Jesse Armstrong

Written by Sam Bain and Jesse Armstrong (Peep Show, The Thick of It) and boasting a pedigree cast, which includes Reece Shearsmith, Darren Boyd and Rosie Cavaliero, the second in this commendable comic endeavour doesn't quite deliver the laughs you might expect. The tale of a houseshare in Victorian London, it is silly and clever and marvellously parodies the conventions, characters and cliches of Victorian fiction. With relatives on deathbeds, frustrated spinsters only occupied with embroidery and ebullient doctors, it provides some smirks but there are no laugh-out-loud moments.

A Victorian sitcom. It sounds like an irresistible premise, and the fact that it's written by Sam Bain and Jesse Armstrong only serves to increase the anticipation. But if Ladies And Gentlemen - the second in C4's season of six sitcom pilots - doesn't quite work, there's still a huge amount to enjoy.