BCG Daily Thursday 27th February 2014

TV review: Inside No. 9 - 'Last Gasp'

An almost Shakespearean exercise in greed, murder and the triumph of innocence, Last Gasp is a buoyant but wickedly funny chapter in Inside No. 9′s omnibus of twisted tales.

Josh Widdicombe interview

When I met up with Josh Widdicombe at the Riverside Studios in February 2014, he was pretty much on the cusp of household name status, thanks to the Channel 4 series The Last Leg, which he was about to film later that day, as well as regular panel show appearances and sell-out tours. He deserves success too - he's an easy-going nice guy, and, most importantly he's very funny - onstage, onscreen, and, hopefully, here in print where he talks about his life, work, influences and much more.

Radio Times review

The brash comedy about a bomb disposal unit in Afghanistan returns with more gags about IEDs, STDs and the Taliban. Matthew Lewis - Neville Longbottom from the Harry Potter films - throws off that sweet-natured image as he joins the cast as a new second-in-command to conceited Captain Medhurst (Oliver Chris).

As ever the base is riven by one-upmanship and ego clashes, particularly in Chris and Lewis's game of my gun's better than your gun. That could make for great comedy but the banter gets in the way. The best thing is Tony Gardner as the nonchalant Lieutenant Colonel - his lesson in the art of war is a minor masterpiece.

Radio Times review

Anya's life is not good. She is desperately trying to keep her father's tattoo business afloat, while caring for the difficult and visually-impaired man himself at home. She could really do with some help on both fronts.

It seems as if her prayers have been answered when she swats a tiny, darting creature that oozes out the most remarkable-coloured ink. Within a matter of days, her client base is growing, with people dazzled by the creative, vibrant tattoos now on offer. Life changes for her dad too - his eyesight improves and his mood matches it. But Anya's magical ink supply decides to fight back. The pixies, for it is they that have been supplying her with their lifeblood, hire a lawyer.

Ed Harris's script is comical and fantastical, but with every fairy's demise comes a Brothers Grimm-like cautionary note that you don't get anything for nothing in this - or the pixie - world.

Interview with Glenn Moore

A chat with comedian Glenn Moore.

Video: Miriam Elia's legal fight with Ladybird books

Publishers Penguin may take legal action against artist and Sony-nominated comedian Miriam Elia and her book We Go to the Gallery. A satire on modern art, it's written in the style of the Ladybird books key words series.

Outnumbered rises in ratings with 4.3 million

Outnumbered bounced back in the ratings for BBC One on Wednesday evening, overnight data reveals.

Mark Thomas interview

Mark Thomas has been winding people up for three decades. He is currently appearing at the Leicester Square Theatre with his new show, 100 Acts of Minor Dissent, which charts his ongoing project of a century of protests, from busking illegally in Camden to putting stickers with slogans where they shouldn't be put.

Outnumbered: I'll be sad to see you go

It must've been quite a challenge to take a series that was so reliant on the unpredictably of its young stars, and make it relevant now that the those same kids have hit their teens, but in my view they've managed it.

Inside No. 9 - Episode 4 review

Anthology shows rarely hit home runs every single week, but I wouldn't call Last Gasp a bad episode... it was just difficult to develop as a narrative.

Video: Spitting Image makers on David Steel puppet

The creators of ITV's Spitting Image revealed they picked David Steel as one of their characters because they thought smaller puppets were cheaper and they could use it again and again.

Ten reasons to watch Bluestone 42

From Oliver Chris and Harry Potter's Neville Longbottom to blindfolded fencing and men in uniform, here's why you should tune into series two of the BBC3 bomb disposal comedy.

Bluestone 42: series 2, ep 1, BBC Three, review

Bluestone 42 has a lot to say about contemporary society, says Gerard O'Donovan.

Jonathan Creek preview

This evening, the mop-headed magician's assistant returns to BBC1 to solve another howdunnit, involving a West End play, a locked room and a grinning corpse.

Inside No. 9 is scarily funny

Each half-hour playlet is a chiselled gem, as dark as ink and frighteningly funny.