Jon Richardson

If those roving cameras are to be trusted, there were considerably more young women than men in the audience at London's Apollo Theatre the night this stand-up set was recorded. It isn't hard to see why. Jon Richardson's stage persona is that of a sweet, boyish little chap (with the mildest touch of OCD), happiest when getting his milk teeth into riffs about MasterChef, washing-up or packed-lunches. Simply put, most of the audience clearly just wants to mother him; their uneasy-looking boyfriends have nothing to worry about.

It's an unnerving combination - imagine waking up to it after jetlag, or a snooze on the sofa - but the mash-up between the irreverent panel show and the venerable quiz has been popular enough for Channel 4 to have a new batch made.

As long as Jimmy Carr is in the host's chair, he'll dominate the fight for the Countdown teapot, while the teams stretch themselves by trying to do the jokes and get a decent word at the same time; you don't get to be a TV comedian without a competitive streak. Tonight Sean Lock has Jason Manford on his side, while Jon Richardson forms a loose allegiance with Rhod Gilbert.

If you haven't seen or heard of 8 Out of 10 Cats before then you probably don't have a television and have no need to be reading this. It's your straightforward celebrity panel quiz show where the questions are based around various surveys and statistics, as is explained at the top of the show by host Jimmy Carr.

This week they aired a second episode of the show where the host and guests are, for no explained reason, playing a game of Countdown. I can only assume that the initial C4 mash-up was a big hit and they thought, "Aaah why not, eh?" As usual, Jimmy rattled off a number of scripted gags, ranging from fair to poor, and Jon Richardson was his usual dour self, taking the role of team captain.

Notably missing from the line up was Sean Lock, which was a big loss to the show. Sean usually adds a nice eccentricity with his obvious lack of ego, never afraid to pick up on jarring absurdities of 'celebrity' guests on the regular weekly edition. Lee Mack was a fair replacement though, quick witted as usual, with a number of nice one-liners. He even managed to score a nine-letter word early on leaving the ever competitive Jon Richardson with plenty of room to play up his comically-angry persona.

Lee was joined by Rob Beckett and Jon by Rhod Gilbert, both of whom were funny and likeable. Tim Key was in Dictionary Corner and although enjoyable, he didn't have as much of a chance to shine as I would have liked. Joe Wilkinson appeared around the halfway point to "assist" Rachel with the letters, however he had no real reason to be on the show. Wilkinson is undoubtedly a funny man, but the number of appearances he makes on the show is somewhat diluting the hilarity of his "crazy antics".

An entertaining and fun show, then, providing you're not put off by the odd Savile joke or sexual objectification. Just saying.

For reasons never really explained - well, beyond the fact that the letters board presents a fine opportunity for puerile mischief - the Cats mob have become a little smitten with Countdown: this is the third mash-up between the shows in little over a year. Jimmy Carr again hosts, though Sean Lock is away on tour, so regular captain Jon Richardson pairs up with gruff Welshman Rhod Gilbert to take on Rob Beckett and panel show pro Lee Mack. Over in dictionary corner, Countdown veteran Susie Dent is joined by the marvellous Tim Key.

Playing the comedy-show mash-up game, afternoon favourite Countdown gets a prime-time makeover, with regular Cats Jon Richardson and Rhod Gilbert pitting their wits against opponents Lee Mack and Rob Beckett. Over in Dictionary Corner, the very funny Tim Key reserves the right to delete any wordy offerings that don't come up to scratch. And maybe he'll treat us to one of his comedy poems - they deserve a show of their own.

One of TV's most unlikely - but no less enjoyable for that - cross-fertilisations returns as the 8 out of 10 Cats comedy quiz team takes over (for the third time) the veteran words and numbers game Countdown. Once again, Jimmy Carr replaces Nick Hewer in the presenter's chair, while Jon Richardson is joined by Rhod Gilbert to take on fellow comedians Lee Mack (replacing absent captain Sean Lock) and Rob Beckett. In Dictionary Corner with Countdown's Susie Dent is performance poet Tim Key, while Rachel Riley gets less welcome assistance from beardy Joe Wilkinson.

Frank Skinner's role as judge and jury seems inconsequential in tonight's final show of the series - its all about the verbal sparring that breaks out between the guests.

Comedian Jon Richardson is in the firing line, declared dull by Strictly judge Craig Revel Horwood for wanting to dump dancing into Room 101, who then gets up actress Sheila Hancock's nose by admitting he buys scented candles - one of her pet hates.

It just leaves Skinner to bring the curtain down with a Macarena.

There's a lot of sniping between the guests in this edition and it's this, rather than their arguments for putting scented candles, house guests, wedding speeches and the like into Room 101, that produces the most laughs. It's perhaps inevitable that when Jon Richardson says he never dances, describing it as "arrogant walking", Craig Revel Horwood responds waspishly that Jon is "probably one of the dullest people I've ever sat next to". However, following that up by making joke-telling one of his pet hates is a bit strong. Even Sheila Hancock joins in the teasing, albeit inadvertently, until she gets threatened with being consigned to oblivion herself.

Actress Sheila Hancock, Strictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel Horwood and comedian Jon Richardson are the final celebrities bidding for their bêtes noires to be consigned to oblivion tonight. A sassy Hancock proves good value on subjects such as her aversion to fireworks and scented candles, although Revel Horwood lives up to his mean persona by insulting Richardson throughout, and even puts forward joke-telling as one of his pet hates, which creates a bit of an atmosphere. Although unfunny guests do tend to dampen the fun, host Frank Skinner's impromptu joshing largely makes up for the deficit of laughs.