The best of the week's comedy on TV and radio

The week's best comedy on TV and radio:

Sunday April 26

REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL WITH Matt Lucas: The king of lockdown celebrates what people are doing while stuck at home in this new six-part series, written by Harry Hill. Special guests appearing on the first episode include Suzi Ruffell, Krishnan Guru-Murthy, Basil Brush – and lots of non-famous folk. Channel 4, 7.30pm

Monday April 27

BLITHE SPIRIT: It’s just been in the West End with Jennifer Saunders, and is about the be a movie with Dame Judi Dench. But here’s the original 1945 David Lean film with Margaret Rutherford as the batty psychic. She played the role in the 1941 Noel Coward play, too, and co-stars in this comedy classic alongside Rex Harrison and Constance Cummings. Talking Pictures TV, 3pm

GOLDEN GIRLS: Channel 5 is to air all 180 episodes of the fondly-remembered comedy from the beginning, every weekday lunchtime. The US sitcom, which starred Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan and Estelle Getty as four older women living together in Maimi, ran for seven seasons between 1985 and 1992 and attracted 30 million viewers at its peak. And here’s where all started. Channel 5,12.45pm

Wednesday April 29

CODE 404: Stephen Graham, Daniel Mays and Anna Maxwell Martin star in this new comedy about policeman John Major who was killed in the line of duty. But thanks to some Robocob/Steve Austin-style tech, he is brought back from the dead as part of an experimental artificial intelligence project. But it doesn’t quite work out as planned and he’s left, as the blurb, says ‘a few quid short of six million dollars’. Sky One, 10pm

QUANDERHORN 2: James Fleet is back as Professor Quanderhorn in this sci-fi comedy from Red Dwarf co-creator Rob Grant and 2point4 Children writer Andrew Marshall. In the first episode of the new series, the mercurial genius creates a time-loop trapping everyone in 1952… Radio 4, 6.30pm

Friday May 1

10 YEARS OF MACH FEST: It should have been the Machynlleth Comedy Festival this weekend. But in the absence of the much-loved event, BBC Radio Wales features comedians recalling their favourite memories including Stewart Lee, Bridget Christie, Rhod Gilbert, Josh Widdicombe and James Acaster. BBC Radio Wales, 6.30pm

Saturday May 2

WE’RE DOOMED: THE DAD’S ARMY STORY: A welcome repeat screening for this fascinating and entertaining look at how Britain’s most enduring sitcom came to the screen - and almost didn’t. BBC Two, 6pm

Published: 26 Apr 2020