Review: Friday Night Dinner

In fear of sounding too much like the new controller of BBC One, Danny Cohen, who has apparently decided there are too many middle-class sitcoms on the channel, Friday Night Dinner did leave us gagging for some Shameless or Only Fools and Horses. Their dinners were so much more fun.

As it is Friday, we're going to go easy on Robert Popper's new sitcom. It's charming, promising and features some good performances from the least funny Inbetweener and the most annoying thing about Episodes (not that Tamsin Greig was bad, it's just that her character made no sense - surely she'd work out what LA was going to do to her comedy? Anyhow, different preview).

Here Tamsin plays a Masterchef-obsessed (old format, obviously) mum to two kids who return home for Friday night dinner to be fed. They're embarrassed by their ketchup-supping dad and risqué nan. Does that sound dated and, well, sitcommy? That's because it is a bit. Like Grandma's House without any introspection.

If you liked the cleverly played-out dysfunctionality of Grandma's House, you'll enjoy this new comedy. Newcomer Jack Rosenthal and Inbetweeners star Simon Bird play brothers joining their parents (Tamsin Greig and Paul Ritter) at the family home for dinner. The evening descends into enjoyable farce as a man unexpectedly comes to collect the sofa bed, Dad figures out how to avoid chucking away his New Scientists and a weird neighbour (Green Wing's Mark Heap) keeps popping in to use the loo.

Friday Night Dinner review

It was a good start and seems to be something of a grower. While it took a little while to get going, there were some very funny moments in the episode and I'm looking forward to seeing more of the eccentric Goodman family over the coming weeks.

Interview - Tom Rosenthal ('Friday Night Dinner')

New sitcom Friday Night Dinner kicks off this Friday on Channel 4, and judging by the comedy pedigree attached, we're in for a bit of a treat. Springing from the fertile mind of Look Around You creator Robert Popper, the series stars ex-Inbetweener Simon and comedy stalwart Tamsin Greig as members of a rather eccentric family unit. We caught up with stand-up comedian Tom Rosenthal, who plays mischievous son Johnny Goodman, to chat about his television acting debut, working with comic legends and odd family wrestling rituals!

Interview: Robert Popper

The writer of a sitcom explains why he left the prayers out.

Last year the BBC aired Grandma's House, Simon Amstell's acerbic sitcom about a dysfunctional Jewish family. The very mixed notices it received have clearly not deterred Channel 4, who keep the middle-class Jewish mayhem coming with this new series from writer Robert Popper. Each episode centres on Friday night dinner with the Goodman family. Bickering brothers Adam (Simon Bird, star of The Inbetweeners) and Jonny (newcomer Tom Rosenthal, son of sports broadcaster Jim) are reluctant attendees, while their mother Jackie (Tamsin Greig, fresh from appearing alongside Matt LeBlanc and Stephen Mangan in Episodes) and father Martin (Pulling's Paul Ritter) try to uphold some family values. In tonight's opening episode, Jackie is intent on getting the boys to watch the MasterChef final, while Martin is preoccupied with rescuing old copies of New Scientist from the dump. Things are further complicated by the continual interruptions from weird neighbour Jim (Mark Heap), who claims to have broken his loo. As a comedy, it's not mean-spirited and cynical, but actually rather sweet. Of course, It's too early to say if it'll be a hit - in particular it is unclear whether Bird has acting gears other than his sarcastic, awkward Inbetweeners persona - but there's certainly enough here to keep you watching.

Simon Bird spreads his wings

He's best known as the nerdy sixth-former in The Inbetweeners. His next role is as an awkward suburban teenager in C4's new sitcom, Friday Night Dinner. But how close is Simon Bird to his TV persona?

Greig unimpressed with wardrobe

Tamsin Greig did not rush to keep her costumes from new sitcom Friday Night Dinner.

Robert Popper on the secrets of the pig's room

New Channel 4 sitcom revolves around the tics of the Goodmans. And if you share these "familyisms" you must be related, reckons writer Robert Popper.