Noel Fielding

Noel Fielding to dance for Comic Relief

Mighty Boosh comic Noel Fielding, The Thick of It star Rebecca Front and comics Russell Kane and Ed Byrne are among the stars who will take part in this year's Let's Dance for Comic Relief.

On the face of it, Comic's Choice looked as if it was going to be negligibly mediocre. It had the kind of jaunty animated title sequence we've seen a hundred times before, and the pre-broadcast description indicated that it was yet another clip-show, one of those comedians-talking-to-comedians affairs that can occasionally make contemporary broadcasting look like a vast job-creation scheme for underemployed stand-ups. The saving grace here is that one of the comedians (the presenter one) is Bill Bailey. Not only can he play his own signature tune but he's got a manner that somehow makes the format work, which is handy for Channel 4, since it's on every night this week, as a curtain-raiser to the British Comedy Awards this coming weekend.

That's the premise. The British Comedy Awards do flavour of the month, while this short series explores more durable supremacy, with each guest nominating and selecting their best of the best in various categories. Last night, Alan Davies was in the selector's chair, and quickly demonstrated one problem with the structure of the programme, which is that there's no proof in comedy. Davies had nominated Dave Allen as Best Male Comic, on the strength of a live West End performance he once saw. But, of course, there was no clip of that, and even if there had been it may not have made his case for him. It doesn't hugely matter, though, because Bailey is affable and funny enough to fill the gaps - on great form last night pretending to sulk about one of Davies's other nominations, the "sexy little jazz weasel" Noel Fielding, who once bumped him off a captain's slot on Never Mind the Buzzcocks.

There was an eye-rubbing, no-it-can't-be-him moment in the monstrously lame How Not To Live Your Life. Could that really be Noel Fielding of The Mighty Boosh fame, reduced to a dodgy cameo in which he has to stare at a bloke's manhood in a lav and make jokes about 'that's a really good tip'?

I didn't want to believe it, I waited for the credits hoping for a monstrous piece of mistaken identity and that he hadn't been involved in this parlous state of affairs. But yes, Fielding it was.

Inexplicably, this sitcom, built around zero-charisma writer/'star' Dan Clark as Don Danbury, has reached a third series. Don is one of those characters you're supposed to love to loathe as he loafs his way through life, a kindred spirit to Neil Stuke's agoraphobic in Game On. But he's just pure loathe.

There is no justice in the world, clearly. Otherwise, why would the dreadful sitcom How Not to Live Your Life be allowed to survive into its third series? More to the point why does its charmless star/writer/producer, Dan Clark, have almost total creative control, like he's Woody Allen or something?

He plays a feckless, gaffe-prone berk who constantly finds himself in sticky predicaments, usually in an effort to impress his attractive female housemate. This premise could probably provoke a few laughs in the hands of a more talented comedian, but Clark is terminally uninspired. The latest episode even featured a cameo from Noel Fielding, just to seal the comedy vacuum.

Lazy and obvious, the only fun it provides is in seeing how often you can predict each punchline.

BBC3's commissioning team throw up some pretty variable results. On the one hand, you get the sporadically deep and wonderful Him & Her. On the other, you get the rather more hit-and-miss likes of How Not To Live Your Life, now entering its third season. To recap: Don is a new lad (remember them?), who lives in a house with a lively cast of characters, while he must endure a series of misfortunes. Tonight, mild merriment ensues when he gets a job by mistake - who on some level can't empathise with that? The Mighty Boosh's Noel Fielding guests.

It shouldn't be funny. It's on BBC3, the intelligent critics hate it and it has a cameo from 'Happy Shopper Russell Brand', Noel Fielding. Still, tvBite can't help but laugh at it.

Star and writer Dan Clark has clearly tried to widen his writing for the third series: there's a dodgy subplot involving his attractive flatmate Laura Haddock, but if you ignore that (and it's easy to do) there's plenty of actually funny jokes, including a brilliant slo-mo montage set to Dire Straits and a good line about a roundhouse punch. It's not perfect, but there's talent - and a sense that everyone involved is really enjoying themselves.

How We Met: Dan Clark & Noel Fielding

'I used to say, "Dan, you're so funny at a party, you've got to try to get that into your comedy"'

A repeat of C4's live comedy extravaganza from London's 02 Arena earlier this year in which 23 of our funniest people (and Michael McIntyre) competed to win our laughs in aid of Great Ormond Street Children's Charity. Take your pick from Alan Carr, Noel Fielding, Catherine Tate, Bill Bailey, Mitchell & Webb, Jack Dee, Jack Whitehall, Kevin Eldon, Lee Evans, Rob Brydon, Sean Lock, Jo Brand, Jason Manford, Fonejacker, Andy Parsons and Shappi Khorsandi. Phew.

Happy Shopper Russell Brand, Noel Fielding has had a pop at Simon Amstell for "ruining" Never Mind The Buzzcocks by being too rude to the guests, which suggests that he hadn't watched any of the series before Amstell was on. Or after. Or even tonight's episode in which Jack Dee describes Jedward as the "greatest musical meeting since Chapman met Lennon".

Mentally prepare yourself: Jedward are on tonight, appearing as one guest, and looking and being utterly ridiculous. But don't worry, because host Jack Dee and team captain Noel Fielding eat them alive. 'They're like a simpleton Bros' is just one of many, many insults hurled at them. Addictive viewing, sadly.