Simon Bird (II)

Originally a Channel 4 pilot, the playfully anachronistic Chickens stars Inbetweeners Joe Thomas and Simon Bird, alongside Jonny Sweet. They play George, Cecil and Bert, left behind in Rittle-On-Sea in 1914 as the rest of the men head off to the great war. Living together in a cottage daubed with scornful graffiti by the townswomen, the trio - a conscientious objector, a flat-footed reject and a bounder - make comedic hay of their moral and sexual shame in this highly promising opener.

It's all happening for Inbetweeners fans - this week sees three of the four lads debuting their latest forays into TV comedy.

Tomorrow, Simon Bird and Joe Thomas pop up in Chickens but first, here's Neil, sorry Blake Harrison, playing the slightly less gormless Ben in a show that breaks new ground in sitcoms - it's set in Great Yarmouth, dog-eared jewel of the Norfolk coast.

Ben's got an MA in Norse poetry but amazingly, he's not been snapped up by the job market. So he's back in his home town, tail between his legs, and face to face with his ex, who's now dating the local copper. Ouch. Seann Walsh co-stars.

From Inbetweeners to Chickens

We visit the set of Sky1's first world war sitcom, which marks the major TV writing debut of its stars Joe Thomas, Simon Bird and Jonny Sweet.

"The world has no room for cowards," Robert Louis Stevenson maintained. Sky's new comedy does, though, as it follows three loathed (their house is emblazoned with "Just Die" and "Coward Cottage") draft-dodging chickens who have, quite wisely, ducked out of the carnage of the First World War. The trio of cowards, played by Inbetweeners stars Simon Bird and Joe Thomas, who also, jointly, wrote this, and Jonny Sweet, gel nicely together in this undemanding satire. "If you were really keen to help, you would have killed yourself to raise moral," yells a crone at Simon Bird's flat-footed Cecil, who is knitting for the war effort. Bird, Sweet and Thomas are all adept comic actors, and the wonderful Emma Fryer cameos, too.

Simon Bird & Jonny Sweet interview

Simon Bird and Jonny Sweet talk about Chickens.

Edinburgh Fringe interview: Tom Rosenthal

Tom Rosenthal may be best known for his role opposite Simon Bird in the excellent Friday Night Dinner and more recently in the ancient Rome based sitcom Plebs. His experience filming the series in Bulgaria form part of his second Edinburgh Fringe show.

Audio: Chickens Q&A

Stars and creators Simon Bird, Jonny Sweet and Joe Thomas are joined by cast members Sarah Daykin, Emerald Fennell, and Barry Humphries at BAFTA to talk about the new WW1-set Sky1 sitcom Chickens.

Harry Hill filming with Julie Walters and Simon Bird

The film features Hill on a road-trip to Blackpool after learning his hamster has only a week to live with his Walters as his white-haired gran.