'Too middle-class and too many panel shows'

BBC comedies are not striking a chord with viewers, a major performance review has found.

The Corporation's governing body, the BBC Trust, involved 'extensive audience research' to find how each of its TV channels were delivering quality and value for money.

And it its conclusion, the review said: 'Drama series and specialist factual programming, for example, often gain the highest scores, while entertainment, comedy and soaps tend to achieve lower scores.'

The report said that in comedy there is a perceived dominance of panel shows and a lack of fresh comedy: 'Many audiences pointed out the high volume of comedy panel shows, with some of them described as "tired" in terms of the format, talent and style of humour, and even newer shows tending to often feel derivative,' the report said. 'People pointed to a lack of fresh sitcoms that cater to the whole family, while remembering a wealth of popular British shows from previous eras.'

It added: 'There were also comments amongst lower social grade audiences that BBC One comedy, with the exception of Mrs Brown’s Boys, could feel quite "middle class" in focus and target audience (with Miranda cited as an example of this).'

However, certain shows have been singled out for praise, including BBC Two's Twenty Twelve and James Corden and Mathew Baynton's comedy-thriller The Wrong, which achieved high 'appreciation index' ratings.

The research found many BBC One viewers were positive about the originality of the channel, including – comedy purists might be horrified to hear – Mrs Brown’s Boys.

And while BBC Three faced some criticism, the trustees said: 'Its acquired entertainment and comedy (such as Family Guy and American Dad) are popular and highly appreciated.' And it found that audiences did appreciate its work showcasing original content, such as Him And Her and Live At The Electric.

Meanwhile Jack Whitehall's Bad Education was cited as a good example of a programme commissioned for one BBC channel being successfully repeated on another, as late-night BBC One repeats of the show originally made for BBC Three attracted audiences of a million.

Published: 17 Jul 2014