The Stephen K Amos Show

The man who once joked that he would have to assassinate Lenny Henry to have any chance of having his own show manages to do so without resorting to wetwork. Although - has anyone seen Len on the telly recently? Hmmm... I always try and appraise sketch shows without resorting to the cliché of "hit and miss", and always fail. Maybe that's because it's so, so true...

Stephen K Amos is one of the most likeable men in comedy. He's a genuinely delightful man and his stand-up is very funny. We won't hear a word said against him. Not even the suggestion of a bad word about him. And we're delighted that he's on telly with a new stand-up and sketch show.

Is it any good? Well, there are good bits. His impression of his mum is funny. And there are sketches that work. But despite the fact he's a winning personality, is it a bit patchy and does it tail off badly? Um. The audience are intensely annoying. They really are. They laugh too loud at everything. Stephen himself though? Well, did you know that the K in his name stands for Kehinde? That's right. Kehinde. There you go. That's the fact to remember, when someone asks you: "I wonder what the K in Stephen K Amos stands for?" Kehinde.

It's about time Stephen had his own show, so we're jolly pleased for him, although perhaps not as pleased as his mum, who appears in his show. Well, Stephen says it's his mum, and she looks very similar to him. In fact, and we don't want to sound cruel, but it's almost like it's him in drag. Then again, there's a good chance his mum won't make it into the studio, due to the efforts of a very officious security guard who plagues Stephen with problems...

After his appearances on Have I Got News for You and Mock the Week, as well as at the Royal Variety Performance and Edinburgh Fringe, it was inevitable that someone at the BBC would give Stephen K Amos his own show. To go by this sparky debut, the idea has some merit. For a start, as a gay black comedian he is licensed to make jokes that are off-limits to others. Tonight's sketch involving a spoof Nigerian newsreader is a great example; when would any of the other supposedly "edgy" comics out there risk poking fun at the idea of African backwardness? Amos's other targets are more predictable. It won't surprise you to learn that Americans from the Deep South and Aussies come in for a ribbing. However the gags are delivered in a variety of formats. There are mock interviews, stunts involving members of the public caught on a hidden camera and sketches - such as Amos as a doctor with an innovative method of delivering bad news and another where he dresses up and impersonates his own mother. We also get a fair amount of audience participation. At its best, the show#s lively format and fun, irreverent tone bring back memories of Da Ali G Show. I only hope Amos gets some better supporting acts for subsequent episodes. Though Amos can be very funny at times, tonight's guests, who include comedian Tom Allen, can't match him.

The Stephen K Amos Show is coming!

The Stephen K Amos Show is due to start on BBC Two this Friday - how excited are we?! We caught up with him while he was filming in the studio in July, here's what he said....

Stephen K. Amos Interview

The stand-up comedian talks about coming out, waiting for Lenny Henry to die and playing his mum on television.

Stephen K Amos interview

Stephen K Amos mixes stand-up comedy with sketches plus musical and comic guests in his new BBC2 series.

Stephen K Amos interview

Sitting on a hotel sofa next to Stephen K Amos is an interesting experience.

Stephen's in the building

"I'm so excited to have been given my own show at the BBC that I can't stop telling people."

Stephen K Amos: Murder, he wrote

He once joked that British TV couldn't cope with more than one black comedian at a time - now Stephen K Amos is getting his own BBC series. And he hasn't even had to kill Lenny Henry, he explains.