Getting On

Have you been watching ... Getting On?

BBC4's perfectly pitched medical comedy continues to impress with finely observed, natural performances from Jo Brand and a talented cast.

Gallows humour must be part of working in a hospital, but it's testament to the quality of Getting On that more of the comedy derives from the characters than their particular situation. In tonight's episode, the mood is mixed in the ward. Kim (Jo Brand) is on the verge of chucking in her degree course, while Den is buoyant thanks to her pregnancy and recent romantic trip to Norway. When the pediatric oncology unit has a Christmas card competition, however, a submission from the ward threatens to set off a data protection landmine that the terrifying Megan takes upon herself to defuse.

Another day on the ward sees another probing of the divide between the beating heart of the NHS and its bureaucracy. Emotions are running high: Kim is trying to give up smoking while dealing with an ill mother-in-law; Pippa takes legal advice about her divorce from a cleaner; and Den seems to be short for "Denial" as the fun-loving sister struggles with the prospect of motherhood.

Everything is underplayed but the haywire Pippa can always raise a chuckle, while the jargon of "modern matron" Demaris - "pushing the envelope of care a little further" - are finely turned pieces of nonsense.

Getting On (Wednesday, BBC Four), an understated comedy set in a drab NHS ward is luckily still going. It is telling that there is a Thick of It connection, with Peter Capaldi directing early episodes. It stars, and is written by, Jo Brand, Vicki Pepperdine and Joanna Scanlan (another stalwart from The Thick of It).

I love the washed-out almost monochrome palette, the wobbly camera work, the avoidance of a laughter track, the naturalistic dialogue.

In the latest episode earnest, politically correct former Matron turned Business Consultant Hilary Loftus (Ricky Grover) was on fine form making sure all electrical appliances were turned off as part of a new green initiative. If you have had any experience of the NHS you will appreciate that this is depressingly well observed.

Getting On is a minor masterpiece of a hospital comedy that truly deserves a wider audience.

This week, the staff were grappling with a green initiative cascading down from on high but it was Sister Den's story that caused cardiac arrest as she struggled with her pregnancy.

Joanna Scanlan, who also plays the 'blockage' known as Terri in Armando Iannucci's top-drawer political satire The Thick Of It, is an unsung heroine of British comedy.

'I think I'd better go and supervise Mario Testino,' says ward sister Den, when a scared-looking student doctor is tasked with taking research snaps of old ladies' nether regions. Getting On has always been a cut above most comedies: it's about something; it has proper characters; it dares not to make jokes sometimes; it looks good. As it reaches the halfway point in its third series, it shows no sign of flagging; rather, it feels like it is relaxing into its own assuredness. If its social commentary sometimes feels a bit heavy-handed (consultant Pippa gets legal advice from a black contract cleaner in a corridor), it's surely forgivable in a comedy that genuinely has something to say about humanity and humour, and has found a way to say it. The only dark spot on its lung is the danger of it slipping into soap opera, still the number one killer of UK comedies.

Nurse Kim and Sister Den (Jo Brand and Joanna Scanlan) attend a grim hospital meeting led by the perky Damaris designed to "cascade down" the hospital's energy-saving initiative.

Its leading exponent is lugubrious Mr Loftus, who makes it his business to empty rubbish into the correct bags and check that Ward K2 isn't wasting power now it has a meter. "We will be recording in ohms and wattage," he announces, pointlessly.

Thus Getting On gives us another perfectly bleak vignette, poking a stick at the rattling absurdities of health service bureaucracy. It doesn't shout messages, it's about the small things, and it's full of heart and humanity.

A blend of truth and razor-sharp wit is the defining feature of Getting On, the wonderful mockumentary set in a geriatric ward. Written by Jo Brand, Joanna Scanlan and Vicki Pepperdine, the extended series three continues as Nurse Kim Wilde (Brand) tries to find a mentor for a training module and Dr Pippa Moore (Pepperdine) deals with the financial shenanigans of her husband. Kim, Pippa and Den (Scanlan) also battle with the latest rules on cost effectiveness implemented by the jargon-spouting Hilary Loftus (Ricky Grover).

There's indecipherable streamlining going on at St Jude's, as the staff get "cascade training" - laden with meaningless buzzwords - from Damaris on saving energy and the new colour-coded (but not quite colour-coded enough) bags for the unspeakable waste that exudes from the wards. It's just what Den needs now that hypochondriac patient Mrs Dethick is back, and her pregnancy is beginning to weigh heavy. Meanwhile, Hilary is pinballing about the ward turning lights off. As ever, Jo Brand, Ricky Grover and Joanna Scanlan are pitch-perfect.

The grimly gripping hospital comedy continues with Nurse Den and pals grappling with more management madness. This time, it's a green initiative and Hilary (Ricky Grover) is on the case to ensure the carbon footprint line is being toed: if you see something on, switch it off. Is that a life support machine?