The Wrong Mans

The Wrong Mans, BBC2 review

Mathew Baynton and James Corden again prove themselves the right mans for the job.

Stop James Corden going to USA - he's just too good!

Millions of us would gladly dial, text or click online to make James Corden realise that he is one of Britain's best-loved comedy actors, and a peerless sitcom writer, who must stay here at the peak of his TV career instead of rushing off to a country that doesn't know him or want him, to waste his talents on a third-rate show, doing work that doesn't suit him.

Mathew Baynton: This could be the end

One of the stars of comedy thriller The Wrong Mans has said the second series "might be the end" of the show.

Mathew Baynton interview: the right man for the job

The actor's thoughtful approach makes him the perfect foil - as writer and co-star - for James Corden in the high-octane drama The Wrong Mans.

It's only fair to admit that I was quite biased against The Wrong Mans when it began last year. Not only did it have a stupid title (still not explained) but it starred and was co-written by James Corden. Once the well-liked breakout star/co-creator of Gavin and Stacey, his ego and ubiquity led to a backlash that saw him branded one of the most annoying men in Britain. But, much like this series' heroes, he made a miraculous escape, bouncing back with a highly entertaining, carefully thought-out comedy thriller.

As he's about to become the new host of a late-night American chat show, this two-part return of The Wrong Mans may be its last hurrah. It sees Corden's Phil living it up in the US, while pal Sam (co-writer Mathew Baynton) is less happy about what has followed their last accidental escapades with gangsters and spies.

The plot moves speedily, with the hapless pair quickly in yet more dangerous situations which they're completely unable to cope with. Realism goes out the window, but there's charming banter between the duo, who are given to reminiscing about their town's Christmas lights even when banged up in a high-security Texan jail.

Without spoiling the opening to this new two-parter, our antiheroes Sam (Mathew Baynton) and Phil (James Corden) have relocated to warmer climes, and one of them is settling in better than the other. Whoever tried to kill them at the end of the last series is yet to be found but they need to get back to the UK. This is their thrilling, gorgeously shot, exceptionally funny journey home. A great Top Gear gag, Bertie Carvel's chameleon act ... there's so much to recommend it. Concludes tomorrow.

The Wrong Mans series 2 in the works, confirms Baynton

BBC Two's The Wrong Mans is gearing up for a second series. Co-creator and star Mathew Baynton confirmed to Digital Spy that he and James Corden have started work on new episodes.

Radio Times review

Gavin & Stacey co-creator James Corden returned to narrative comedy, flanked by one of the breakout stars of the year, Mathew Baynton. The Wrong Mans wasn't a sitcom but a full-on comedy thriller, in which Corden and Baynton played humble losers wrapped up in a criminal/espionage conspiracy. Breathless plotting and Hollywood-standard direction played off against the classic British scenario of bumblers struggling in extreme circumstances. It would have been easy for the comedy to make the action look silly, but The Wrong Mans was too smartly made for that.

Matthew Baynton: The Wrong Mans couldn't go any better

An interview with The Wrong Mans and Yonderland star Matthew Baynton.