Una Stubbs

I don't think I've ever seen a more impressive cast lined up for a TV comedy than the one Gold has assembled for its special one-off original commission Murder on the Blackpool Express. So I ought to namecheck them, oughtn't I?

There's Johnny Vegas, Sian Gibson (best known for Peter Kay's Car Share), Nigel Havers, Una Stubbs, Griff Rhys Jones, Nina Wadia, Sheila Reid, Kevin Eldon, Mark Heap, Kimberley Nixon, Katy Cavanagh, Matthew Cottle, Susie Blake and Javone Prince. There you have them: some of the best comedic talent from the past half a century or so - and a lot for the scriptwriters and directors to live up to.

Where do you go with that lot? Well, Blackpool, obviously, on a "literary coach tour" with Vegas driving and Gibson as the guide, but also a journey of detective investigation to discover exactly which of the assembled odd bods did for pensioner Marjorie, murdered by means of a dodgy cob with coronation chicken filling. There's one clue for you. Remember: Means, Motive, Opportunity. Enjoy.

Review: Murder on the Blackpool Express, Gold

The Christmas spirit has already started this year. Not just with the John Lewis adverts but with this comedy.

Murder On The Blackpool Express preview

While Murder On The Blackpool Express is probably not an instant classic, the playfulness of its fine cast make it an affable diversion, and a happy slice of family viewing (9.30pm actually seems like too late a slot) that could bear many a bank holiday repeat.

Review - Till Death Us Do Part: The Complete Collection

Till Death Us Do Part is one of the most important and controversial sitcoms even made in Britain: it was controversial when it was broadcast in the 1960s and 70s due to the swearing which attracted the wrath of Mrs. Mary Whitehouse; and is controversial now for the openly racist and offensive views of its lead character, Alf Garnett, perhaps Britain's most popular bigot (with the possible exception of Nigel Farage).

Golden Years review

Gentle comedy about elderly bank-robbers ends up reconfirming the very cliches it sets out to challenge.

Popular though it may be, Benidorm, the sitcom starring Sheila Reid, can be distasteful. In tonight's penultimate episode of the third series, dishonesty pervades the Spanish seaside resort: Gavin (Hugh Sachs) learns that Troy (Paul Bazely) is apparently cheating on him, while the elaborate stories of the Oracle (Johnny Vegas) land him in a spot of bother with the local police. Elsewhere, Diana (Una Stubbs) arrives to help her recently conned son Martin (Nicholas Burns) get back on his feet.

Last week's outsider from the world of the un-north was Robin Askwith as a cockney conman. This week it's Una Stubbs, who comes from the world of Posh. She plays the snooty but enigmatic Diana, who makes a flying trip to bail out her son, hapless con victim Martin. Meanwhile, The Oracle's whoppers about fighting off criminals come back to bite him on the backside, Madge gets a Bo Derek-style makeover and Gavin suspects that Troy is cheating on him. This is just one aspect of the show that makes it a bit more than Coronation Street by the pool-side.

Not since Gwen Taylor and Keith Barron kept finding themselves in the same hotel as that posh couple in Duty Free have a bunch of chalk-and-cheese holidaymakers been so unfortunate to end up sharing their vacations together so often. Back at the Solana Resort on a freebie (a present for winning Best Comedy at the National TV Awards, perhaps?), the gang will be joined by outlandish guest turns Sheridan Smith, Robin Askwith, Una Stubbs, Tim Healy and Mr Keith Barron himself.

This joyous look back at John Cleese's benchmark sitcom delivers everything you could hope for. For the first time, Cleese, ex-wife Connie Booth, screen wife Prunella Scales and Andrew Sachs, together with producer-director John Howard Davies, re-call how the shows came about.

Cleese's anecdotes about the Torbay hotelier who inspired the monstrous Basil are as funny as the gold-plated clips. And that's saying something, since Fawlty Towers' slapstick violence has tremendous impact in short bursts.

Add interviews with many of the sitcom's guest stars, including Bernard Cribbins, Una Stubbs, Geoffrey Palmer and David Kelly and you have real depth and detail. If only the start of each section wasn't delayed by unnecessary come-ons, it would be the perfect documentary for the perfect sitcom.