Rafe Spall

The titular Pete is a sports writer, which goes some way to explaining this latest, actually pretty funny, attempt to jazz up the sitcom format. Namely: as Pete (the excellent Rafe Spall) manoeuvres amiably, if a little weakly through life, his experiences are commentated on and summarised for the benefit of the viewer. That and the attendant graphics and stats create plenty of laughs, but there are also characters you can imagine bearing repetition. Not least Kirk, Pete's South African flatmate, and his mate Rob's pretentious girlfriend Anna - who is naming tables at their wedding reception after Oxford colleges.

The gimmick of this new comedy series by Harry Enfield writers Bert Tyler-Moore and George Jeffries is that Pete (Rafe Spall), a twentysomething aspiring journalist, has his life described by two commentators - one a mad Geordie, the other rather staid - who provide sports-style analysis and statistics as Pete copes with his dysfunctional group of friends. The opener revolves around Pete's attempts to woo an attractive eco-activist. It's very silly and occasionally crude, and whether it will stay funny as the novelty value wears off remains to be seen, but it's promising none the less.

Impressed with the pilot for last year's Comedy Showcase, Channel 4 commissioned a series for this comedy about a sports journalist called Pete (Rafe Spall). It wasn't an entirely bad move. There are pleasantly awkward moments, sharp lines and clever set-ups. Pete has no tact or emotional intelligence. Watching him bungle his life are two middle-aged sport-type commentators. They pause the action to analyse his decisions and amuse us with his vital stats, like how long he can go at it in the sack. It's a playful trick, which helps distract from the parts that don't quite work.

At the end of last year Channel 4 road tested a few comedy pilots, and this one landed a full series. Rafe Spall plays a struggling sports writer whose life invariably leaves him dazed. So far, so good - expect there's a twist: two Sky Sports-style presenters offer a running commentary on his life, complete with analysis, stats and graphics. Interesting idea, which kind of works.

Come Dine With Me has Dave Lamb. Big Brother has Marcus Bentley. Match Of The Day had John Motson and this brilliant new show has Colin King and Terry McIlroy - the world's very first sitcommentators.

Played by Simon Greenall and Ian Kirkby these two are the gimmick that turns what would have been a reasonably amusing but fairly predictable sitcom into a work of utter genius.

With meaningless statistics, on-screen pie-charts and action replays they provide a hilarious blow-by-blow commentary on sports reporter Pete (played by Rafe Spall), whose love life amounts to a series of own goals and sendings-off.

In tonight's pilot episode Pete's latest potential conquest is a girl named Chloe, who is under the impression that he cares passionately about the environment (he doesn't). And we meet all his friends - best mate Rob who's engaged to an excruciating blonde named Anna and housemate Kurt, a Zimbabwean played by Waterloo Road's Chris Geere, who's obsessed with spreading the word about safe sex.

Most promising of all is Pete's nemesis Jake (Daniel Ings) - a dashingly handsome bearded eco-warrior who has just come back from watching the North Pole melt.

And here's another statistic for you: did you know Simon Greenall is also the voice of Aleksandr Orlov in the Compare The Meerkat commercials? Make this one a regular Friday night fixture.

Meet the cast and crew of Pete vs Life

Channel 4 has high hopes for its new sitcom, Pete Versus Life - but it's a show that almost never got made. An interview by Chortle.

Rafe Spall interview

In a new C4 sitcom, Rafe Spall plays Pete, a young journalist who always seems to do the wrong thing.