Twenty Twelve exploited the potency of deferred pleasure last night with the return of Sally, Ian's haplessly lovelorn PA, recruited by the perky Daniel after he was headhunted for Lord Coe's team. Her arrival in Ian's hospital room, in the midst of a cloud of self-deprecation and apology, was wonderfully touching. This was partly down to Olivia Colman, who can do more by lowering her gaze than many actors can do with their entire body. But it was also to the credit of John Morton's script, which sits very sharp satire on a foundation of beautifully understated character studies. Without the latter the former might get a bit thin. But with them it is irresistible. He can write a punchline too, one of which might serve as a useful slogan for the Home Office team currently dealing with security: "If we get this wrong we're in danger of running out of feet to shoot ourselves in."

More quick-fire comedy from the incompetent members of the Olympic Deliverance Commission. And with ODC head Ian Fletcher (Hugh Bonneville) in hospital after being shot in the foot with a starting pistol, there's evenmore chaos than usual. Not least when it emerges that Lord Coe has poached Fletcher's PA Daniel (Samuel Barnett) with just three weeks to go before the Opening Ceremony. A replacement is quickly found - a welcome return to the series for Olivia Colman as obsessively devoted Sally.

Is it just us or is Twenty Twelve getting funnier as the Olympics draw nearer? After all, it's not impossible to imagine a real-life row about a faith centre escalating into a frenzy of stubborness and obfuscation. Tonight, the Algerian boycott threat comes to a head with all manner of compromises - including a six-sided building and a retractable minaret - being considered. Sadly, the team is also prone to getting side-tracked by - for example - whether hand dryers are a legacy or sustainability issue. The performances are brillliant - particularly Jessica Hynes's unbearable Siobhan and Olivia Colman's devoted Sally - and the script is pitched perfectly between fondness and scepticism. If we Brits are good at anything, it's taking the piss. Particularly out of ourselves.

Back tonight for a new run is BBC2's sitcom Twenty Twelve (10pm), about the hapless bunch charged with the task of organising this year's Olympics.

Hugh Bonneville resumes his role as the chairman, dealing in this first episode with a threatened boycott by the Algerians, angry that the Olympic Village's so-called Shared Belief Centre doesn't face Mecca.

Other stars include Olivia Colman and Jessica Hynes.

Delivering the Olympics is a job so insanely complicated, it should be beyond the remit of any mere mortal.

And the British Olympic Deliverance Committee is back to prove once again just how very fallible and human they can be.

Winner of the Best TV Sitcom in the British Comedy Awards, John Morton's mockumentary has finally been released from the scheduling ghetto of BBC4 and promoted to BBC2 for two new series before the real thing kicks off in July.

This week Algeria is threatening to boycott the Games because the all-purpose prayer centre in the Olympic Village doesn't have any of its walls facing Mecca.

For head of Deliverance Ian Fletcher (Hugh Bonneville) it's just one more PR nightmare to add to the towering pile of other PR nightmares in his in-tray that he really doesn't need.

Having just separated from his wife, he's also about to move into a new flat - which is a chance for his quietly superhuman PA Sally (Olivia Colman) to prove just how invaluable she can be.

Sally is secretly in love with Ian, of course. Just check out the look of pure jealously that flickers across her face for the briefest instant as an attractive new girl joins the team as Head Of Legacy.

Head of Sustainability Sally Hope (Amelia Bullmore) is not pleased to learn she'll be sharing an office either.

But she's not bothered about the Algerians.

Her only care is that 2012 will go down as the games that changed the way people dry their hands.

The first series, on BBC4, initially felt like a thin, sub-The Office comedy of embarrassment. But after a couple of repeat runs it emerged as something rather warm, and perky enough to transfer to BBC2.

Everyone on the hapless, chaotic Olympic Deliverance Committee, headed by the well-meaning but inept Ian Fletcher (Hugh Bonneville, who, like the rest of the cast, downplays brilliantly), is still mired in doublespeak. But the Games are looming and the Algerians are threatening a boycott because the "Shared Belief Centre" doesn't face Mecca. Worse, there's a problem with the hand dryers.

And Ian's faithful secretary, "Not a problem" Sally (that comedy marvel Olivia Colman), is still hopelessly, wordlessly, in love with him. But iron enters Sally's soul when she spots a rival.

The dry-as-toast mock-doc about the London Olympic planning committee returns. Ian (Hugh Bonneville) faces an escalating crisis when one national team insists that the multifaith worship centre in the Olympic village faces Mecca. The way Siobhan (Jessica Hynes) says "Muslim" is perfect in its ignorance: "Muss-lum" she repeats, over and over. That and her insistence that Muslim and Islam are two different religions. Another perfectly judged script with superb performances, most notably Olivia Colman's PA. Solid gold stuff.

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