The Red Top preview

It's 75-minutes of pure entertainment and pure escape, and if nothing else, watching Maxine Peake, Russell Tovey, Eleanor Matsuura, Johnny Vegas, Alexei Sayle, Harry Enfield, James Buckley, John Sessions, Stephen Mangan and Peter Richardson share the screen is a real joy.

A sitcom that I've stuck with sporadically since its inception is The Job Lot, which returned for its third series this week. The Job Lot certainly had a shaky start when it debuted back in 2013 primarily due to it being coupled with the woeful Vicious on prime time ITV. However it was rehabilitated last year thanks to a refreshed look, an anarchic vibe and a new channel in ITV2. This first episode was built around a rather traditional gag in which Karl (Russell Tovey) thought girlfriend Natalie (Laura Aikman) was pregnant even though it was Trish (Sarah Hadland) who actually suspected she might be having a baby. Although the misheard rumour is quite a well-worn comic trope I felt the writing team more than pulled it off thanks to the way in which each gag was timed. The sporadic use of the sociopathic Angela (Jo Enwright) also helped to break up the main plot with the job centre's most picky employee later becoming involved in Trish's story. Apart from the snappy writing, what makes The Job Lot work so well is the cast and in particular the three leading players. As Karl, Russell Tovey exceeds at playing the beleaguered everyman who feels that he should be in a better job despite making no attempts to leave his current employment. Meanwhile Sarah Hadland is fantastic as the hyper Trish who stumbles from one crisis to the next with this series seemingly seeing her want to have a baby. But for me The Job Lot has always been about Angela, a brilliant comic creation whose actions, though often cruel, feel oddly believable. Despite its appearance on one of the younger channels I feel that The Job Lot is a traditional sitcom masquerading as something a lot edgier. Whilst this isn't a bad thing I feel nothing about the episode was particularly memorable and most of the gags were pretty easy to guess. Thankfully this is a series with a fantastic cast and therefore, if it continues to find an audience, I can definitely see The Job Lot returning for another series.

Laura Aikman interview

I recently caught up with Laura Aikman to find out what's in store for Natalie this time around, and if her nerves had calmed down at all, plus what it's like to work with Russell Tovey.

Back for a second series was ITV2 comedy The Job Lot. Starring the excellent Russell Tovey (Him & Her, HBO's Looking) as Karl, an art history graduate working in a Midlands job centre. It could, you suppose provide an interesting conceit. Therein lies the problem. The high jinx contained in the wacky world of a job centre sounds so much like a neat pitch for a sitcom that it makes everything a bit too, well, sitcom-y. Tovey is straight man, longing to escape, Sarah Hadland's Trish Collingwood is a boss who actually says the line "I'm your boss. I also want to be your best friend". Stand-up Jo Enright is the supercilious jobsworth with ambitions for a promotion. It's all a bit assistant to the regional manager in its ambitions.

The opening episode is also littered with sex. And I use that verb literally. We begin with Trish having slept over at Karl's flat, we later saw her having sex behind a bin. She said: "After the drought comes the flood, and I am ready to get soaking wet." Trish also introduces a new member of staff thus: "She's a virgin [long beat] a job-centre virgin!" HAHAHAHA SEX!

Which is a shame because it has the basis of something that could be quite rewarding. If only it had a bit more confidence in its characters, like the deadpan nerdism of Adeel Akhtar's George.

Sarah Solemani: 'Russell Tovey? He came to my hen do'

With her challenging first BBC drama about to air, the Him & Her star explains why success as an actor won't stop her from writing.

Much of this last episode takes place in the toilet - as befits one of the grossest comedies ever to grace the small screen. It's also gloriously uncouth: the mangy neighbour glugs the dregs of drinks, the bride's father rubs up against one of the bridesmaids, the sozzled bride rubs up against anyone in trousers.

Russell Tovey perfects his neglected-puppy-dog pout as Steve, while Sarah Solemani's Becky dances a half-hearted conga. Can the wedding from hell possibly end happily ever after? Let's just say fans of this cult favourite may find they shed a tear at the end of this final series.

Oh, you again, Sarah Solemani! If it feels like the actress is everywhere at the moment, it's because she is! The good news for the crazy few that haven't bought into her cute charm is that soon she'll be on one less show, as Him & Her airs its final ever episode this week.

For the rest of us, this is a time to mourn the loss of a great, yet grotty comedy that found strength in its simplicity, not to mention the brilliant pairing of Solemani and Russell Tovey as lazy lovers Becky and Steve. Him & Her resists the temptation to go big for its grand finale, with most of the action taking place in a cramped toilet as Paul and Laura's nightmarish wedding rumbles on. Claustrophobic and cringe-worthy, just how we like it, it's a lovely exit for this BBC Three gem.

Radio Times review

The wedding from hell continues with the speeches: always ripe fodder for comedy and writer Stefan Golaszewski doesn't disappoint. Like many of the guests, you don't know whether to laugh or grimace at the father-of-the-bride's weak jokes and unwitting double entendres.

It's poor Steve (the superlative Russell Tovey snuffling like a puppy dog that's been kicked) who suffers the most. His off-the-internet best man's speech goes down like a lead balloon, to the delight of Becky's suave ex-boyfriend. As for the obnoxious bride, she's still reeling from last week's distressing revelation and gulps down wine like there's no tomorrow.