Alan Davies

Beautifully bleak new series from Jo Brand and Morwenna Banks about the workings of a children's services department. It hits the ground running in this promising opener with Rose (Brand) stumbling across an old flame on a home visit, Al (Alan Davies), having woman trouble, and Nitin (Himesh Patel) meeting with HR. Isy Suttie, meanwhile, is the temp with a "cheeky sideline" selling hair putty. There's warmth in the comic one-liners, woven into realistic and grim situations.

Damned preview

The world, inspired by Brand's mother's lifetime career in social work, seems utterly genuine - thanks largely to that central friendship between Al and Rose, both robust characters with difficult lives and a dry sense of humour, which gives the show a warm heart.

Can Damned be fair to social workers - and funny?

Jo Brand and Alan Davies talk about the challenges of their new comedy.

Damned paints social workers as laughably hopeless

Unlike Twenty Twelve, W1A and Borderline, this summer's latest fly-on-the-wall mockumentary from Channel 5, there is little humour to be had in the work itself. Other than one line about being "tasked with making streamlined cluster teams", there is little jargonised nonsense to laugh at. But with five more episodes to come, we can only hope there will be more to look forward to.

Damned pulls off feat of being both funny & poignant

Jo Brand's new sitcom Damned stars herself and Alan Davies as overworked employees in a Children's Services department who employ black humour to help them get through each day

TV preview: Damned, C4

Not wall-to-wall laughs but then it isn't meant to be because life isn't like that. But this is definitely a comedy. There are a lot more gags here than I've ever come across working in offices, some excellent performances and a cameo from rising star Aisling Bea. Looks good to me.

Sandi Toksvig's QI: I'm not a mini-me for Stephen Fry

The panel show has spawned books and apps - and become as significant a cultural export as Doctor Who. But can it survive the departure of its quizmaster of 13 years? Zoe Williams goes on set to find out.

5 ways to make 'Jonathan Creek' good again

Here's how it can, maybe, hopefully, get its magic back...

Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled - series 4 review

The best thing about As Yet Untitled is the relaxed atmosphere. It is not a show about who has the best story to tell. It is a show that is about conversation.