The Comic Strip Presents...

I felt a little uneasy as I sat down to watch Five Go to Rehab (Wednesday, G.O.L.D.), having such fond memories of the original, Five Go Mad in Dorset, which aired on Channel 4's launch night 30 years ago, The last Comic Strip offering - a "satire" on Tony Blair as a war criminal, broadcast in 2011 - did not bode well.

Such was the cultural impact of that debut Comic Strip - as well as its sequel Five Go Mad on Mescalin - that my generation grew up believing that the Enid Blyton stories had referred to "lashings of ginger beer" when in fact, as I learned from QI the other day, Blyton's phrase had been "lashings of hard-boiled eggs". Could the same team pull it off now they were in their mid-fifties? Well, I am happy to report, the answer was yes. And what was astonishing was how kind the years had been to them - even to Robbie Coltrane as the gypsy.

The conceit was that Dick, played by Ade Edmondson, hadn't moved on and was desperate to have a Famous Five reunion; had been planning it for 14 years, complete with picnics and a staged arrest involving actors dressed as policemen and baddies. But the others had grown up and now swore and said things such as "Stop being such a w-----, Dick". Tomboyish George (Dawn French) and Julian (Peter Richardson, who is actually 61) were recovering alcoholics - while shy Anne (Jennifer Saunders) was not only a strict vegetarian but also a lesbian.

While, inevitably, it lacked the shock value of the original parody, this turned out to be unexpectedly moving, such being the power of nostalgia. A good running joke was that Julian - "I hate binge drinking alone" - couldn't recall anything about their childhood adventures.

When The Comic Strip team had the idea of revisiting this comedy classic, their friends must have cautioned against it, possibly citing the train wreck that was the Carry On remake starring Julian Clary. I'm glad they ignored them. And respect to G.O.L.D. for getting it as an exclusive. But why wasn't it on Channel 4, with much fanfare?

My favourite line of the week came in The Comic Strip's 30th anniversary reunion which, for reasons known only to the hip young fools currently running its spiritual home, Channel 4, ended up on UK Gold.

Anyway, the gag in question came during the brilliantly silly Five Go To Rehab as Adrian Edmondsen's character Dick argued his drink problem wasn't as offensive as the veganism practised by Jennifer Saunders's character, Anne: 'At least alcoholics don't take their food to other people's houses and refuse to eat what's given to them like you do.' From which I can only deduce there are more vegans than alcoholics working at Channel 4. But I bet it's close.

Comic Strip Presents... Five Go to Rehab, Gold, review

Enjoyable? Of course it was, though Five Go to Rehab hardly broke new ground. Still, it didn't need to.

Five Go To Rehab was like a school reunion

The Comic Strip Presents... Five Go To Rehab featured a funny joke about satnavs creating crop circles but, for the most part, this was a pale imitation of former glories.

Comic Strip Presents... Five Go to Rehab is only explainable by some kind of conspiracy theory, since it lacked any kind of coherent plot or much in the way of jokes. It did have a very impressive cast - all of the originals having succumbed to somebody's arm-twisting to turn up for the 30th anniversary reunion. What a pity the laughs had a previous engagement.

It's been - brace yourselves - 30 years since the Famous Five cycled cheerfully around the countryside, uncovering sinister skulduggery in Five Go Mad in Dorset. And to mark the occasion - with heaps of sandwiches and lashings of ginger beer - The Comic Strip reunites Julian, Anne, Dick, George and Timmy the dog (!) for an updated caper.

Dick (Adrian Edmondson) appears to have lost none of his thirst for adventure as he brings the old gang together for a nostalgic holiday. But his jaded chums hide dark secrets that could scupper the japes and scrapes. Is there still a place in the world for the Five - and shall there be jam for tea?

What Rehab lacks in anarchic innovation (the original 1982 parody sparked complaints from viewers), it more than makes up for with spirited playing, an affectionate eye and a sweet ending. Hoo-rah!

The risks of going back were amply illustrated by Dave's recent Red Dwarf revival, which proved that undiluted inter-cast chemistry, boundless enthusiasm and deep reserves of audience goodwill can't cover for a patchy script. The same seems to be true of the Comic Strip troupe, whose recent one-off, The Hunt for Tony Blair sacrificed content for style. Tonight's second slight return suffers similarly: the Famous Five reconvene 30 years on, facing grown-up problems, even more insidious wrong-doers and a world that has left them behind. All the old gang return in their old roles, with Dawn French as George, Ade Edmondson as Dick, Jennifer Saunders as Anne and Peter Richardson playing Julian. But, having revived one of his best-loved conceits, Comic Strip overseer Richardson doesn't take it anywhere interesting. The gags are leaden and predictable, the satire mild and the mugging relentless. Poor show? Rather!

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Preview: Five Go to Rehab

Robbie Coltrane, a Comic Strip regular who appears in Five Go to Rehab in none-too-convincing drag, once described the series as "halfway between a Carry On film and Joe Orton". In its mixture of fantasy, outrageousness, black farce and parody, there's been nothing like it before or since.

Thirty years on from the original The Comic Strip Presents... the gang has reunited for more Enid Blyton-esque larks. Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders, Adrian Edmondson and Peter Richardson revisit the quartet of siblings who once had jolly japes on bikes but now, older but not all that wiser, find themselves beset by sat-nav woes and starring in mobile apps. Washed down with lashings of ginger beer, of course.