Steen Raskopoulos

Pleasant surprise of the week came in the form of BBC Three comedy Top Coppers which I thought would be another awful offering to match the woeful Crims. Instead this loving pastiche of 1970s and 1980s cop shows offered some big belly laughs and some wonderful observational gags on top. Writers Andy Kinnear and Cein McGillicuddy have employed a high gag ratio but at the same time haven't forsaken the plot of the episode over getting cheap laughs. Meanwhile the cast seemingly realise that the best way to pull off a successful spoof is to play it dead straight and that's what most of them have done. Top Coppers is centred round the Justice City Police Department and more specifically Detectives John Mahogany and Mitch Rust (Steen Raskopoulos and John Kearns). Mahogany and Rust have a strong bond which looks to be tested when the former wants to go out with the new girl in the office rather than enjoy movie night with his colleague. This decision leads Rust to go to some extreme lengths to compensate for his loss which includes trying to recreate certain scenes from the movie Speed. The best recurring gag in the first episode for me involved the fact that gangster Harry McCrane (Paul Ritter) had recently purchased an ice cream factory meaning that the employees now had to produce both ice cream and drugs. Although at times Top Coppers may have been a little silly, I felt that it was one of the more tightly-plotted TV comedies that I've recently seen. More than anything Top Coppers was just very funny and that's more than I can say for most of the British sitcoms I've watched during 2015. I'm just hoping that the enjoyment that I garnered from the opening instalment wasn't a one-off and that Top Coppers will go down as one of my favourite comedies of the year.

This week's new live comedy

Previews of Dave Chappelle, Bristol Comedy Garden and Steen Raskopoulos.

Steen Raskopoulos review

The character comic is charismatic and subtle, but his attempts to get the audience to deliver the laughs sometimes fall flat.

Edinburgh Comedy Award newcomers in London - Profiles

These six rising stars (Alex Edelman, Dane Baptiste, Gein's Family Giftshop, Lazy Susan, Lucy Beaumont, Steen Raskopoulos) earned Best Newcomer nominations at last year's Foster's Edinburgh Comedy Awards. You can catch them all at Soho Theatre this month... except one.

Interview: Steen Raskopoulos

Australian character comic Steen Raskopoulos was an unknown in the UK before August. But one immensely popular run at the Edinburgh Fringe (including a Best Newcomer nomination) and he's gaining attention from all comedy quarters for his exciting and risk-taking approach to live comedy. We spoke to Steen ahead of his second run at the Soho Theatre this year.

This week's new live comedy

Previews of Simon Amstell, the Galway Comedy Carnival and Steen Raskopoulos.

Review: Steen Raskopoulos, Soho Theatre

I'm Wearing Two Suits Because I Mean Business is a very fine hour of sketch and character comedy.

Steen Raskopoulos review

Raskopoulos has acting flair, an eye for vivid character and deftness in handling and discomfiting his audience.