Stephen Mangan

You can still revisit every episode of the innovative, critically acclaimed sitcom following the often surreal lives of the staff at the East Hampton Hospital. Stars Tamsin Greig, Stephen Mangan and Julian Rhind-Tutt have achieved much since.

Radio Times review

Jamie Dornan, Julie Walters and Stephen Mangan are the guests. And in a way, that's all we need to know. Already, the conjunction of those names lets us picture the fireworks of conversation that could spark from placing those characters in a room (OK, studio) together. And we know, if there are fireworks to be had, Norton will light every touchpaper.

Dornan appears soon in the film adaptation of 50 Shades of Grey while Mangan will be in a Sky Arts drama playing a pregnant man. See? Fireworks right there.

Comedians join Richard Ayoade on his trip

Kathy Burke, Adam Hills, Jessica Hynes and Stephen Mangan join Richard Ayoade on his TV show Travel Man.

Lee Mack does his bit to fill the chronic shortage of panel shows with this new series, in which obscure facts are put to the test before celebrities. Tonight, it's Stephen Mangan, Davina McCall and, of course, Paddy McGuinness. Some cheap gags aside - early round "Fact Off" sees the resemblance between fact and another word starting with f pointed out - this is a pretty entertaining concept, exploring, among other issues, methods of blocking tickles and why men's mental skills go to pot after meeting attractive women.

Radio Times review

In this episode we meet Matt LeBlanc's dad, his imaginary screen dad, in the best scene of the series so far. Stories have appeared on TMZ that Matt has gone into rehab, and Matt knows where they came from: he forgot to send dad his cheque, and this is revenge. So he storms round there - with Sean and Beverly in tow - to confront him.

What follows has more comic voltage than the entirety of some previous episodes, as the pair trade insults in front of the mortified Brits - and few actors do mortified better than Tamsin Greig and Stephen Mangan. It's a cracking set piece and elsewhere the plot is coming to a boil nicely. Also, look out: in the delightfully tasteless mental health storyline, unbalanced network boss Castor is off his meds.

Damian Lewis tried out for Episodes

Damian Lewis auditioned for Stephen Mangan's part in Episodes, Matt LeBlanc has revealed.

Before and after the show: Stephen Mangan

'If the crowd's hushed and reverent I know I'll have to work harder': Stephen Mangan reveals his pre- and post-gig rituals.

Three seasons in, Brit writers Bev (Tamsin Greig) and Sean (Stephen Mangan) are still trying to acclimatise to the bewildering world of Hollywood, and Matt LeBlanc is still bumbling around like a bear with a bees' nest on his head. But Episodes does feel like a sharper, snappier creature this time around, less interested in the internecine workings of the showbiz industry and more in the venal, shallow bubble around Los Angeles - new-age therapy, partner-swapping et al.

Pucks! is out of luck. The struggling sitcom has been bumped to Saturday nights, which presents awkward moments for Matt LeBlanc at the network's press party. Elsewhere, sex dominates the agenda of seemingly everyone, with Merc still battling his addiction, and Sean and Bev visiting a sex therapist and becoming all coy, mumbly and British in the process. Still not the barbed Hollywood satire it thinks it is, but Tamsin Greig and Stephen Mangan have an easy rapport and LeBlanc is clearly having loads of fun portraying his fictional self.