Ben Bailey Smith

On my radar: Doc Brown's cultural highlights

The rapper, comedian, actor and screenwriter on Slow West, Ray Celestin's The Axeman's Jazz, The Waters by Mick Jenkins and the magic of Kermode and Mayo.

Who is Doc Brown?

Doc Brown - AKA Ben Bailey Smith - is a man on the up. The rapper and comedian is co-starring with Ricky Gervais in the new film Life on the Road... and he has a very young following as well

Doc Brown interview

When namechecking Doc Brown, journalists usually tag on the prefix 'rapper-turned comedian'. But as the 38-year-old builds a juicy film career, he's in danger of being recast as a 'comedian-turned actor'.

In Nurse Paul Whitehouse has, with co-writer David Cummings, adapted this multi-role comedy, almost literally fleshing out the characters with much aid from prosthetics.

He plays most of the patients - or service users, as NHS jargon now has it - of the eponymous nurse, Liz (beautifully played by Esther Coles). She's a community psychiatric nurse and in last night's opening episode of four we followed her as she attended to her charges - which seems to involve injecting most of them in the bum with their medication - while visiting them in their homes.

As first sight Liz's patients may seem to be a gallery of grotesques - they include Graham, a morbidly obese young man who can barely move from his bed, a psychotic, agoraphobic ex-prisoner Billy, and ageing lech Herbert (shades of The Fast Show's Rowley Birkin), long past his many sexual conquests - but they are beautifully observed and carefully constructed individuals, people we laugh with, not at.

Whitehouse and Co (aided by Ian Fitzgibbon's adroit direction) capture the huge array of mental health issues, and intelligently address the very real problem that some sufferers have - of people close to them with whom they are in dangerously co-dependent relationships. It's a recognised phenomenon that a loved one can still be jealous of the person getting, as they see it, all the attention, or that they fear the patient becoming well and leading an independent life means their role within it diminishes, and so may try to scupper their recovery.

Other roles in a very strong cast are filled by, among others, Ben Bailey-Smith (aka Doc Brown) as a joky police officer Liz deals with on a frequent basis; Whitehouse's old confrere Simon Day, as Billy's controlling friend Tony; and Rosie Cavaliero, who like Whitehouse plays more than one role - Graham's overfeeding mum and April, a woman who lives alone with her monstrous regiment of cats, eating the same food: "If it's good enough for my little darlings, it's good enough for me."

Nurse is full of pathos and there are no Fast Show punchlines or catchphrases, but there are many, many laughs - often slipped in as throwaway lines or there to undercut the poignancy.

Created with evident affection for the institution of the NHS, and a deep respect for those working in it, Nurse has a real emotional pull while supplying some snortingly good comedy. Warmly recommended.

Doc Brown to star in Ricky Gervais's 'Life on the Road'

The rapper - otherwise known as actor Ben Bailey Smith - will star with the former office manager in the spoof rock documentary.

Radio Times review

Do the names Chris Ramsey and Doc Brown ring only the faintest of bells? Then allow me to place tonight's stand-ups for you (alongside compere Jason Manford). Ramsey you'll recognise from his role in BBC Two sitcom Hebburn, where he played aspiring journalist Jack. Doc Brown is an actor, too, and played Bradley Walsh's oppo in Law and Order: UK. (He's also the brother of novelist Zadie Smith.) That's a lot of background info because, to be honest, there are no terribly quotable gags in their routines, but Brown's comedy rap to finish the show is worth seeing.

'Fake' Londoners and fatherhood on Doc Brown's mind

His 90-minute set was almost devoid of the comedy raps which have earned him millions of hits on YouTube, yet his straight material was more than strong enough to keep his audience hooked throughout.

Review: Doc Brown

His take on the industry's hang-ups about black actors is inspired - and opens the gateway to his most socially astute section, belatedly at 37 identifying himself as a feminist.

Doc Brown interview

You wouldn't blame anyone for being a little big-headed if they could act, rap and make people laugh but Doc Brown is determined to keep level-headed about his success.