Michael Smiley

The Toll review

Brassy indie flick provides a fun slice of pulp cinema

The Toll review

Toll booth man with no name fights back in jokey Welsh western.

Spaced turns 21: it couldn't be more relevant today

Despite airing at the start of the millennium, Simon Pegg and Jessica Hynes' wacky comedy Spaced is more relevant to lockdown life than you'd think, says Lauren Morris.

Spaced's clubbing episode is finest feel-good moment

Broadcast in 1999, right at the end of the most optimistic decade in recent memory, 'Epiphanies' encapsulates the feel-good outlook of its time.

The Rob Brydon-helmed panel show is on its 10th series now, and it has endured for a reason: it's reliably good - albeit formulaic - fun, thanks to the counterintuitive chemistry of David Mitchell and Lee Mack, plus the well-chosen guests. Tonight's episode features the irascible Michael Smiley, the mordant Diane Morgan, the always

Fishbowl cast interview

Katherine Rose Morley, Mark Benton, Sally Lindsay and Michael Smiley talk about being in the pilot episode of Fishbowl.

Alfie tries to resurrect his fledgling romance with Michelle after abandoning her for ex-fiance Carly, who, unbeknown to him, has been seeing Prop Maartie (Rufus Jones), Alfie's aggressively South African boss. Alfie's dad (Michael Smiley) is also back in town, flashy as ever, and this time apparently flush, too. But when he decides to raid Gary and Gary's anniversary celebration kitty, the facade starts to crumble. Robert Evans's B&B-set comedy pootles on amusingly, but plays it far too safe to ever broach real hilarity.

Where, exactly, has Ambassadors gone wrong? The idea, sending blundering diplomats to a chaotic post-Soviet state, is sound, while the casting - with Mitchell & Webb as inept and smug respectively - is tried and tested. The fault lies in the tone: Ambassadors demonstrates, like so many others before it, just how difficult a comedy-drama can be to execute.

Tonight's final episode is another slice of ripe characterisation, featuring Michael Smiley's crack government interrogator and Natalia Tena as the Tazbek President's spoilt, tarty daughter. There are promising situations too, as a power cut and an ill-advised tryst leave Keith (Mitchell) and Neil (Webb) looking distinctly compromised. But the whole simply doesn't hang together - infuriating, given the talent involved. Ambassadors may need a rethink before serving another term.

It appeared as if the BBC had little confidence in Father Figure from the get-go as it was broadcast in the post 10 O'Clock News death slot. Sitcoms previously scheduled in this slot include the horrid Citizen Khan and Ben Elton's recently atrocity The Wright Way.

To be fair to Father Figure, it was slightly better than both of those shows as it did have an innate likeability to it which was mainly due to the cast. At the same time though it had plenty of problems including one-note characters, a predictable script and gags you could see coming a mile-off.

The story of the first episode saw Tom Whyte (Jason Byrne) cooking a dinner for his neighbours to apologise for covering them in baked beans while they were trying to sunbathe. Then followed a well-worn script where the juvenile central character attempted to cook while fending off the interference from his family members. His mother (Pauline McLynn) tried to take over with the cooking while his friend Roddy (Michael Smiley) steals a giant cake from a hotel lobby. Meanwhile Tom's children are incredibly annoying and his wife Elaine (Karen Taylor) is presented as a serious alcoholic.

The episode climaxed with a scene which saw the neighbours being hit by the cake and covered in chocolate mousse while Tom's mother punched him in the face with a roast chicken. If any of these situations are putting a smile on your face then you probably would've enjoyed Father Figure more than I did.

The show was yet another addition to the list of poor sitcoms that have been produced in 2013 and to me Father Figure feels incredibly dated. As I said, the majority of the cast are incredibly likeable, particularly Pauline McLynn whose gift for physical comedy is put to good use here. But ultimately Father Figure feels doomed to fail and after watching the show I felt like Tom's neighbours - incredibly embarrassed and ever so slightly dirty.