Cuckoo

Germany buys repeat rights for Cuckoo

German broadcaster ARD has picked up the first two series of UK comedy Cuckoo.

Given that it pulled in big numbers and did well with critics, the Beeb was obviously keen to make more Cuckoo - the only problem being that US comic Andy Samberg, who plays the title character, is now busy with his new Fox comedy Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

Since that show's been picked up for a full season, Samberg's unlikely to have a free spot in his schedule for quite some time. So while the intention's there to bring Cuckoo back, the hard truth is we might never get a second run...

The Andy Samberg-starring slacker sitcom, which ends its run this Tuesday, has lured in plenty of viewers for BBC3, yet critical reception has been fairly mixed.

Have you been watching ... Cuckoo

BBC3's subversive, surreal Andy Samberg comedy is breathing new life into the family sitcom with its fresh execution and edge of awkwardness.

Cuckoo writers' fight to set a sitcom in Birmingham

Writers Robin French and Kieron Quirke on setting their sitcom in the Midlands.

Cuckoo extends his sphere of spiritual influence to Ken's father-in-law, after he deduces that a visiting cat is in fact the reincarnation of Ken's dead wife, Debra. Again, everyone bar Ken and Dylan is taken in by Cuckoo's bullshit, perhaps giving the first glimmer that there might not be much else to this likable new sitcom. Cuckoo (Andy Samberg) and Ken (Greg Davies) hog most of the best lines as usual, but the setups humiliating Ken and venerating Cuckoo appear to be treading much the same ground as previous weeks.

Three episodes into the series, and Cuckoo is settling down nicely. The premise is exploited to the full, the scripts are consistently amusing, and the performances of Greg Davies, as the bumptious, blustering dad, and Andy Samberg, as the pseudo-spiritualist slacker son-in-law, complement each other perfectly. Plus, any show featuring Helen Baxendale is a good thing by definition.