Judi Dench

This year has only just got out of the starting blocks, but it is already shaping up to be quite a special one for James Corden.

He was awarded an OBE in the New Year's Honours list, and in March he will be off to the US to host The Late Late Show on CBS five nights a week.

And after his perfect sitcom The Wrong Mans ended 2014 on a high, the actor is back on our screens tonight in this Roald Dahl short story.

In this adaptation by Richard Curtis, Corden plays the on-screen narrator.

He stars alongside Dame Judi Dench and, incredibly, Dustin Hoffman, who play Mrs Silver and her love-struck neighbour Mr Hoppy, who lives in the apartment above hers.

It's hardly a stretch for either of their talents, but it's rather sweet to see them both doing something so playful, and to hear Dame Judi reciting Dahl's nonsense dialogue: "Worg Pu! Ffuts Pu! Thoos Pu!"

The story is charming, but so slight, that to reveal even one detail would probably ruin it completely for any viewers who don't know it already.

But after Victoria Wood's That Day We Sang, and the return of Last Tango In Halifax, it's heartening to see that TV no longer views love as the sole preserve of the young.

Curtis has also provided Mr Hoppy with a love rival, but it's a tortoise called Alfie who will provide him with the greatest challenge.

Radio Times review

Esio Trot (it's "tortoise" backwards) is a drama of the type that broadcasters save up for Christmas and New year, when we are all feeling a bit soppy, mellow and disinclined to be too critical.

It's the slightest of stories, a tale as thin as a fairy's wings, which isn't to say it's not heart-warming and rather sweet. There's just not much to it. Still, with Dustin Hoffman and Judi Dench as leads, and James Corden as a cheerful (onscreen) narrator, Richard Curtis and Paul Mayhew-Archer's adaptation of the Roald Dahl book is a starry confection.

Hoffman is lonely, diffident Mr Hoppy, who has long nurtured a secret love for lively, glamorous, rather brassy neighbour Mrs Silver (Dench). The pair exchange polite pleasantries on their balconies and Mr Hoppy thinks he's in with a chance, if only he were bold. Then Mrs Silver buys a tortoise called Alfie, who becomes the object of all of her affections.

Dame Judi Dench interview

She is our greatest actress. So why, at 80, is she so scared of slowing down?

Esio Trot: Dustin Hoffman & Judi Dench shine

Although Esio Trot is ultimately quite a lightweight story, I feel that Richard Curtis and co-writer Paul Mayhew-Archer make it work due to some great characterisation and extra narrative touches.

Judi Dench and Dustin Hoffman interview

Love, gorgeous costumes, animal magic and Dame Judi Dench and Dustin Hoffman as the leads - could the Roald Dahl's Esio Trot be the ultimate festive TV? The acclaimed pair think so.

Hoffman wants second film with Dench

Dustin Hoffman has confessed admiration for "scrumptious" Briton Judi Dench, saying he would love to make a romantic film with the Dame.

Dustin Hoffman (shy) and Judi Dench (not shy) fluff around in Richard Curtis's soft-as-sponge adaptation of Roald Dahl's twilight romance as two neighbours bonding over a tiny tortoise. James Corden pops in and out to narrate, although to be honest, you'd have to have had a pretty heavy NYE the night before to get lost here.

Never a Dahl moment

Dustin Hoffman and Dame Judi Dench find love in Esio Trot.

Radio Times review

Certain glossy magazines just can't stop speculating about Jennifer Aniston's love life. Oh, poor Jen, they wonder, will she ever find happiness after Brad Pitt? Is she still engaged to Justin Theroux? When are they going to marry? Is he scared of commitment? Is this really anyone's business?

So how far will Graham Norton go tonight when Aniston perches on the sofa with Jason Bateman to discuss their new film, Horrible Bosses 2? The frenzy that constantly surrounds Aniston's romantic life has always fogged the fact that she's an estimable light comic actress. Sadly, she's made some rubbish films since Friends ended, and judging by its trailer, Horrible Bosses 2 won't be a twinkling diamond on her CV.

Making a return visit is the mighty Dame Judi Dench, who'll be talking about her book, Behind the Scenes, and Olly Murs will sing his new single.

Stephen Fry and Jennifer Saunders at 2014 Hay Festival

Entertainment heavyweights Dame Judi Dench, Stephen Fry and Jennifer Saunders are among the headline acts for the 2014 Hay Festival in Powys.