Campus is set in a fictitious 'new' university and explores the lives and souls of a handful of people that work there - some as academics, some simply involved in the general running of the place.

It is a fresh October morning, the beginning of the new academic year and Jonty de Wolfe, Vice Chancellor of Kirke University, tries to talk a troubled young student into committing suicide. Meanwhile, Jonty's dreams of dragging concrete Kirke up as far as red-brick status have recently received an unexpected boost, as one of his lecturers, Imogen Moffat, has written a popular maths bestseller. Underachieving English professor Matthew Beer is forced to collaborate with the introverted Imogen, but first has to deal with the fact that she is female, and therefore technically on his 'to do' list.

With a semi-improvised feel, Campus features an ensemble cast, and is made by the team behind Green Wing and Smack The Pony, including producer Victoria Pile.

Our Review: This pilot appears to have split audiences down the middle. Opening with a Stephen Hawking/spastic joke was perhaps not the best way to ingratiate the more liberal viewer - but those who didn't turn off 30 seconds into the programme would have seen the gag within the context of the character; a highly objectionable Vice Chancellor. Much of the rest of the humour was crude (although not in a Two Pints manner), which was certain to put off some, whilst others have criticised its similarity to Green Wing.

However, some enjoyed the ideas and hints toward surrealism in Campus; we felt that although it wasn't a mind-blowing start, it certainly showed promise. Some of the characters felt a bit flat, and the skipping between them did leave a feeling of a lack of direction at times, but there were still a number of laughs throughout and undoubtedly these problems will be ironed out, and characters fleshed out, in a full series.

Channel 4 are showing the faith in Victoria Pile's team. They've ordered a full series of Campus now, so we'll be seeing more from Kirke University later in 2010.

The full series is being 'reconfigured' as six 45-minute episodes. Shane Allen, Channel 4's head of comedy, says he's extended the episode length to bring more "light and shade" to its characters. "It felt constrained as a 30-minute sitcom, with the focus inevitably falling on the brutal dean" he said. "The longer format gives more chance to tell a story and to bring the kind of warmth you saw in Green Wing."