inspiration for many comedy shows that were to follow. With radio episodes regularly repeated on the BBC, it remains as popular today as ever.

Now, for the first time, readers are able to look behind Hancock the comedian and tell his life story through the phenomenal archive amassed by his brother, Roger, combined with material held by the Tony Hancock Appreciation Society (THAS).

Lucy Hancock (Hancock's great niece) tells the story of his life through pictures, correspondence and much more, most of it never published before, in conjunction with THAS's Tim Gibbons and Tim Elms, and featuring a foreword from actor Kevin McNally. The book also includes a complete chronological timeline of Hancock's life featuring stage shows and broadcasts previously unpublished.

This amazing collection of archive material is a must-own for all Hancock fans.

Spanish Fly

Spanish Fly

Monday 27th June 2022. Blu-ray

Comedy icons Terry-Thomas and Leslie Phillips set new levels of bounderism and caddishness in this mid-'70s comedy set on the Mediterranean island of Minorca. Directed by Bob Kellett and co-starring Sue Lloyd, Spanish Fly is featured here as a brand new high definition remaster from original film elements in its original theatrical aspect ratio.

Sir Percy de Courcy feels dejected. His cunning wheeze to make some fast cash by buying up 100,000 gallons of local plonk to sell at a vast profit comes adrift when even he has to admit it tastes foul. But when his chauffeur adds a certain local ingredient to improve the taste, it turns the wine into a potent aphrodisiac!

Morecambe & Wise - The Lost Tapes

Morecambe & Wise - The Lost Tapes

Out now. DVD

Over four hours of never before released episodes of The Morecambe & Wise Show.

This mouth-watering collection of material predominantly comes from the duo's first series back at the BBC (from 1968), as well as their first ever colour programme for BBC One (1970), a selection of deleted scenes, trailers, interviews, and documentaries. Another all-new, absolute must-own DVD release.

The Outlaws - Series Two

The Outlaws - Series Two

Monday 11th July 2022. DVD

BAFTA winner Stephen Merchant's lively comedy thriller returns. Can the outlaws beat a drug lord at his own game?

While performing community service, Bristol's most unlikely outlaws have wound up on the wrong side of the law. Again... The money the group 'accidentally' stole is catching up with them, and the criminal underworld is tightening its grip. Literally. Rani manages to buy the group some extra time. There's just one catch: they're going to have to become drug dealers to earn back the stolen money. And they're going to have to do it with the police breathing down their necks and - even worse - community support officer Diane.

It'll take all the gang's skills to outwit a criminal mastermind: Christian's street smarts, Myrna's community outreach work, Gabby's celebrity, John's business sense, Frank's con-artist tricks and Greg's really, really bad lawyering. But have the gang crossed a line - and what if the thrill of the chase is too good to give up?

For more, see our full list of new releases and items coming soon.

Comedy videos

Buttsweat Shame

Buttsweat Shame

Summer is here at last. But the hot weather brings its own problems. Buttsweat - yes, it's a real thing! It's not nice having an embarrassing body function. If you have a summer sweaty body, and a sweaty booty in particular, this sketch might give you a little bit of comfort.

Comedy Central Live - Fatiha El-Ghorri

Comedy Central Live - Fatiha El-Ghorri

Fatiha El-Ghorri on giving a geography lesson, the secret of looking young and getting searched at the airport.

Spotlight

Dear Mother.... ....Love Albert

Dear Mother.... ....Love Albert

Fresh from fame in the BBC's The Likely Lads, Rodney Bewes is writer and star of this four-series Thames/Yorkshire sitcom. Running from 1969 to 1972, the comedy followed northerner Albert, residing and working in London, living a relatively event-free, humdrum life as a salesman. When he writes weekly letters back home to his mother, however, he embellishes his achievements with far more excitement and success than reality should allow. The supporting cast includes a range of wonderfully familiar faces, and all surviving episodes are available now on DVD.

Thanks for reading

Marc Pinto submitted this winning joke to the motorsport-themed BCG Pro Gag-a-Week competition:

I used to wonder how F1 drivers can go without a toilet break. Then one whizzed past me.

British Comedy Guide
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