Yasmine Akram

The Retreat review

Gag overkill in new comedy from Peep Show's Sam Bain.

The Retreat, Park Theatre, London, review

Directed by Kathy Burke, written by Sam Bain, and starring three familiar faces from British TV in recent years, this is a production loaded with talent.

The Retreat review - funny but faltering Sam Bain play

A funny but faltering first play from Peep Show's Sam Bain.

Outsiders makes you want to stay in the EU

The sitcom about a multicultural London flatshare was produced before the Brexit vote - but has ended up becoming an ideal response to it.

Meet the new inhabitants of Successville

To celebrate, the good folk at Tiger Aspect have let us in on a little more about this year's murder victims and the suspects, who is playing who, and exactly when you'll be able to see them... plus a set of exclusive images across this post of most of our regulars in action. You'll probably notice there's a distinct lack of Paul Kaye in this images, but more on that one soon... until then, here's a run-down of each episode!

Radio Times review

This original scripted comedy is an attempt by Dave to break out of its reputation for just peddling Mock the Week repeats, and it's certainly an ambitious beginning. Daniel Rigby headlines the series as Chris, a bumbling and allergy-ridden cop sent undercover into the Armenian Mafia who must try to keep his cover without actually committing any crimes.

The series has a strong cast - Coupling's Sarah Alexander is good as Chris's no-nonsense police handler and Sherlock's Yasmine Akram excels as the femme fatale who may suspect Chris's secret - but generally speaking, Undercover's high concept is a little too ambitious to be supported by the weak plotting and thin jokes on offer.

Radio Times review

Not as many funny lines as usual in this episode, although Yasmine Akram is overplaying it nicely as Parvadi, the dangerously bored and randy assistant in her uncle's convenience store. Oh, and the rivalry between business partners Aunty Brenda and Dai Davies is becoming obsessively bitter, to the point where only murder or fiery sex can resolve the tension. Either would be scary.

Mainly, though, we're tracking the twin romances of Emma and Marcus, an unlikely workplace fling that's moving too quickly, and Stella and Michael. A lovely set piece sees her save him from embarrassment at a corporate do. The chemistry between Ruth Jones and Patrick Baladi, both unshowily nailing the subtleties of their characters, is a joy.

Radio Times review

After some necessary spadework last week to set up the new series, now creator/star Ruth Jones pens one of the show's funniest ever episodes. Every scene brims with jokes, malapropisms ("Your dad is as strong as an egg!"), hilarious images and fruity phrasing. Aunty Brenda is in particularly searing form, struggling with her hippy daughter ("Me and 'er father split up when she was ten - she's been a road accident ever since"), questioning the integrity of the scales at Blubber Busters, and holding tense, tough negotiations with Dai about the launch of their new coach-hire company. Dai Davies, not Dai Cosh.

There's new blood, too: Sherlock star Yasmine Akram joins the cast as Jagadeesh and Tanisha's plain-speaking niece, while Jonathan Ross appears as himself in one of Stella's HRT-fuelled sex dreams.