Static is about a chap called Rob who moves back in with his parents, except - they've moved house, and downsized to a caravan park! In Margate! The caravan is small, and he keeps bumping into the furniture! Cos the caravan's small! And his dad's got a fat belly!

Apologies to my neighbours if you heard loud clapping coming from this sofa. It wasn't applause: I was looking to open a vein. Only the existence of a locked safe containing compromising evidence could possibly explain why Alison Steadman and Phil Davis lent their undoubted talents to this. Compromising evidence of black-mass sex with long-dead jackals.

Preview - Static

The last of BBC One's Comedy Playhouse series of pilots sees Rob Beckett taking centre stage, playing a version of himself.

Starring and co-written by 8 Out of 10 Cats' Rob Beckett, this pilot finds Beckett's hapless thirtysomething Rob jobless and returning home to live with Mum and Dad (Alison Steadman and Phil Davis). Except they have moved to a caravan park in Margate without telling him. It's going for "heartwarming family sitcom", but the result is powerfully unfunny.

Comedy Playhouse: Static, BBC1

Of the three BBC1 pilots that have just aired Static easily has the most potential. To use a phrase that will probably get this metropolitan elite critic in trouble it hardly pushes the envelope but it is definitely easy to like.

Static with Rob Beckett preview

In the end, the personalities win over the script's shortcomings and Static settles into the bland but likeable. Is that enough? Or will Static be going nowhere?

Rob Beckett's Static is going nowhere: review

By calling his creation Static, Beckett is inviting critics to say his comedy vehicle is going nowhere. Reluctantly, I'll oblige. It seems more likely to get towed off to the scrapyard than commissioned for a full series.