Ricky Gervais

The exception to this season of dross which I mentioned earlier is The Office (BBC2) which ended its six-part series last night. Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant have fashioned an entertainment that is unlike anything I have seen on television. It is created in the form of a spoof documentary, but transcends that knackered old format effortlessly.

The Office (BBC2) is a very funny spoof documentary series, though more "Ouch!" than "Ha, ha!" It turns on a fine performance from Ricky Gervais as Dave, the egregious manager of an office in Slough that is under threat of closure ("Did I not want to hear that, Jenny!") Dave swings from cliché to catchphrase with the grace of an orangutan.

Victor Lewis-Smith on The Office

It aims to capture the tedium and monotony of a nine-to-five existence, and to lampoon the pompous imbecility of the office wag, but fails miserably because parodies of dullness only succeed when they're shorter and more exaggerated than their original models. A bore in homeopathic doses can be hilarious, as demonstrated by The Fast Show's Colin Hunt, but a bore in real time remains simply a bore.

Finally, a quick but enthusiastic nod in the direction of The Office (BBC2) - it might be another spoof documentary series, but it's a spoof documentary series distinguished by superb performances and regular belly-laughs, and is not to be missed.