Bluestone 42, War and Comedy

A few weeks ago, I was asked a few questions about Bluestone 42 for an article on the BBC Website about comedy and war, prompted by the Dad's Army movie. I thought some people might be interested to read that e-interview in full.

The cruel reality of British sitcoms

So it's tatty bye to Bluestone 42's Captain Nick Medhurst. The bomb disposal detachment's charismatic Ammunition Technical Officer played by Oliver Chris has finally run out of luck.

The tricky business of making bomb disposal in Afghanistan funny gets easier when there's specific strife close to the characters. This week, one of their number takes a hit, leaving the rest to stew in their own feelings and fears while they wait for good or terrible news. Life goes on, though: the questions for the pub quiz still need to be stolen from the Lt Col's office. You'd like the pent-up emotion to punch through the joshing bravado more strongly, but for the army sitcom's fans, this is a biggie.

Oliver Chris bows out of Bluestone 42

Tonight's episode of the Afghanistan-set BBC Three comedy saw the introduction of Laura Aikman's ATO Ellen Best after Nick Medhurst lost his leg in an explosion.

You'll be amazed to learn that I've never served in the Armed Forces, so I can't say for sure whether Bluestone 42 is accurate. I haven't watched it much before either - this was the opener of the third series - so I haven't spent time with the characters. It wasn't uproariously funny, but at least rang true. It began with an armoured vehicle being hit by an IED, just as those inside were making some pretty sick jokes about a colleague who'd lost an eye. The language was fruitier than Um Bongo and the badinage was, almost literally, gallows humour.

Getting this right - mining humour from genuine peril, in a real-life scenario - may be a stretch too far for a low-budget BBC Three comedy. But I'm glad they're trying, and I wonder what happens to these shows when BBC Three "goes online". The worry is that the lowest comic denominator fills the void, and new writers or voices that might have cut their teeth finding comedy in tragedy and so on will be left sifting through video clips or doing Paul Whitehouse's prosthetics.

Critically acclaimed comedy Bluestone 42 returns for a third series following the lives, loves and adventures of a fictional bomb disposal unit in Afghanistan.

It didn't end on a particularly comic note last series when an IED explosion hit their mastiff and they found themselves trapped in hostile territory.

We pick up where we left off. Not all of them come out of the vehicle unscathed and the team faces a dilemma: do they wait it out or risk trying to get back to safety?

Radio Times review

It's very hard to describe Bluestone 42's return without using phrases such as "back with a bang" or "an explosive episode" - but such are the pitfalls of setting a workplace comedy in an Afghanistan bomb disposal unit. Still, reviewing issues aside, this opening story is a roaring return for the BBC Three hit that sees our irresponsible unit pinned down in a firefight with one of their number injured.

Not that the battle will stop Captain Nick (Oliver Chris) rushing back to base to hit on the attractive female padre, or the moronic Rocket (Scott Hoatson) playing a fun new game that mainly involves punching his fellow soldiers in the face...

As ever, the series combines dramatic beats, impressive stunts and a genuine sense of danger with bucketloads of puerile and gallows humour, and a cast at the top of their comedy game. In short, you'd be a fool to miss it - it's a blast.

Bluestone 42 is back with a bang

Bluestone 42 looks to continue to deliver quality episodes which fans of the show like myself have become accustomed to.

The secrets of filming Bluestone 42

The writers of the hit Afghanistan-set series reveal the pitfalls of setting your workplace sitcom in a warzone...