Praise for 'likeable and sincere' host

The British comic allayed fears about whether American audiences would understand his style, humour or accent, by attracting a slew of early positive reviews for his first episode hosting The Late Late Show.

The CBS programme offered some changes from the usual format, with the audience much closer to the stage, a sponsored on-set bar, Corden shunning a desk for the interviews, and guests sharing the sofa, as on The Graham Norton Show, rather than coming on one at a time.

Corden even skipped the traditional gag-filled topical monologue, but instead made heartfelt introduction about what an honour the job was for someone so relatively unknown in the States.

'I promise we're going to do everything we can to put a smile on your face before – or, let's be honest, more likely whilst, you fall asleep at night,' he said at the start of the 12.35am broadcast. 'It really isn't lost on me what a privilege it is to be given a show like this and I will really do my best not to let any of you down.'

Instead of one-liners, the comedy at the start of the show came from a filmed sketch featuring the likes of Meryl Streep, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jay Leno showing him preparing for the job after winning a 'golden ticket' from CBS.

Corden scored an exclusive by apparently persuading Mila Kunis to admit she had married Ashton Kutcher (although cynics suggested that was just a stunt) and performed a comedy sketch with Tom Hanks, jokily reprising the highlights of his Hollywood career. And at the end of the show, backed by the house band led by Reggie Watts, he sang a 'sweet' song: The Late Late Show With Me.

And it all seemed to go down well with critics.

Entertainment website The Wrap said: 'Corden is a talent worth watching for his sheer likability, musical and comedy talent, and genuine love of culture, pop and otherwise. He's bending the late-night comedy show formula to fit his skill set, which given this first outing, is impressive.'

The New York Daily News commented: 'His easygoing manner fit well with his low-key banter, built more on everyday conversation than showbiz flash.'

Industry gospel Variety was a little more circumspect, calling it 'a slightly uneven premiere with moments of inspired lunacy and some clear areas for the newbie host to work on' but noted: 'Corden comes across as natural and likeable.'

Deadline Hollywood called the show 'gently' mould-breaking and said it was 'a great recovery from an inauspicious start' – after the host of the previous show, David Letterman, gave an underwhelming introduction, reading from a card: 'James is a British actor and comedian, and Tony Award winner. Well, isn't that special?'

However a couple of critics noted that the show's success will be in the long term, when producers have a day, not months, to prepare, and cannot easily coral A-listed for a glitzy opening.

With that in mind, the Hollywood Reporter refrained from publishing a full review but said: 'He's different. The glaring difference is that he comes without almost any snark, which is a modern American late-night talk show host must-have quality that was only recently spurned by Jimmy Fallon. Corden doesn't put a layer of cool between him and the viewer (or his guests) – he's as affable and sincere as Fallon with just a little less goofiness. It's a welcome trait, one that should put guests at ease.'

The show returns tonight with guests Patricia Arquette Chris Pine and Modest Mouse – and from the summer it will have a lead-in from a new-look Late Show featuring Letterman's replacement Stephen Colbert.

Published: 24 Mar 2015