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

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

Sunday  December 31

ALAN CARR'S NEW YEAR SPECSTACULAR 2017: The comic sees in the new year with the aid of guests including Keith Lemon, Caroline Flack, Alex Brooker, Binky Felstead, Tom Davis, Charlotte Dawson and Kim Woodburn.Channel 4, 9pm

THE ARTS HOUR INTERNATIONAL NEW YEAR COMEDY CELEBRATION: Hopefully this World Service show will be snappier than its title. The International Stand-Up showcased are:  Daliso Chaponda (Malawi) introduces Luisa Omielan (English with Polish parents), Yuriko Kotani (Japanese), Radu Isac (Romanian), Sindhu Vee (Indian), Njambi McGrath (Kenyan), and Orlando Baxter (African-American). World Service, 3pm.

ONE MINUTE PLEASE: As part of the celebrations of marking half a century of Just A Minute, Radio 4 Extra is airing this 1952 forerunner to the long-running show, also invented by Ian Messiter. It features teams of three male and three female celebrities, hosted by Desert Island Discs' Roy Plomley, and a jury. There were also various passwords which the competitors didn't know, but would gain extra points if mentioned. In this episode the players are Gerard Hoffnung, Eric Sykes, Margot Holden, Martina Mayne, Violetta Farjeon and Jack Train. Radio 4 Extra, 8.30am.

Monday January 1

50 YEARS OF JUST A MINUTE: Paul Merton IN CONVERSATION WITH Nicholas Parsons: The most prolific modern player chats to the man who has presided over almost 900 episodes of the panel game over the last half-century. Not just about Just A Minute but about a career in showbusiness that has spanned more than seven decades. Radio 4, 6.15pm

GRANDPA'S GREAT ESCAPE: David Williams stars in an adaptation of another of his children's books – this one about an Alzheimer's suffered who, with his grandson Jack, tries to escape his old folks' home and relive his past, getting into the cockpit of a Spitfire again. The one-off also stars Tom Courtenay, Jennifer Saunders, Samantha Spiro and Michele Dotrice. Williams speaks about the show here. BBC One, 6.55pm

Tuesday January 2

INSIDE No 9: Straight off the back of the League Of Gentlemen comeback, Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith's darkly comic anthology returns. The first episode is set in London's Hotel Zanzibar and features a cast of familiar names including Rory Kinnear, Bill Paterson, Kevin Eldon, Tanya Franks and Marcia Warren. BBC Two, 10pm

HARRY HILL'S TEA TIME:Broadcasting legend Sir Trevor McDonald is first to brave the bedlam as Harry's spoof cookery show returns for a second series. Sky One, 8.30pm

TROLLIED:  Sally Phillips joins Sky's sitcom as the scatty new night manager as the supermarket moves to 24-hour opening. Sky One, 10pm

Thursday January 4

DERRY GIRLS: A new six-part comedy from acclaimed writer Lisa McGee who mines her own experiences to create a 1990s family-centred comedy set against The Troubles in Northern Ireland. She speaks about the show here, while Tommy Tiernan, one of its stars, has his say here. Channel 4, 10pm

JOHN FINNEMORE'S SOUVENIR PROGRAMME: The  seventh series of  the acclaimed, sardonic sketch show kicks off, with cohorts Margaret Cabourn-Smith, Simon Kane, Lawry Lewin and Carrie Quinlan. Radio 4, 6.30pm

Friday January 5

WILL & GRACE: About three months after the US, the revived Will & Grace comes to the UK.  Debra Messing, Eric McCormack, Karen Mullally, and Sean Hayes all revive their roles in a show that feels like it's never been away, picking up in exactly the same manner which made it such a hit. Channel 5, 10pm

THE NEWS QUIZ: Is back for its - gulp! - 95th series with Jeremy Hardy, Andy Hamilton, Susan Calman and Hugo Rifkind being ever-so-lightly grilled on the events of the past seven days by Miles Jupp. Radio 4, 6.30pm/>/p>

Published: 31 Dec 2017