The Wrong Mans

James Corden's new six-part comedy caper is assured of a better reception than his last TV outing with the very iffy sketch show Horne & Corden. Maybe because he's got a new comedy writing partner and co-star in Mathew Baynton, of Horrible ­Histories, who played Deano in Gavin & Stacey. So this could well be a case of the wrong man(s), but the right Mat.

This is a hugely ­confident, well-plotted and hilarious new series. Imagine 24 written as a sitcom with Corden taking on the Kiefer ­Sutherland role.

The pair star as workers at Berkshire County Council whose lives are turned upside down when Sam (Baynton) witnesses a ­car crash - the first of many action- packed stunts that set this apart from the comedy run of the mill.

He finds a mobile phone at the crash scene and is drawn into a dangerous kidnapping conspiracy populated by real villains. Mail room boy Phil (Corden) is busting a gut to get involved.

Several years in the planning, the pair have worked all the angles and the action scenes are as convincing as the comedy.

The snow in the opening scene probably wasn't scripted but it gives it a wonderfully cinematic look, while the casting of David Harewood (long before he became a big star in Homeland) is another happy accident.

And just like 24, each episode ends with a massive cliff-hanger moment, guaranteeing you'll be back for more.

James Corden on new action comedy 'The Wrong Mans'

Espionage, kidnap, mistaken identity, car crashes - James Corden's new BBC comedy The Wrong Mans is certainly ambitious, reports Catherine Gee.

The Wrong Mans, BBC Two, review

The Wrong Mans is another success for James Corden, says Michael Hogan.

Love him or hate him, James Corden undeniably does have a range of talents - actor, writer and co-creator of some very funny comedy (we'll politely forget the car crash of his misguided BBC sketch show with Mathew Horne). And now, dontchaknow, he's come up with another comedy vehicle, The Wrong Mans (****), which had a very accomplished debut last night.

Corden, late of the National Theatre and Broadway, has co-written, with fellow Gavin & Stacey alumnus Mathew Baynton, a comedy thriller in the style of Simon Pegg and Joe Wright's Cornetto trilogy, with appreciative nods (in the title) to Alfred Hitchcock's 1956 thriller and, in camerawork and misfit leads, to Peep Show.

Baynton is nice but weedy Sam, who wakes up one wintry morning with the mother of a hangover, only to find his pushbike has been stolen so he has to walk to work, as a town planning and noise guidance adviser for Berkshire County Council. On his way, he's the only witness to a car crash and he picks up a ringing phone; a man issues threats and in later calls it's clear a woman has been kidnapped.

At work Sam takes postboy Phil (Corden) into his confidence. Phil is beside himself; he's a 31-year-old living at home with his mum and he keeps trying to organise fun days paint-balling or bowling with his colleagues (oblivious to the fact they all think he's a boring knob); for him, this mystery is his very own live-action Grand Theft Auto, and he convinces Sam not to call the police but to try to rescue the woman and become heroes.

The opening episode efficiently essayed the set-up, and there are some promising relationships to be explored in the following five weeks. Sarah Solemani (who was so brilliant in Him & Her) is Sam's boss, but also the girlfriend who recently dumped him because he was too needy, while Tom Basden is the horrible colleague we'd love to be taken down a peg or two.

Corden clearly has pulling power, as those names above suggest, and Dawn French, Nick Moran, Rebecca Front and Dougray Scott will appear in future episodes - although David Harewood, who appeared briefly last night, shot his scenes before his Homeland stardom. The opener had some neat twists and turns and ended on a great cliffhanger. Definitely one to stay with.

Review: Matthew Baynton and James Corden shine

Overall, I was completely blown away by The Wrong Mans which is by and far the best British comedy I've seen this year.

James Corden's the master of the spoof

If the plot had been at all predictable, the melange of styles could have been self-indulgent. But the story kept surprising us.

Everything is right about this slick new sitcom

There are some hefty names attached to this project, but it's not because the material needs filling out with someone's ego. It's more likely because the likes of Dougray Scott, Nick Moran and Dawn French know top-quality work when they see it.

James Corden on The Wrong Mans

From Gavin & Stacey to a new sitcom to a Hollywood musical... Radio Times meets the man in demand.

Video: James Corden and Mathew Baynton interview

James Corden and Mathew Baynton revealed to Digital Spy that big-budget US hits such as 24, Lost and Heroes were the inspiration for the series.

Andrew Collins on The Wrong Mans

Having been involved in the show's promotion within the industry, I feel quite attached to it, but if I'd never met anybody connected with it and just seen the first two episodes, I'd say: watch it. It's right on so many levels.