Robert Downey Jr.

Radio Times review

Considering he's possibly the world's most charming man, Stephen Fry is never too far away from controversy. The publication of the third volume of his memoirs, More Fool Me, was accompanied by a racket as some readers and commentators demanded he be retrospectively prosecuted for his acknowledged cocaine use in the 1980s.

But Fry was determined to tell what he's described as the "ugly truth" about his drug-taking past that even saw him snorting cocaine during a reception at Buckingham Palace. "I was an imbecile, an idiot, I got caught up in a ridiculous dependency," he told Huw Edwards recently.

Another man who's had his own monumental battles with addiction, Robert Downey Jr, joins Fry and Oscar-winning Robert Duvall on the Norton sofa.

Robert Downey Jr was last on the show in 2009, promoting Guy Ritchie's film Sherlock Holmes. He declared it "the strangest show I've ever been on" as Norton turned his back on the star and played around on his laptop for several minutes.

Downey Jr then had to use a flannel to wipe custard-pie foam off the face of fellow guest, comedian Ed Byrne, before listening to Will Young singing.

None of this seems to have put him off returning to talk about Ritchie's sequel, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, although this time he's got his Watson (Jude Law) to keep him company, and plenty else to talk about in the form of his second child, who's due in February.

He might divide opinion like no other person on television, but even his fiercest critic will admit that the BBC will sorely miss Jonathan Ross when he quits in the summer.

Ross has been the nation's leading chat-show host ever since Michael Parkinson hung up his microphone in 2007 and when it comes to snaring the biggest names in showbiz, Friday Night with Jonathan Ross is in a league of its own.

Such is the show's popularity, that even the volcanic eruption in Iceland a few weeks ago couldn't prevent Robert Downey Jr, Gwyneth Paltrow and Demi Moore from appearing on the show - albeit via a live satellite link.

Savour every moment as Friday nights could be devoid of laughter on the BBC when our gregarious host leaves in the summer. Ross was all smiles as he announced his decision to leave the Corporation after 13 years, despite media reports suggesting that his departure was acrimonious and couldn't speak more highly of his employers, singling out his Friday night chat show as the one show he'd miss the most.

"While there [at the BBC] I have worked with some of the nicest and most talented people in the industry and had the opportunity to interview some of the biggest stars in the world, and I am grateful to the BBC for such a marvellous experience. I love making my Friday night talk show, my Saturday morning radio show and the Film Programme, and will miss them all."

It's safe to say we will miss his risque humour and cheeky grin on a Friday night, so let's hope that when this series concludes it's not long before he is back on our screens doing what he does best - poking fun at A-list celebrities and making us laugh.