Jasper Carrott

The third Comedy Lab pilot of the series is a mockumentary tackling the issue of disability, an issue rather important to me as I suffer from Asperger's syndrome.

Rick and Peter begins with T4 presenter Rick Edwards (whom I'd never heard before) becoming an internet sensation following a YouTube montage clip of him repeatedly mocking the disabled. As a result he's ordered by a Channel 4 executive (Miles Jupp) to attend a school presentation given by Hollyoaks and Cast Offs star Peter Mitchell, who is paraplegic and confined to a wheelchair.

In terms of mockumentaries, it's not the most innovative ever made. Many shows have covered the supposedly nasty (albeit fake) attitudes of a celebrity. And it also features other guest stars like Nicholas Parsons and Giles Cohen in self-deprecating roles, but this idea has been implemented numerous times in shows such as Extras.

However, my main problem with Rick and Peter is actually the relationship between the two. Since Rick mocks the 'mind disabled' rather than the 'leg disabled', surely the character should be made to do something with someone with a more relevant disability?

The problem with that, of course, lies with TV networks' obsession with the visibly disabled. I know that I'm 'mind disabled', but I look normal - and TV doesn't like that. It seems to me that unless you have a disability in which you look different (missing limb, dwarfism, etc.) or require some sort of, for want of a better term, hardware (wheelchair, white stick, hearing aid) you'll not get a look in on TV because they'll be asking: "How can the viewers tell you're disabled?"

In the end all that happens is that we get comparisons with Rain Man, which is inaccurate because he's a savant and most autistic people are not. Either that or it's Tourette's syndrome and you get someone swearing their head off, which again most Tourette's sufferers do not do. If we don't do something odd we don't get a look in, which really frustrates me. In terms of my disability, the only one I can think of appearing in a British sitcom was one of the children in the Jasper Carrott sitcom All About Me, which is widely regarded as being one of the worst sitcoms ever made. Plus that child is somewhat overshadowed by the main narrator of the story, a boy in a wheelchair suffering from cerebral palsy.

I don't think that Rick and Peter will get a full series, but if it does I hope they cover all ground when it comes to disability, not just what you can see.

There's one big negative: it's got a laughter track. Spaced didn't neeed canned chuckles; The Boosh don't use them; Nathan Barley didn't come equipped with fake guffaws. It's an out-dated device that undermines a programme's writing and is best left to the stuff featuring Jasper Carrott. Because, granted, there are some canny one-liners amid the corny drivel, but when something's billed as a comedy, surely it shouldn't be too surprising that some moments are funny. Lee Mack is an ace stand-up but his moves into television have been mainstream meh. The Sketch Show, anyone? Mack should stop Not Going Out and get back on stage where he excels.

Editor Note: This critic seems to have fallen into the trap of not realising that NGO is filmed in front of a live audience

Carr becomes the latest personality trying to follow in Jasper Carrott's footsteps in finding foreigners funny - and he's abysmal, trotting out lame gags and receiving lame laughter in return. We might watch this again but only if we tune in for the ads (some were masterpieces) and fast forward through the programme.

If you have never caught a Commercial Breakdown (previous recipients of its unique career-damaging magic are Jasper Carrott and Jo Brand) then you're very lucky. It claims to be an unmissable collection of the world's funniest, wildest and weirdest television adverts, each one a mini-masterpiece in its own right.

Historically, however, it has always been a bit of a lame duck, with enhanced laughter tracks and bad scripts for the comic linker - in this case Carr.

Of course, this new incarnation might see the concept raise its game, with Carr a renowned perfectionist.