Larry Lamb

From Steptoe and Son to Only Fools and Horses and Butterflies to The Royle Family, this hike through the sitcom archive - part of BBC Four's Fatherhood season - tells us all about the lot of beleaguered fathers on the small screen. Larry Lamb (Gavin & Stacey), Warren Mitchell (Till Death Us Do Part) and, a little oddly, Father Ted co-creator Graham Linehan are among those discussing the image of fathers in television comedy in the past 50 years.

Sitcom dads tend, as a contributor in this programme points out, to be portrayed as hapless dolts. So as part of its Fatherhood season BBC4 examines how comedies have mocked and ridiculed father figures from Steptoe and Son onwards. Being BBC4, it's a better class of clip show, with a better class of contributor (academics, psychologists, and so on), although as you soak up their considered analysis, you sometimes wonder if a trashier, Channel 4-style Top 50 Sitcom Dads with comedians and celebs doing the talking might not be more fun. But stifle that thought and enjoy the snatches of The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin and Butterflies, as well as the sage observation that Larry Lamb's father figure Mick Shipman in Gavin and Stacey is "like the holding midfielder: he gets it and he gives it".

Gavin wants to call it quits with Stacey

Although Alison Steadman and Larry Lamb, his co-stars in Gavin & Stacey, have set their hearts on seeing the award-winning BBC comedy series turned into a film, Matthew Horne tells me that it would be "a terrible idea."

If you missed season three of this ever-wonderful family sitcom, you can catch the entire run tonight. Some of the dynamics of the show are changing: Nessa (Ruth Jones) seems less amenable, Mick (Larry Lamb) a little spikier (shades of his EastEnders character?) and Bryn (Rob Brydon) even stranger, but it remains sweet-natured. As the final series opens, Gavin (Mathew Horne) has started a new job in Cardiff so Stacey (Joanna Page) is back at home in Barry and a christening is being planned for baby Neil, but there's a shock in store for his father, Smithy (James Corden).

Star says there is more to come

Star Larry Lamb says there is more to come, as 140,000 fans join Facebook campaign to bring back Gavin and Stacey.

The eagerly-awaited Series Three finally materialises and it doesn't disappoint. It's as warmly affectionate as ever and there are lots of big life changes in the offing to keep it fresh as everyone descends on Barry tonight for the christening of Neil the baby.

As we rejoin the nation's favourite extended family, Nessa (the incomparable Ruth Jones) is dealing with motherhood with her usual deadpan aplomb. And now that she's engaged to Dave Coaches, poor old Smithy (Neil the baby's father, just in case series two somehow passed you by) feels increasingly side-lined. Most of all, Smithy is absolutely bereft that his best mate Gavin has left Essex and has moved to Wales to keep Stacey happy.

It's Gavin's very first day in his new job, and his family and friends certainly don't hold back in showing their support. Wales though is turning out to be rather more Welsh than he was bargaining on. In contrast to Mathew Horne and James Corden's disappointing sketch show adventure, every tiny little domestic nuance and character foible is mined here for maximum comedy effect. And even though there's a massive turnout of characters tonight, we still care about every single one of them.

What is weird is seeing Larry Lamb switch from villainous Archie Mitchell on EastEnders to playing Gavin's laid-back dad Mick Shipman.

Nessa's neighbour Doris, who's on salad duty, is a star and there's another belter of a song from Bryn. When he describes a christening as being like an opera, he's not kidding.

Did Larry Lamb really once run a market stall selling hats for dogs? It was the 1960s. It was Harlow. Canine millinery was massive, he insists. True or not, from now on it'll be hard to watch his evil EastEnders' alter-ego Archie Mitchell without conjuring up an image of him lovingly tying a bonnet on to a pug. It's absurd revelations like that one which make this game such a joy.

As series three starts, Rob Brydon takes over from Angus Deayton as host - completing a dream team alongside captains Lee Mack and David Mitchell.

Say hello to a new batch of TV's most reliably funny and likeable panel show. Tonight's posers include whether stand-up Russell Howard used to wear underpants on his head as an anti-acne gambit and whether EastEnders star Larry Lamb once ran a market stall that sold hats for dogs. In case you're thinking that both things are clearly absurd, bear in mind that everything on the show is clearly absurd and could never have happened - yet some of it did. This series, Angus Deayton has given way to Rob Brydon as host, but the show's beating heart remains David Mitchell. He rules it as his domain; the others just make up the numbers. Tonight, Mitchell voices firm views on castles, crying and working at McDonald's.