Radio Times review

A return to form this week as Joyce takes some time off and bumps into old flame Cyril (Matthew Kelly), whose fortunes have taken a nose dive. She leaves Leslie, the normally affable transvestite, in charge of the Solana and the power instantly goes to his head - an implausible transformation, but it taps into Tim Healy's comic potential. He's never been funnier.

Meanwhile, Donald and Jacqueline take Big Donna's ashes on a last hurrah through town, and Madge has some startling news for Mick and Janice. It's a busy, farcical episode that even has room for a cameo from Janet Street-Porter.

Up-and-coming TV presenter Michael Grade explains the evolution of a peculiar British cultural institution, in a lightly festive hour that begins with our host in full make-up, wig and tent-like dress. We learn how 18th-century impresario John Rich discovered harlequin shows were ten times more lucrative than Shakespeare; then how the specifics of a man delivering double entendres as a deliberately unconvincing woman gradually fell into place.

Grade chats with Gyles Brandreth, Richard Briers and Matthew Kelly about the demands of damehood. But the star of the show is Berwick Kaler, writer, director and dame of York's famous panto. The future of the art form looks safe with him.

Oh yes it is! It's a rave review of the pantomime dame, presented, somewhat bizarrely, by former BBC1 controller Michael Grade. Going back to the 18th century for the birth of this very British tradition, this compendium of men donning frocks features insights from veterans such as Richard Briers and Matthew Kelly.

Matthew Kelly's 'Benidorm' episode seen by 6.5 million

Benidorm showed no signs of fatigue on its second outing of 2012 on Friday night, overnight data indicates.

It's Strictly Come Solana tonight as the resort stages its own dance contest.

While the guests brush up on their pasodobles and their lambadas, Matthew Kelly guests as dance judge Cyril Babcock who unwisely challenges ­swivel-hipped barman Mateo to a dance-off.

Unfortunately, they didn't seem to have a lens wide enough to get Kelly's head, feet and body all in the same shot (he's 6ft 5in) so we're left none the wiser about how well he measures up in that department.

Elsewhere, new resort manager Joyce (Sherrie Hewson) thinks that Mateo has the hots for her - while Janice Garvey is alarmed to spot a familiar face lurking at the poolside bar.

We're still trying to get our heads around seeing Downton's hatchet-faced Miss O'Brien in a bikini, but her run-in with new girl Trudy proves who's the boss.

A sort of low-rent Strictly Come Benidorm ensues as Cyril Babcock (Matthew Kelly) holds a dance contest at the Solana. This may not be a classic episode, but the terrific ensemble cast can elevate the run-of-the-mill. Hardly surprising - Janine Duvitski's comedy pedigree extends way back to Abigail's Party, on-screen hubby Kenny Ireland's to Acorn Antiques... And young Adam Gillen (as moronic Liam) is already proving a fine comedy actor.

And if you thought new girl Trudy might become top dog, think again. As mum Janice-cum-She-Ra, Siobhan Finneran seems light years away from Miss O'Brien (the harridan she plays in Downton) but is doubly formidable.

It's never been subtle, but with an increasing reliance on innuendo and slapstick for laughs, Derren Little's camp comedy drama has started to resemble an updated Carry On film. In tonight's episode, the Solana resort's exacting new manager Joyce Temple-Savage (Sherrie Hewson) organises a dance contest for guests. She ropes in an old flame, ageing TV judge Cyril Babcock (flouncing guest star Matthew Kelly), to supervise rehearsals. Over in the hair salon (now rechristened Blow 'n' Go) Kenneth has hired uninspiring new assistant Carmen (Alba Ortega), while over by the pool bar an unexpected visitor gives Janice (Siobhan Finneran) a nasty shock.

This three part series sees the Carry On actress look at three different female comedians. However, the first she has profiled is one that I had never heard of until now: Hylda Baker.

For those like me who were ignorant of her work, Lancashire-born comedian Baker was most famous for starring in the sitcom Nearest and Dearest alongside Jimmy Jewel (they played a bickering brother and sister), and for her stage act in which she played a Northern gossip, accompanied by stooge Cynthia, who was always played by a man in drag much bigger than her (one version of Cynthia was played by Matthew Kelly).

Amongst the things I learned about Baker was that she seemed to be quite egotistical. For example, she never allowed any of her Cynthias to do interview or talk to the public. When Baker appeared on This is Your Life, the Cynthia at the time revealed himself. Baker was furious at him and had him sacked. Also, like many sitcom stories, in Nearest and Dearest the main actors were arguing both on and off the camera. Baker and Jewel were constantly insulting each other. Jewel thought that Baker was unfunny and Baker thought she deserved top billing.

However, there was a fair bit of tragedy in her comic life as well. Her marriages failed, she had two entopic pregnancies after which it was discovered that she could not have children, so adopted two pet monkeys as pets (one of which ate all her tax info). Her memory began to fail so she had to use cue cards, and in her later life she suffered from Alzheimer's, eventually dying of pneumonia at the age of 81. The biggest tragedy of course is that she is no longer remembered.

This documentary certain shone a light on someone I had never heard of before and made me more curious to find out more info, which for me is the ultimate sign of any good documentary.

I was never a fan of the practical jokes of The Unforgettable Jeremy Beadle - in fact, I think I had forgotten him until this tribute - but it certainly did its job in changing my opinion of the man himself. Frankly, it's almost impossible for me to dislike someone who loved books so much that he had an extension built onto his house to hold his library of 30,000 - that's living the dream! He was even buried under a gravestone representing books, with the epitaph "Ask my friends" and that's what this show did, eliciting what seemed to be genuinely heartfelt memories of a decent chap.

As well as being an apparently good father, stepfather, husband and friend, he relentlessly raised money for charity through marathon quiz sessions and auctions - around £100 million. "Oh, that's just showing off," said his former Game For A Laugh co-star Matthew Kelly, in awe.

But he still became something of a hate figure, once coming second to Saddam Hussein in an unpopularity poll, and a by-word for a type of trashy telly which, nevertheless, flourished even after he was dumped from his prime time slots. His family said he was hurt by the reversal of fortunes and, as fellow quasi-hate figure Chris Tarrant pointed out, it was strange how he went from being over-exposed to being a TV pariah for years, only able to appear in panto villain roles like Ant & Dec's Banged up with Beadle slot.

Ironically, he'd have probably fared better in today's celeb-crazy television environment; he could have made a good guest on Who Do You Think You Are, fronted a documentary on disability or just gone round the country on a spacehopper or something. And yet, there's a lesson there: Jeremy Beadle's fall wasn't due to his own failings or a sudden turn against cheesy pranks (still going strong on John Barrowman's excruciating Tonight's The Night). People just got sick of the sight of him - and today's actors, presenters and rent-a-guests should probably take note.