Jack Whitehall

Now in their 21st year, the British Comedy Awards have long served as a bellwether for the state of British comedy, from the quirky satire of the early 1990s, through the energetic sketch shows of the mid- to late-90s, to the recent success of family-friendly stand-up comics like Peter Kay, Michael McIntyre and John Bishop. Thanks to a sharp host, a ready supply of funny clips and a suitably witty audience, they've also been one of the few live awards ceremonies actually worth watching.

Tonight's event is hosted live by Jonathan Ross. Leading the nominees is Miranda Hart, who is up for four awards, while Harry Hill gets three nods. Hart, last year's Queen of Comedy winner, is up for the award again, with David Mitchell, Telegraph agony uncle Graham Norton, Jack Whitehall, Jo Brand and Sarah Millican also in the running. Tamsin Greig and Tom Rosenthal are nominated for best TV comedy actress and best comedy breakthrough artist respectively for their roles in Friday Night Dinner, while Hugh Dennis and Claire Skinner have been singled out for their contribution to Outnumbered. Downton Abbey's Hugh Bonneville receives a nomination for his role in the Olympic comedy Twenty Twelve.

Jonathan Ross presides as comedians and TV producers drink themselves wretched and honk and bellow over each other's speeches. Probable attendees include last year's victor Miranda Hart, and this year's nominees for the public vote, Jack Whitehall, David Mitchell, Sarah Millican, Jo Brand and Graham Norton. But best of all, it's live. That combination of booze and live broadcast is really the only reason for this in the first place.

Judging by the line-ups for the third series of this programme, I think it's safe to say that Dave are running low on suitable locations to film. The first episode featured Ardal O'Hanlon performing in Dublin, a city which the programme's already covered in the last series when Jason Byrne performed there. Later in the series, Stephen K Amos is performing in London, Jack Whitehall's location in the first series. And Reginald D Hunter is performing in Edinburgh, which, as far as I know, isn't where he lives currently. It's certainly not his hometown, although since that would mean filming in America you can excuse Dave for not going there...

In terms of the first edition of the series, O'Hanlon seemed to be performing well, but like many an occasion on this programme I was more impressed by the guests he had performing alongside him. This episode featured one-liner stand-up Gary Delaney (who, out of interest to northern comedy fans, is Sarah Millican's boyfriend) and Josie Long. I probably favoured Delaney's one-liners over Long's narrative, if I'm honest, but both demonstrated why they're two of the most sought after comedians in the country.

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Fresh Meat's finale was touching and amusing

As Fresh Meat's first series drew to a close, Jack Whitehall proved his acting worth in a satisfying - and touching - final episode.

Rejoice and be glad because Fresh Meat is right back on song for its final episode, full of the well-worked plotlines and gorgeous character comedy that make it so lovable. The fling between Profesor Shales and Oregon has kicked up a gear now that his wife has thrown him out, so the two are moving in together. The great Tony Gardner as Shales is always brilliant but he gets bigger laughs than ever when he briefly moves into the student house and has to pour tiny plastic pots of creamer on his home-made muesli. One shot of him in his wonderfully daft dressing-gown speaks volumes.

There follows an awkward dinner party between his poncey friends and the housemates ("So, what else are young people into...?") and of course some great work from Jack Whitehall as JP: his reaction when he realises that he has double-booked on the day of his dad's funeral is priceless. Roll on the second series.

The freshest comedy of the year, this university students sitcom goes out on a high with more boozing, sex and foul language. Tonight Josie (Kimberley Nixon) gets drunk on "schmocoa" - that's schnapps and cocoa - and goes clubbing in a bid to forget her boyfriend woes, while JP (Jack Whitehall) is annoyed that his big club night will clash with his father's funeral. This has proved itself a worthy successor to The Inbetweeners - its depiction of university archetypes is spot-on and the performances excellent. The good news is that a second series has already been ordered. Schmocoas all round!

Final episode in the comedy-drama that managed to live up to sky-scraping expectations. It's the end of the first term and Vod is kicked off her course, Oregon tries to adjust to life as Shales's girlfriend and Kingsley's yearning for Josie reaches its shrill crescendo. Meanwhile, JP has his dad's funeral to attend, giving Jack Whitehall a stab at genuine pathos. It's only the end of term one and that means - one term per series - there could be a potential eight series with the same cast. Great!