Craig Gallivan

Like another of Sky1's comedies, Starlings, Ruth Jones's series remains adept at observing the humour and hardships of life. As season two continues, Stella (Jones) has confessed to Sean (Kenny Doughty) about her night with her ex (Mark Lewis Jones) and not surprisingly he is planning to leave Pontyberry - but there is a twist in the tale. Her mood isn't improved when she hears that her eldest child, Luke (Craig Gallivan), has been deported from Canada, while undertaker Paula (Elizabeth Berrington) falls out with Dai (Owen Teale) because of his tendency to make-up the dead to "look like Joan Rivers".

Simon Horsford, The Telegraph, 17th January 2013

Single Welsh mother Stella (Ruth Jones) is in high spirits as this fine comedy drama continues. It's son Luke's (Craig Gallivan) 25th birthday and so the family decide to throw a big party. But the birthday boy doesn't know what to do about the return of his estranged father. How will Stella react to the fact her ex is back in town? There's good news for fans, however: the show was recently recommissioned for a second 10-part run to air next year.

Rachel Ward, The Telegraph, 16th February 2012

Now we're purring. Stella's son Luke is out of prison and, new this week, her ex's dreadful girlfriend has gone into the dog-grooming business: "One of our most popular packages is 'the Dog's Dinner', which includes a colour rinse of your choice." Every character does their thing so nicely, the show can flit between them at its leisure, and they're all welcome when they pop up.

Luke (Craig Gallivan) is the main story in episode four, however. Stella desperately hopes he can stay out of trouble, despite Mo from the Bap Factory's insistence that "he'll be back behind bars before you can say Britain's Got Talent."

The story's a simple one but you can relax in front of it, confident that it'll never lapse into tweeness - because there's nothing less relaxing than that - and that there'll be killer jokes along the way.

Jack Seale, Radio Times, 27th January 2012