Preview: Zapped

Riding on the wave of Red Dwarf, Dave has moved from sci-fi to fantasy with their latest original work.

Zapped review

After finding success with the revival of Red Dwarf, the Dave channel has now turned to another cult genre to find its next comedy hit: fantasy. And the signs from the first episode of Zapped are pretty encouraging.

When an unscrupulous art buyer from Shoreditch gives charity-shop worker Charles a tenner for an apparently worthless old urine bottle (conspicuously signed with a tell-tale "R Mutt", history-of-art lovers), a horrified Henry and co hotfoot it to Hackney to get it back, in the last part of this baby-boomer comedy based on the Oldie cartoon strip. Worth catching for Paul Kaye's triple role, Dr Strangelove-style, as three flavours of absolute berk.

As the three-part comedy bows out, the irascible Henry (Simon Callow) ends up reinventing himself as an art dealer to help Margaret (Anita Dobson) recover a precious item. Unfortunately this means a visit to London, home of the hipster culture he detests. 'What's the worst thing that could happen to me in Hackney?' he wonders. 'Get entangled in someone's beard?' Henry's attempts to fit into the modern art scene ('I hate shapes and colours') are very funny, and the brilliant Paul Kaye guests as a trendy gallery owner.

Meet the new inhabitants of Successville

To celebrate, the good folk at Tiger Aspect have let us in on a little more about this year's murder victims and the suspects, who is playing who, and exactly when you'll be able to see them... plus a set of exclusive images across this post of most of our regulars in action. You'll probably notice there's a distinct lack of Paul Kaye in this images, but more on that one soon... until then, here's a run-down of each episode!

A dastardly duo investigate crimes on a sunny Spanish island in this hilarious series of comedy capers.

Bradley Walsh and Kayvan Novak (Fonejacker), head up the cast as expat journalists trying to play detective and stay out of trouble at the same time.

The series also boasts a stellar line-up of cameo appearances, including Paul Kaye, Tracy Ann Oberman, Jack Dee and Kara Tointon.

Law & Order: UK actor Bradley said he thought the sitcom would appeal to families, so it's a shame schedulers have put it on so late. But it's worth recording.

The action starts when undercover reporter - and master of disguise - Woody (Novak) is forced to flee Britain after being framed by his corrupt boss.

He goes on the run to find Brutus (Walsh), his former mentor at the newspaper and the one man he can trust. Brutus, now living a quiet life running a bar (called El Baro) in sunny Spain, is less than thrilled to see Woody.

But in the end they join forces to investigate local crimes.

It's a bit like Magnum, P.I. meeting the cast of Benidorm.

"I wanted the Magnum look, but without the enormous moustache," said Kayvan, about the show.

"But it's nice to be in something without wearing a balaclava or prosthetic mask."

And Bradley said: "I'd spent so many years being a downtrodden detective, standing on Hammersmith Bridge at six o'clock in the morning, getting rained on.

"So I thought, why not go and do that in the sun!"

In this opener, Melody (Emma Pierson) asks Brutus to help her find her husband's millions. But there's a catch. The only living thing who knows where the money is hidden is Teflon, his talking parrot - and the parrot has been kidnapped.

Can they track down the bird-napper before it's too late?

Those masters of the dark arts, the former League Of Gentlemen co-stars Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton, return with a second instalment of their deliciously macabre shorts, the first series of which won best comedy performance at the Royal Television Society awards last week.
Like a Tales Of The Unexpected for the 21st century, each perfectly formed 30 minutes offers a masterclass in storytelling: witty, imaginative, inventive and suspenseful - with a clever twist at the end for good measure.
The six tales are linked by the number nine and in the opening episode, La Couchette, Julie Hesmondhalgh, Mark Benton, Jessica Gunning and Jack Whitehall join Pemberton and Shearsmith on board the sleeper train from Paris to Bourg-Saint-Maurice. They're a motley collection trying to get a quiet night's sleep as the train makes its way across France, but as the sleeping compartment fills up, the chances of that begin to look highly unlikely...
The setting for future episodes include a séance in the grand Victorian villa, a modern-day family get-together, a 17th-century village witch trial and a volunteer call centre, with Alison Steadman, Claire Skinner, Jane Horrocks, Paul Kaye and Tom Riley among the cast. Special mention must go to Sheridan Smith, however, for her performance in next week's offering, The 12 Days Of Christine, a powerful, moving story of one woman's rocky journey through life. It is an absolute gem, one of the best things I have seen on television this year.

The sublime Love in Recovery wraps up on Wednesday 11th February, with the sixth and final instalment of Radio 4's touching comic drama. Written by Pete Jackson, the series follows the lives of an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting group, made up of characters portrayed by Sue Johnston, John Hannah, Eddie Marsan, Rebecca Front and Paul Kaye, whilst Julia Deakin plays village hall cleaner Marion.

This Radio 4 comedy drama is set in an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting room. Each episode focuses on a different character, played by a high-profile cast including Rebecca Front, Sue Johnston, John Hannah, Paul Kaye and Eddie Marsan. Written by Pete Jackson, it is inspired by his own experiences of being in recovery and is based on his attendance at AA meetings, where he says he found support in an unlikely assortment of people. The 15-minute episodes mix drama with black comedy as each character tells their story - from snobbish banker Fiona, who fails to combine her high-pressure job with her compulsive boozing, to journalist Simon, who has delusions of grandeur and a disastrous home life.