Joanna Lumley

Absolutely Fabulous movie starts filming in October

Joanna Lumley revealed October 12 will be the first filming day, but she admits she hasn't read all the script yet.

Ab Fab new generation as Saffy gets a stroppy daughter

Producers are casting for a teenage girl for the big screen return of Jennifer Saunders' fashion lush Edina and Joanna Lumley's hedonistic Patsy.

Holly Willoughby & Fearne Cotton dress as Ab Fab

Holly Willoughby and Fearne Cotton arrived at Keith Lemon's fancy dress themed party as aging PR Edina Monsoon and man-eating sidekick Patsy Stone - respectively played by Jennifer Saunders and Joanna Lumley in nineties sitcom Absolutely Fabulous.

Stars named for Comic Relief Bake Off

YouTube star Zoe Sugg, aka Zoella will join A-listers like Michael Sheen, Dame Edna Everage and Joanna Lumley in a Comic Relief edition of The Great British Bake Off.

Jennifer Saunders: Joanna Lumley made me write film

The first draft of the sitcom movie is in. Now it's Joanna Lumley's turn to "buckle down"...

Radio Times review

Written by and starring the siblings Rebecca and Jeremy Front, this astute satirical comedy returns for a new run. Each of the five spoof documentaries has Jeremy, as a Radio 4 reporter, spending 24 hours in the company of one of the "incredible women" of the title, all played by Rebecca.

Today we encounter Danielle, a reality TV star whose concept of "normal life" has been weirdly warped by having her every move scripted for her - it's a cross between TOWIE and What Katie Did Next. Various famous voices pop up as themselves - Eamonn Holmes, Joanna Lumley, Clare Balding and Dame Stella Rimmington included - and my favourite is Barbara Windsor, who makes a knowing return to her Carry On days as a sexually predatory 87-year-old singer.

Clever, funny, quality writing - this is just what we've come to expect from the Fronts.

David Walliams stars in this likeable adaptation of his best-selling kids' book about Ben (Reece Buttery), a neglected, plumbing-mad boy, and his seemingly boring gran (the brilliant Julia McKenzie) who's not what she seems.

Ben's selfish, ballroom-dancing-crazed parents, played as hideous comic creations by Walliams and a glammed-up Miranda Hart, drop Ben off at his gran's every weekend, where he's subjected to cabbage soup, painful silences and endless rounds of scrabble. At breaking point, he discovers valuables in her biscuit tin and forces her to confess her sideline as an international jewel thief. Their shared secret leads to an ambitious heist, but hot on the tail of gran's mobility scooter is nosy neighbour Mr Parker.

Although it takes a while to warm up, there are moments of real humour, especially in the hospital breakout and ballroom scenes. Expect to see more Robbie Williams on our screens too - he holds his own rather well as the faux-Italian Flavio. It's a slight story with a big heart, and it's surprisingly poignant when the Queen (Joanna Lumley - who else?) makes a plea for the young to respect the old.

Gangsta Granny review

Whilst not a completely smooth drama (Joanna Lumley's dancing, anyone?), Gangsta Granny delivered exactly what you'd expect from a Christmas family programme: funny, heart-warming and rollicking drama.

David Walliams calls in a lifetime's worth of showbiz favours to create this talent-strewn version of his bestselling children's novel. Young Ben (Reece Buttery) is dispatched to stay with his grandmother, who runs a tight ship based on nights in, Scrabble and cabbage soup. He is, understandably, bored out of his tiny mind. Until somehow it transpires that gran was once an international jewel thief and she needs her grandson's help to tie up some unfinished business. Cue a crazy romp that takes in a meeting with the Queen (played by Joanna Lumley) and the unwanted interventions of a nosy neighbour (Rob Brydon). Walliams himself appears as Ben's Strictly-obsessed dad, opposite Miranda Hart as his mum. 
What japes.