Angus Deayton

When a sitcom arrives tagged with a premise so flimsy a butterfly could tear it asunder, it had better be something special. In the case of Seann Walsh vehicle Monks, serial benefit fraudster Gary Woodcroft evades prosecution by ... joining a monastery. Essentially it's One Flew Over The Nimmo's Nest. Sadly, the torturous proposition isn't backed by anything approaching gilted ribaldry, with a decent cast including Mark Heap and Angus Deayton reduced to delivering insultingly sub-panto fare throughout.

The soft-centred babies-making-babies sitcom returns for a third series, with Laura and Jamie (Scarlett Alice Johnson and Sean Michael Verey) having trouble adjusting to life as a couple.

Well, Laura's having trouble and is trying to find a way of dumping her dimple-cheeked lover boy yet again.

"It's like watching someone torture a puppy. Stop messing him around," observes her waspish best friend, which is pretty much the size of it. Angus Deayton and Anna Chancellor co-star.

Radio Times review

BBC Three has always struck me as the most unlikely home for this soft-centred, blandly pleasing sitcom. It's not particularly sweary, its characters are inoffensive and it even flutters on the outskirts of twee, so it's hardly up there with Two Pints of Lager or Bad Education.

As we reach the third series young, accidental parents Jamie and Laura (Sean Michael Verey and Scarlett Alice Johnson), who conceived a baby after a misguided one-night stand, have a polite relationship for the sake of their little one.

But their parents are fractious and in chaos - Jamie's feckless dad has spent the family's money and they are evicted from their home, while Laura's high-flying mum (Anna Chancellor) is still in New York, communicating bad-temperedly via Skype with her estranged husband (Angus Deayton).

Opinion: In praise of Would I Lie To You?

I resisted Would I Lie To You? for a while. Maybe it was the slightly smug hosting of Angus Deayton at first, maybe it was the show's resemblance to a pub-gossip Call My Bluff. But at some point I decided that I love this programme and now I'm hooked. There is nothing I enjoy more than unwinding to these all-star wind-ups.

Would I Lie To You? is a BBC One panel show originally hosted by Angus Deayton and now hosted by Rob Brydon. The point of the show is to lie to or fool your opposing team into believing what you are telling them is the truth. Successfully deceive your opposition and get some points. Simple, yet affective. Joining Rob Brydon as regular Team Captains are the wonderful David Mitchel and Lee Mack. Guests on this episode are Jason Manford, Paul Hollywood, Warwick Davis and Joan Bakewell.

This, as a celebrity panel show, couldn't really be much different from a show like Celebrity Juice if it tried; WILTY is about quick thinking and wit. 5 minutes in and I haven't heard a single muff joke. It's a great show and one I don't watch as much as I probably should. It is entertaining, likeable and unique. The players are all pitch perfect; great chemistry and natural comedians. There is lots of great comedy which manifests itself organically within the show.

Things I enjoyed most about BBC3's returning comedy Pramface:

1. Scarlett Alice Johnson's ongoing transformation from EastEnders disaster into fine comic actress.

2. The fact that Angus Deayton was happy to walk around in his boxer shorts. Hardly the first time Angus has been spotted with his trousers down etc, etc.

Angus Deayton to star in Waterloo Road

Angus Deayton has been given a role in the next series of the long-running BBC television programme Waterloo Road.

Emmy Award-winning Homeland star Damian Lewis presides over the topical comedy quiz show tonight as it celebrates the tenth anniversary of inviting in guest hosts - a 'temporary' solution to the abrupt departure of Angus Deayton which has turned into one of the show's major talking points. Joining teams Hislop and Merton are UKIP leader Nigel Farage and US actor Harry Shearer - the voice of The Simpsons' Principal Skinner.

It's ten years since Angus Deayton made his hurried departure from the HIGNFY host's chair, since when 84 different bottoms have perched there, including those of MasterChef's Gregg Wallace and John Torode, the only double act to share the job, two knights (Sir Bruce Forsyth and Sir Trevor McDonald), two OBEs (Joan Collins and Moira Stuart) and one intergalactic space traveller.

In this anniversary edition, Homeland's Damian Lewis takes the hot seat for the fifth time - obviously hoping to challenge Alexander Armstrong's record of 20 - and, judging by his earlier outings, he'll deliver the scripted lines with exquisite timing and charm. Tonight's guests are Harry Shearer and Nigel Farage.

Have I Got News For You is about to begin its forty-fourth series. Given that Angus Deayton took his leave in Season 24, the team aren't far from doubling their tally since the incident that many feared would mark the show's end. Hislop can feel a little preachy and sanctimonious these days - his self-appointed moral inquisitor shtick has started to feel like less of a joke and more of an assumed position. We also wonder if Merton is having quite as much fun as he used to. But for the most part, HIGNFY remains pretty good value, even if it lacks the edge of old. This series opener will be helmed by nascent national treasure Clare Balding - it's nice to see Clare's still got time for her old pals, despite her new status.