Eric and Ernie have never gone out of fashion, especially around Christmas. But as last year's Bring Me Morecambe and Wise on G.O.L.D. and a BBC tribute by Miranda Hart in March both proved, there's almost a yearning for the Sunshine boys' celebratory, good-natured humour in today's world of cynicism-driven comedy - even among today's funny men and women.

The first of two in-depth programmes charts the origins of the partnership, when John Eric Bartholomew and Ernest Wiseman first trod the boards, the moment they met and their early days in television that were almost as hairy as Ern's legs. Using archive interviews, family memories and superb black-and-white stills, this thoroughly researched programme explains the chemistry that would lead to 28 million watching the twinkly twosome.

Double-act profiles tend to focus, unkindly, on the funny man over the straight man. This one doesn't. As comedy guru Barry Cryer once said, "Eric and Ernie were a four-legged animal - they needed each other."

See the dance routines, hear the catchphrase "[cough] Arsenal!" in context and learn how far back their association went with unwanted harmonica player Arthur Tolcher. "Not not, Arthur... not now."

The 4th best programme of 2011 according to the Radio Times.

This fond look at the early struggles of Morecambe and Wise was no broad-brushstrokes biopic. Rather, it was an accumulation of lovely detail: the down-at-heel venues, the pushy parents, how the double act evolved. Writer Peter Bowker even had room for the duo's harmonica-tootling stooge, Arthur Tolcher. The very definition of "affectionate", Eric and Ernie was a series of revelations: that Vic Reeves ought to take more straight roles; that funny can flip to poignant without being crass; and that Daniel Rigby's Eric wasn't just an uncanny impersonation - it was a stunning performance, full stop.