Catastrophe: as beautifully rommy as it is commy

Eye-wateringly dirty and unusally soulful - Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney's brilliantly funny Channel Four sitcom dodges the usual romcom pitfalls.

Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney's immensely likable sitcom continues. She's been knocked up by a stranger in the manner of the movie Knocked Up, only more pleasing to watch. This week it's all about coming to terms with having an adult man as her new roommate, with whom she's about to share parenthood. Her brother Fergal doesn't make matters much easier. Meanwhile, Rob meets up with an old friend, and in doing so comes up with a plan to make Sharon feel a whole lot better about the catastrophic business.

Catastrophe, a new something-or-other - romcom? Chaucerian cautionary tale? - was, disappointingly, terrific. I had wanted to be able to dismiss it with an easy snide "Catastrophe 'nuff said" or similar - actually I hope I'd never have written anything so nuff-naff - but co-writers/co-stars Sharon Horgan and the American Rob Delaney have created, with one random pregnancy, two delightful characters who bleed authenticity.

Thoughts on Catastrophe

Well done Sharon and Rob, you nailed it; I'll definitely be watching more of Catastrophe. Who knows, maybe the next episode will be shit?

Catastrophe review

The first episode has done a solid job of setting the tone for the whole series, makes me wonder why the BBC turned the script down (they had initially commissioned a script from Rob, who invited Sharon to write it with him).

Despite adhering to an overused setup (two lovers cope with an unwanted pregnancy), Channel 4 comedy Catastrophe overcame its hoariness because, frankly, it was funny and well-performed by writer-stars Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney. They played, um, Sharon and Rob--middle-aged, transatlantic lovers who become expectant parents following a crazy week of passionate sex after meeting in a London bar.

Horgan's loathe to stray from her comfort zone (there's scant difference between her roles in Pulling, The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret and Dead Boss), while Twitter-star Delaney's a cut-price Jason Sudeikis with added facial hair, but they work fantastically well together and have strong chemistry. I grew slightly bored once the premiere's plot progressed into a dinner party scenario with dumb homeopath Fran (Ashley Jensen) and her taciturn husband Chris (Mark Bonnar), but Catastrophe's leads are so strong that I'm aboard for the ride.

Although I hope the remainder of the series takes the story down a path that justifies the bleak title, because I don't see what's so catastrophic about these two soulmates having a child together.

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