Johnny Vegas interview

Why Johnny Vegas is loving being back in the family-friendly series Still Open All Hours.

Still Open All Hours preview

Still Open All Hours is one of the best comedies the BBC have at the moment, so if they have any sense they'll hang onto it for a while longer.

Still Open All Hours preview

Many people complain that reviving such sitcoms shows a lack of imagination on the half of TV commissioners. I would argue that if this show can still pull in the viewers, modern comedy writers need to up their game in order to attract people's attention.

David Jason on Open All Hours: 'It was very emotional'

"The feedback from our Christmas special has been so rewarding and encouraging. It goes to prove that the corner shop is still open all hours."

Pics: David Jason and Tim Healy film wedding scenes

David Jason and his Still Open All Hours castmates have been spotted filming wedding scenes in Doncaster ahead of the sitcom's revival.

Pics: David Jason & Johnny Vegas filming Open All Hours

Sir David Jason and Johnny Vegas larked around on set as they began filming a new series of Still Open All Hours, the sequel to the much-loved BBC sitcom Open All Hours.

To me, the main problem with Still Open All Hours was that little attempt was made to modernise the show for a 21st century audience. Whilst there's nothing wrong with having a traditional sitcom like this on the TV, it did feel that Roy Clarke used the majority of an old script that he had lying around and just changed the names to suit the new characters.

Even the contemporary character of Leroy feels dated, with the jokes about him wearing sunglasses indoors feeling incredibly clichéd. Though I understand why Still Open All Hours needed a nostalgic touch, I think Clarke would've been best hiring a younger co-writer who would've helped update the show so it didn't feel like it was stuck in the past. Indeed if the show was to receive a new series, and judging from the ratings then that's a real possibility, I would hope that a new writer would be brought on board to assist Clarke.

While nostalgia may work for a one-off special, I feel a full series of episodes such as this one wouldn't work and would instead be a massive flop. But I for one would leave things as they were and have Still Open All Hours simply be a one-off special rather than a pilot for a whole new run which would probably tarnish the legacy of one of our country's best sitcoms.

Still Open All Hours review

Still Open All Hours wasn't quite the car crash I anticipated but neither was it the triumphant return to form that I think Roy Clarke and David Jason imagined it to be.