Upstart Crow

DVD review: Upstart Crow

You could feel the shockwaves reverberating around the British comedy world for days afterwards: Ben Elton had written a good sitcom.

Upstart Crow, series 1 review

Predictable in places, perhaps, but the ridiculous nature of some of these plot lines is arguably in the same vein as of the bards own greatest comedies.

Upstart Crow: Bard saved Elton from sitcom oblivion

Alack the day! Upstart Crow (BBC Two) has shuffled off its chortle coil. There was something for everyone in Ben Elton's learned Bardcom.

In the last in the series of Ben Elton's bard-based sitcom, the age of exploration promises great riches for London residents brave enough to fling savings at the futures market. Sadly for Shakey, though, family finances are floundering, so if a modest investment of his own is to blossom, the offer of a loan from rival Robert Greene will need to be taken. However, Greene's interest rates turn out to be even more injurious than anything the likes of Wonga could impose.

I returned to Upstart Crow kicking and screaming, forced into watching it by the dearth of good TV this week. Euro 2016 has taken up much of the scheduling space, the games festooned on either side by droning analysis and followed by the news with its camera-phone footage. In this miserable melee, where is the good TV? I couldn't find it, so was compelled to watch the final episode of Upstart Crow, having been left stone-cold and unimpressed by its earlier outings.

Making fun of the money-grabbing investors who put their money into the newly-discovered potatoes, tobacco and "cases of syphilis" from Virginia, Shakespeare (David Mitchell) prefers to put his money into the theatre. Still, high jinks and a court case arise when his cash goes missing. There are some very deliberate reminders of Blackadder II here - but all that does is make you pine for what you're missing.

Review: Upstart Crow, episode 6

I won't go into a lot of detail about tonight's episode except to say that it is one of the best in the series.

Bob from Blackadder 2 makes a surprise return

Gabrielle Glaister reprises her role as the cross-dressing Bob in the sixth episode of the Ben Elton-scripted William Shakespeare comedy.

Review: Upstart Crow, episode 5

I couldn't see a co-writing credit alongside Ben Elton's name for William Shakespeare, but as anyone with a basic grasp of English literature will spot this week's episode is a comical rewrite of Macbeth. And a pretty nifty one, with David Mitchell as the bard convinced that he has committed murder at the behest of his scheming wife so that they can move to the big house in Stratford before prices rise out of reach.

Blackadder character to appear in Upstart Crow

We won't ruin the surprise by telling you who it is, but we can say that the person playing the character is the same performer who acted the part way back in early 1986, more than 30 years ago and is something of a fan favourite.