Miranda

Miranda episode 2.1 review

You'll know if Miranda's for you after one episode. If you're not smiling when the end credits roll - preceded by the iconic "You Have Been Watching" subtitle, over a sequence where all the characters dance around together, winking and waving to the camera when their name appears -then fine, it's not your cup of tea. I'll find you squirming in your sofa, no doubt. But it cheers me up immensely, and I salute the excellent scheduling to brighten a chilly November evening.

When Miranda first appeared last year, its old-school comedy aesthetic puzzled critics, who took a few episodes to realise that just because it felt like it was from a different decade it still had some good gags to offer. Miranda Hart is back in her joke shop for a second series, with Miranda making moves to get fit and struggling with etiquette at a sushi restaurant.

The surprise sitcom hit of 2009 returns for that all-important second series. These are family-friendly, retro japes that will put a big silly grin on your face, providing you buy into Miranda Hart's goofy comic persona. If you don't buy into it, the way she constantly breaks the fourth wall and mugs to camera will make your mind itch, and you'll have to switch off. For us fans, Miranda and chums are a fun gang that we feel a part of - and, while it's funny when she gets stuck in a chair or trips over a hatstand, the scripts are much sharper and more heartfelt than they initially appear. Tonight, Miranda vows to get fit and lose weight.

She has been described as comedy Marmite - you either love her or hate her - but for fans there are belly laughs galore as Bridget Jones for the cooler kids returns.

For what is in essence a throwback to old-fashioned sitcoms, which also features the lead character addressing the camera directly to shatter the format, this really does divide opinion. Despite that, this did garner a Bafta nod earlier this year for Miranda Hart's performance as a joke shop owner who has an especially hapless love life.

Miranda is back

It has been really hard over the last eight months writing the second series - mainly I have been in a blind panic! But now Episode One is about to air and there is nothing I can do about it - eeeeeek. Here we go...

Miranda unites the tvBite family. tvBite's mothers, in-laws and even tvBite itself can laugh at it. It's not for everyone - and it is easy to see why so many find it irksome - but if you let yourself go and channel your inner child, that part of you that adored 'Allo, 'Allo, there's plenty to enjoy.

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