Ronni Ancona

Preview - QI

After Stephen Fry stepped down at the end of Series 'M' the fate of the beloved BBC show QI, was unknown but Sandi Toksvig has done an excellent job in ensuring its survival.

Ronni Ancona and Kevin Whately join Still Game cast

TV favourites Ronni Ancona and Kevin Whately will guest star in the much-anticipated new series of BBC One comedy Still Game.

Bumbling, bumptious Mr Khan adds entrepreneurial restaurateur to his CV by opening a fried chicken shop. There's just one problem: he's dipped deep into the Khan pension fund to pay for the finger-licking franchise, so has to keep it a secret from his wife, even as he recruits family and friends as staff. Will Mrs Khan's new obsession with tango help him dance around the subject? Adil Ray's broad Brummie sitcom continues, with Ronni Ancona guest-starring as an amorous fast-food-fryer with designs on Amjad.

Radio Times review

The broad comedy about a pompous and deluded "community leader" returns, with guest stars in the new series including Ronni Ancona, Tyger Drew-Honey, Steve Furst and, in this episode, Peter Bowles, who conforms to type by playing the lord of the local manor.

The stately home has put on an exhibition of Indian treasures collected during the Raj, something that piques the interest of both Mr Khan (Adil Ray) and his mother-in-law Naani (Adlyn Ross). But while Mr Khan sees a chance to better himself by rubbing shoulders with the aristocracy, Naani wants to profit in a rather more direct way.

Radio Times review

Hal Cruttenden is unashamedly middle-class, which makes his humour a perfect match for Radio 4. There's even a telling reference to this in his new sitcom about a stay-at-home dad, where he advises his children that while being middle-class is definitely "the best", they should not tell their school chums because it will make them sound vulgar.

It's tough to make an impact in the first episode of a new sitcom, but I laughed out loud, several times, and the supporting cast, including Ed Byrne and Ronni Ancona, is top-notch.

Ronni Ancona interview

Ronni Ancona reveals her daughters Lily, eight, and Elsa, five, have yet to laugh at her impressions but were proud of her voice for a character in CBBC's Pet Squad.

You don't need to be a spring chicken to flirt or fall in love - as last year's surprise hit Last Tango In Halifax certainly proved.

Seven million viewers were hooked as love-struck wrinklies Alan and Celia, both in their seventies, rediscovered their love for each other, 60 years after first meeting.

Sweet and often hilarious, the series bagged a Bafta and returns for a second run.

"At my age, to get a part like Celia is manna from heaven," admits Anne Reid, 78. "There aren't enough roles for older actresses. I feel very lucky indeed."

The first episode picks up from where we left off with Alan (Derek Jacobi) regaining consciousness from his heart scare, much to Celia's relief.

Reflecting that life's too short, they decide to get married - in a fortnight!

Elsewhere, Sarah Lancashire and Tony Gardner return as Celia's daughter Caroline and her hubby John.

He gets drunk and ends up in bed with Judith (Ronni Ancona).

"I've been in this business a long time," says excited former Corrie actress Anne, "but I've never known anything like this."

Celia and Alan's touching whirlwind romance has been 60 years in the making. After dropping the bombshell on their children at the end of last week's episode that they're getting married, the newly engaged couple - played by Anne Reid and Derek Jacobi - have some exciting plans to make.

Not to mention bridges to build between their daughters Caroline and Gillian, who didn't get off on the right foot. "Trailer trash" and "b****" isn't the best way to greet your prospective in-laws.

So Alan and Celia decide to throw a little ­engagement party, which, as things turn out, should at least take the heat off their romance and stop it from being the sole topic of chat for a while.

This wonderfully bittersweet comedy drama from Sally Wainwright about love among the over 70s ticks all the right boxes thanks to sympathetic writing and excellent performances with depth.

Underneath Celia's twinkling optimism and girlish delight there lies a lifetime of experience and, when she puts a patronising young salesman firmly back in his box tonight, we can see exactly where her daughter Caroline (Sarah Lancashire) gets her take-no-c**p attitude from.

One scene tonight where Caroline cuts a meddling colleague down to size makes you want to stand and cheer.

Caroline's estranged husband John (played by Tony Gardner, who also plays Professor Shales in Fresh Meat) is back in the family home, but the appearance of his other woman (Ronni Ancona) is about to rock that little boat, too.