The Greatest Underrated Comedy Shows

A look at Rock & Chips, The Bubble, Stag and more.

What We've Been Watching: The Bubble

On the face of it, the show's premise might sound a little dull and repetitive. But The Bubble is presented by the endearing and razor-sharp David Mitchell. Watching him banter with some of comedy's keenest observers and broadcasting's sharpest minds is a joy.

The Bubble 1.3 review

After three episodes, I find it amusing enough to pass the time (mainly because of David Mitchell's celebrated wit), but the game itself doesn't involve me until the final quick-fire round.

The Bubble 1.2 review

There's fun to be had in this new comedy gameshow, where three celebrities are quizzed on the week's news after being denied access to the media, but it's a pity so little of it derives from the actual game in question.

Fingers on the Buzzers

We cannot get enough of this trend for witty panellists - stand-ups with a token celebrity or two, often the same small cast in different combinations.

New BBC2 topical quiz The Bubble contained jokes about everything from Mossad hit squads to the BBC's refusal to allow its own news teams to film fake reports. But Victoria Coren caused the greatest stir for her dismissive comments about Mumsnet. A resulting wave of criticism on Twitter led her to break cover and post a lengthy defence on the forum itself.

"It's a scary to be there alongside professional comedians - sometimes the obvious is all that comes to mind," she pleaded, before begging: "Don't be cross with me for scratching grumpily at the window."

The Bubble bursts in Sweden, Holland

Gameshow The Bubble is heading to broadcasters in Sweden and the Netherlands, hot on the heels of the premiere the UK version on BBC2 last week.

The Bubble review

The Bubble has all the requisite ingredients for a successful quiz show, yet there seems to be something lacking. It could do with being a bit more dynamic - but how? It might have been interesting to see or hear a little more about how people react when deprived of the telecommunications network which is so much a part of our daily lives.

The Bubble 1.1 review

It was only a matter of time before David Mitchell was given his own comedy quiz show, as he's proven to be the perfect panel show guest, a great team captain and decent guest-host already. The Bubble finds Mitchell as master of ceremonies, but it's perhaps more enticing as a concept than it proved to be in execution.

A topical news quiz on Friday night in which a witty panel are quizzed about the week's events. Hang on, haven't we seen this before? For the past 20 years?

Well, The Bubble has a twist. The guests are shut away from the world for a few days beforehand so they are oblivious to the stories, and then have to guess which one of a selection of them is true, and which are false.

Despite a few clunky elements, we enjoyed it. We're not sure we'll enjoy it every week, but in this opener the blend of guests and host was perfect.

Host David Mitchell's awkwardness in chairing proceedings amused through his discomfort in having to control and guide a show rather than the liberation of a panellist who can rant and rave without restriction. A weakness that Reginald D. Hunter took full advantage of, hilariously mocking the subdued Mitchell at every opportunity.

Victoria Coren's simmering disdain for the mothers of Mumsnet, whom she vilified for their shameless advertising of their fertility and deluded faith that they are in someway important, was a compelling advert for enforced national sterilisation in the belief that an extinct population is better than a conceited one. And she has a point.

While Frank Skinner picked out the idiosyncrasies in the stories, illuminating their absurdity. In the first round, he guessed that a report on Merseyside Police receiving a fine for using a mini-flying camera without permission because he thought an interview with a solicitor was too real: "No actor would play him that bleak."

We're not sure that the guests will be good enough to save it every week. If things get dour, we suppose Mitchell can always storm off on one of his tangential rants about the ridiculousness of the world. The opening news reports, however, were far too long and quite dull, while the show seemed to lack flow. You could see the join between each of the rounds as though the three rounds had been assembled from a much larger kit, most of which had been discarded because of obsolescence.

Although next week we'll be back. Tempted by the prospect of lines as good as: "The man who has celebrated Christmas every day for 14 years has been found crucified in his back garden."