Press clippings Page 21

Olivia Colman and Tom Hollander on Rev.

With none of the otherworldly airs or whisky-soaked vices of stereotyped TV priests, this thoughtful comedy shows the day-to-day reality of a religious calling: 'It's f***ing hard!'

David Stubbs, The Guardian, 15th March 2014

Cuban Fury - review

Nimble-footed stars such as Nick Frost, Chris O'Dowd and Olivia Colman step lively in a comedy that doesn't quite fill the floor.

Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian, 14th February 2014

Radio Times review

You've tittered at QI. You've guffawed at Would I Lie to You? So how will your sides cope with a brazen fusion of both formats?

That's obviously the thinking behind this derivative panel show, in which Lee Mack asks a team of celebrity guests to provide hard evidence for their seemingly outlandish claims. This week's unlikely facts include: dogs can "catch" their owners' yawns; shrimps are fitter than humans; and an adult male will never be shorter than his mother.

Padded out with pop-science facts, whimsical practical tests and based in a weirdly cramped, overly busy set - it looks like it's filmed in a stationary drawer - it has the whiff of a project cobbled together during a busy executive lunch. But it passes the time affably.

Mack's guests are Olivia Colman, Rhod Gilbert and Paul Hollywood, who gamely leaves his Bake Off comfort zone to see if it's possible to scale a wall using household vacuum cleaners.

Paul Whitelaw, Radio Times, 14th February 2014

The Kumars are no longer at number 42. Indeed, they are not even at the BBC anymore. After an eight-year absence, their chat show has been revived by Sky1, relocated to a room behind a minimart and provided with Daniel Radcliffe, Chevy Chase and Olivia Colman as inaugural guests.

The trouble is, I still don't get it. Obviously, it's subverting television conventions. True, nobody else seems to have a problem with the absurdity of the set-up. But to me and my far-too-literal mind, it doesn't make any sense. How come the Kumars have a chat show in their home?

Despite being incomprehensible to me, I find the show entertaining enough, especially if the guests play along with their hosts and don't try to compete with them. Chase looked lost, Colman couldn't contain her amusement and Radcliffe was charm personified, and effortlessly witty with it.

Harry Venning, The Stage, 20th January 2014

They'll be rolling out the red carpet tonight as a stellar cast of talent drop by for a chat. Michael Fassbender talks about his role in 12 Years A Slave, Idris Elba reflects on stepping into the shoes of a legend in Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom and there's a chance to get the inside track on punchy comedy drama Girls from US actor/writer Lena Dunham. Completing one of Graham Norton's most diverting line-ups are national treasure Olivia Colman and rockers Keane.

Carol Carter and Larushka Ivan-Zadeh, Metro, 17th January 2014

After eight years away from our screens, the British Indian family returns to treat the famous faces of today to some amiable nose-tweaking. Despite the action leaving the cosy confines of No. 42 (and the BBC) in favour of the box-strewn surroundings of the flat behind Ashwin's shop in glitzy Hounslow (and Sky1), the appeal of smushing on to the couch with Sanjeev, Ashwin and Ummi et al hasn't dimmed, with tonight's opener playing host to Daniel Radcliffe, Chevy Chase and Bafta-bagging Olivia Colman.

Mark Jones, The Guardian, 15th January 2014

Back after a seven-year absence, the Kumars return with some top-of-the-range acting talent dropping in on their downsized Hounslow home for a dysfunctional family grilling.

With Olivia Colman holding her own against an onslaught of inappropriate questions from Sanjeev (Sanjeev Bhaskar), Daniel Radcliffe getting his cheeks tweaked by Ummi (Meera Syal) and US comedian Chevy Chase quivering under the gaze of new landlady Hawney (Harvey Virdi) we're all set for the chuckles to pick up right where they left off.

Well, apart from the fact they're now on Sky, not the Beeb, so let's hope they haven't left too many of their old fans at home alone.

Carol Carter and Larushka Ivan-Zadeh, Metro, 15th January 2014

Radio Times review

Remember the Kumars? You should, because their BBC show The Kumars at No 42 (which ran from 2001 to 2006) was one of a kind, steering a path between Asian sitcom and cheeky chat show that occasionally teetered on the edge of shambles, but mostly paid rich dividends as celebrities squirmed in Sanjeev Bhaskar's hot seat and the ad libs zinged.

Since we last saw them, our fictional family have fallen on hard times, with Sanjeev, Dad (Vincent Ebrahim) and Ummi (Meera Syal) now living above Dad's gift shop in Hounslow. That hasn't affected the quality of their celebrity visitors, however, as Daniel Radcliffe, Olivia Colman and Chevy Chase pay a call.

David Butcher, Radio Times, 15th January 2014

Justin Chubb and Chris Bran interview

As series two begins, we talk to the men whose strange little creation attracts guest performances from the likes of Stephen Fry, Olivia Colman and Derek Jacobi.

Jack Seale, Radio Times, 8th January 2014

David Mitchell and Robert Webb have lost none of their comedy momentum: the series continues as energetically as it started last week. This time, the running sketch is Mitchell as the "Radio 4 sommelier", with suggestions for a wine that will augment the most laughs in each section of the show. The most unexpected hilarity comes in a scene set in a tavern close to Count Dracula's castle where the endless list of vampire lore - ward them off with water, crucifixes, garlic etc - is given a very funny new twist.

A final word of praise for the wonderful Olivia Colman, whose skills as a comedy actress are put to good use.

Jane Anderson, Radio Times, 3rd December 2013

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