Count Arthur Strong

Radio Times review

There's always been competitive tension between writer Michael (Rory Kinnear) and his father figure, the heroically deluded Arthur (Steve Delaney). And that reaches snapping point, as a TV documentary team plans a profile of Michael. "Just for once, Arthur, step back and let me have a moment," says Michael. "Don't ruin this for me."

Famous last words, of course - Arthur's new career as a living statue threatens to hijack proceedings. His inability to stand still is a standout moment, as is his confusion at a cups-and-ball trick. And how nice to see Rory Kinnear ace a traditional sitcom, very much the domain of his father Roy 40 years ago.

Despite its nonsensical timeslot, the Count is delighting his fans with a warm blend of character comedy, well-honed pranks and, when you're not expecting it, stabbing pathos.

Radio Times review

Arthur is like a super-weapon with a stoop. There is something rather wonderful about the way he confounds and then dismantles the myriad irritants of modern life, from salesmen and cold callers to doctors and politicians.

Such is the potential danger he poses that crabby café owner Bulent starts to fret. But is Arthur really deranged, or just a sweet old man, as Bulent's sister Sinem believes?

This episode's story shuffles into darker, Stephen King-inspired territory than we're used to. There's a cute running gag with framed photographs. Winning pathos, too - though you can always be sure it's topped with a gag.

Modern politics seems to be all about single-idea parties, such as Ukip and its anti-EU stance. That's also the case in Count Arthur Strong's fictional London enclave. A chance encounter with a local politician at the cafe leads Arthur into forming his own political party running on a "Stop the roadworks outside Arthur Strong's house" ticket. The campaign seems set to rest on a no-holds-barred debate with the incumbent representative - a discussion that seems set to be less Frost/Nixon and more Parkinson/Emu.

Radio Times review

Nocturnal roadworks motivate Arthur to stand in the local elections in this magnificently nutty episode. Canvassing under the slogan "We're listening", he assembles a campaign team from the café regulars, including John the Watch (security) and Eggy (health secretary), while grammar Nazi Michael is ideal as head of communications.

Despite the puzzling indignity of his graveyard slot, Steve Delaney's creation is a rich and rounded one. I love the small details of his eccentricity: in particular, the times he becomes so exercised that he almost but not quite makes his hat fall from his head. It's a beautifully silly outing topped by a majestic dovetailing of plot strands.

TV preview: Count Arthur Strong, BBC1

The near-perfect second episode was an impossible act to follow and while tonight's instalment doesn't quite reach those dizzying heights of comic confusion there are still some deliciously daft moments.

Graham Linehan interview

'On the streets, Twitter trolls would be considered sociopaths'.

Rather changed from its fractionally classier initial proposition, this is now pure mainstream sitcom, circa 1985. If anyone excels in making that kind of thing entertaining, however, it's Graham Linehan (who co-writes here). Tonight's episode finds Arthur turning over memories of his life as a gang member "with a chip on my shoulder the size of a family caravan", and his lost love, Eileen. All of which in a roundabout way finds him taking a flying lesson. Arthur's inability to understand that the clocks go back brings things to a chaotic end.

Count Arthur Strong review

Series two does not disappoint, and fans of the first series will enjoy this as much, if not more, than what they have already seen.

A second series and a transfer from BBC Two for Steve Delaney's unabashedly trad sitcom. Walking wet wipe Michael returns to Bulent's following months of writer's block and Candy Crush only to find that his mentor Count Arthur has knocked out a steamy manuscript on a whim. When a mishap involving said manuscript seems set to derail Michael's career, a daring heist is the only solution. Despite the change of channels, this is still thin gruel when compared to Count Arthur's more inventive radio adventures.

Radio Times review

Spirited buffoon Count Arthur Strong returns to wade through more malapropisms with his pals from the scruffy café. Arthur, a former actor long past his glory days, carries on like an actor playing himself in a film of his life. He's an acquired taste, a Radio 4 staple where he was adored and derided equally, and now a television presence, whose first series two years ago didn't trouble a mass audience.

This is all irrelevant, of course, if you find Arthur (created and played by Steve Delaney) a joyously funny poltroon very much in the vein of Harry Worth. As we return, Arthur's friend Michael (smashing Rory Kinnear) arrives after six months in Yorkshire, suffering from writer's block. And he finds that Arthur has written a "racist" novel, a "Fifty Crates of Plates for the over-70s".