Chris Addison’s new sitcom got off to a respectable start on BBC Two last night.

The first episode of Lab Rats started with 1.7million viewers, but lost 200,000 over the half-hour it was on air.

However, the figures are in line with BBC2’s average audience for the 9.30pm slot.

Reviews of the old-fashioned gag-heavy sitcom were mixed. The Guardian said: ‘This particular experiment can only be deemed a failure,’ while the Independent bemoaned the studio laugher but added the plot was ‘pleasantly absurdist’.

But the Mirror said: ‘Childishly inventive and frequently just silly, it’s not a bad first impression’, while the Daily Telegraph called it ‘a catalytic reaction of Red Dwarf and The IT Crowd, in a solution of Are You Being Served? And it’s not a bad formula.’

Preceding Lab Rats, the return of Mock The Week performed better in the ratings, attracting a healthy 2.6 million viewers, or 12.4 per cent of the total audience.

And over on BBC Three, the opening episode of Touch Me, I'm Karen Taylor averaged a very respectable 444,000 viewers – up slightly on the debut of the first series last year, and the biggest audience it has ever attracted.