Tony Roche

Review: The Day Shall Come

Chris Morris's latest film might have its heart in the right place, but lacks direction and fails to deliver on an ambitious premise, says Linda Marric.

The Day Shall Come review

The truth is stranger than fiction in Chris Morris' first film since 2010's Four Lions.

We say a fond farewell and rather a sad goodbye to the students of Manchester Medlock University in the final episode of Fresh Meat. As a massive fan of all four series of the comedy drama I was hoping for a satisfying finale and thankfully I wasn't disappointed. The episode started with all of the gang, bar second year Josie (Kimberley Nixon), learning their final grades for their course. Most got what they were expecting with the exception of Vod (Zawe Ashton) who achieved a 2:1 and Oregon (Charlotte Ritchie) who got a 2:2 despite her feeling that she deserved a better grade. There was also good news for Howard (Greg McHugh) as he achieved his dream of a first and a job at Ordnance Survey however he briefly believed that all of his housemates would be coming with him. Luckily after working at Vod's graduation ball, which was moved to their house, Howard acquired the social skills he needed to live with other people. Elsewhere Josie finally realised that she had feelings for JP (Jack Whitehall) especially after he finally stood up to his brother and rejected an offer of the job at his bank. Instead JP hoped to live his dream of being an estate agent and if he was really being able to drive one of those minis. I do feel that everybody pretty much got what they deserved and the extra scene that was available online saw all of the boys living together whilst Vod and Oregon were in Laos researching the latter's novel. I did worry that writer Tony Roche would have a lot to get through but I think he gave each character an equal amount of time however I felt that this final episode deserved a little more than fifty minutes to wrap everything up. As is always the way with Fresh Meat, the comic moments were incorporated with elements of drama such as JP standing up to Tomothy and Oregon finally revealing her true self to her parents. My favourite revelation of this final episode had to be the fact that Howard actually lived two streets away from the share house and that his annoying parents kept trying to invite the rest of the gang round. Overall I feel that all six of the cast members have benefited from their time on Fresh Meat and most have already gone on to bigger and better things. So while I've enjoyed spending time with the gang over the past four and bit years I feel it's best that we never return to see what these characters are up to again as it would spoil for what has been in my opinion an almost perfect series.

Radio Times review

Every sitcom worth its salt needs to include a dinner/house party episode at some point, so now is as good a time as any for this agreeable romantic comedy.

Matt and Meg have decided to throw a housewarming dinner. Flushed with sensible intentions, they've invited Iain and his girlfriend in the hope of drawing a line under Meg's affair. The pall of impending disaster is as thick as the aroma of Matt's Thai green curry.

When Iain offers some help in the kitchen, a simmering pot of repressed emotions rises to the boil. The free-flowing wine adds to the chaos. Meanwhile, best pals Gail and Sam are supposedly on hand to act as buffers, but when the atmosphere sours they form a misguided plan of escape.

If you're a fan of painfully awkward comedy, writer Tony Roche (The Thick of It) delivers in spades.

Since Oregon broke off that Tunisian student's penis mid-sex on Fresh Meat (Channel 4), I've wondered about our immigration policies. Why did he get deported, not her? Tony Roche's unexpectedly tender script for this series last raised another topical question. Aren't open relationships the hellish portals to mutually assured sexageddon?

"You shouldn't be messing with that," counselled Vod when she learned that Kingsley and Josie were that nightmare, an inhouse item in an open relationship. "That's black-belt screw-jitsu." Quite so, but that didn't stop the housemates adhering to Marvin Gaye's most demanding injunction, namely to get it on: Candace and Howard, JP and Josie (kind of) - even Oregon and Vod curled up together at the end after that unpleasantness over the student union presidential election. Where will it all end? "Before you know it, you're blowing a donkey in the car park." Let's hope Vod's wrong about that.

Armando Iannucci, Simon Blackwell & Tony Roche on Veep

An interview with British comedians and writers Armando Iannucci, Simon Blackwell & Tony Roche about working on the American comedy [i]Veep]/i], referred to as the British version of The Thick of It.

Peter Capaldi broke from the venom of The Thick of It to deliver this affectionate one-off comedy, a spoof documentary about the output of a fictional British studio in the early 20th Century. Clearly a labour of love for Capaldi and his co-writer Tony Roche, Cricklewood Greats was a stuffed stocking spilling over with subtle gags and perfect miniature parodies. Aimed squarely at film and comedy buffs, this was possibly the most BBC4-ish show of the year and all the more delightful for it.

Omnishambles: my unlikely accolade

I never thought my late tweak to the script of The Thick of It would catch on. But the word has mutated omnieverywhere.

I recommend Best Possible Taste, a warm, witty and respectful tribute to the ground-breaking DJ and comedian Kenny Everett that, while never shying away from the more troubled aspects of his character, actually goes out of its way to celebrate his genius.

Closer in spirit to the delightful Eric & Ernie and Tony Roche's winningly irreverent Holy Flying Circus - Ev's comic alter-egos, from Sid Snot to Cupid Stunt, act as a Greek chorus throughout - it's clearly a labour of love from screenwriter Tim Whitnall, whose ability to write about comedians with affectionate insight was previously established by his award-winning stage-play Morecambe.

With Ev's ex-wife and soul-mate Lee and his key collaborator Barry Cryer both acting as consultants, Whitnall's film abounds with a sense of anecdotal charm and detail that so many of these biopics lack. Sure, it begins with our hero recovering from a suicide attempt, and pivots around his struggle to come to terms with his homosexuality, but it never treats him crassly. Instead he's portrayed as an inveterate rebel with a self-destructive streak, whose total mastery of his craft clashed with his private anxieties. That's artists for you.

Framed as an unorthodox love story between Ev and Lee, it's a touching portrait of a sensitive, brilliant, loveable, maddening man trying to find his place in the world, before tragically passing away years before his time. Newcomer Oliver Lansley is simply outstanding in the lead role, inhabiting Ev's various personae - including his softly-spoken actual self - with uncanny accuracy and depth. If this magnificent performance isn't rewarded with a BAFTA next year, then I'll shake my fist at the sun in anger. That'll show them.

Ex-Coronation Street actress Katherine Kelly provides excellent support as the strong-willed Lee, and there are even a few colourful cameos from Freddie Mercury, Michael Winner and Dickie Attenborough (the latter essayed by Simon Callow in Full-Callow mode).

While many of these biopics often look as though they were made for the price of a packet of Swan Vestas, director James Strong does wonders with his resources here, producing a beautiful, inventive piece that its late subject may well have approved of. Alas, the budget cuts at BBC Four suggest that this will be their last drama for quite some time. But at least they've gone out on a high.

Writers' Guild Awards 2012 shortlists

Best Radio Comedy: I, Regress - Matt Berry; Another Case of Milton Jones - Milton Jones, James Cary; In and Out of the Kitchen - Miles Jupp. Best TV Comedy: Holy Flying Circus - Tony Roche; PhoneShop - Phil Bowker, Jon MacQueen; Grandma's House - Simon Amstell, Dan Swimer.