20 facts for Jonathan Creek's 20th anniversary

Today marks the 20th anniversary of the first time that David Renwick's ingenious creation first hit our screens. To celebrate, here's a look at 20 things you may not know about everyone's favourite tousle-haired, windmill-dwelling amateur sleuth.

Preview - Brian Pern: A Tribute

One of the lesser known deaths in recent months was that of the Thotch frontman and Simon Day lookalike Brian Pern.

A triple bill from the queen of affable slapstick. This binge includes the episode in which Miranda's plan to take French classes backfires when she runs into a loathed former teacher, played by Peter Davison - whose occasional TV appearances are a reminder of his exemplary timing. It also includes the one with the Officer and a Gentleman ending and the usual sterling support from Sarah Hadland, Sally Phillips and Patricia Hodge.

Toast's love life is in the doldrums. Luckily, Ed's girlfriend, Penvelope, has a friend, Clancy Moped (Sophie Colquhoun), "a weather girl off the television" who sports a Pussy Riot T-shirt. All goes well until Toast and Ed are asked to judge the International Beauty Contest for Women, a secretive event in the age of feminism. Fitfully amusing - especially the bits tonight with Peter Davison - but three series in, it's difficult to shake the idea that Toast's peculiarly heightened world has become too self-contained and self-referential.

Katherine Parkinson (Mrs Pooter in Radio 4's new Classic Serial, wonderful in Channel 4's The IT Crowd) and Julian Rhind-Tutt (total star, even as the guest on Radio 3's Essential Classics) head a brilliant cast (Jan Francis, Peter Davison, Dave Lamb, Don Gilet) in this new comedy by Eddie Robson. It's about an English village, invaded for study purposes by aliens, the Geonin, who throw a heat cordon around it to stop anyone coming in or getting out. They'll soon learn about the Earthling inborn tendency to resistance.

Andrew Davies & Peter Davison: A Very Peculiar Practice

The writer and star talk about the cult 80s drama as it's released on DVD.