But John Cleese's sitcom return divides critics

John Cleese’s first sitcom since Fawlty Towers has been a ratings hit.

Hold the Sunset, which launched on BBC One last night, hit a peak audience of 7.2 million.

The average was 6.2million, with a 29.1 per cent audience share – making this the most successful comedy launch on BBC One since Still Open All Hours series 1 launched in 2014.   

Shane Allen, the BBC's controller of comedy commissioning said: ‘This is a superb launch for a show that is awash with comedy acting royalty and cements the BBC’s unique ongoing commitment to delivering mainstream popular comedy on BBC One.'

But the show, which aired at 7.30pm, divided the critics, with opinion apparently split along age lines.

The Daily Telegraph and The Daily Mail, which have an older readership, both gave the BBC One sitcom a four-star review. But online outlets were less kind.

The Telegraph was most fulsome in its praise, saying: ‘This was one of those wonderful programmes about everything and nothing – love, getting on with getting on, and simply taking a deep breath and adjusting as best you can when things don’t quite turn out the way you’d hoped.’

In the Mail, Christopher Stevens praised the deft set-up of the ‘old-fashioned sitcom’… though acknowledged: ‘It remains to be seen whether audiences still have an appetite for laboured slapstick where ageing men get into scrapes and women cluck over them.’

And Saga magazine, aimed at the over-50s, said: ’It is rather lovely. It’s wry, and gentle, and old fashioned. It is warm and affectionate and optimistic.’

Scottish-based The List awarded the comedy three stars and damned with faint praise such as ‘ mildly enjoyable’  and ‘cosy Sunday evening sitcom’.

In a two-star review, The Arts Desk website declared the show ‘a weary exhumation of sitcom’s more incontinent old tropes’ that indicated ‘ the suburban family sitcom is as dead as a well-known parrot’… but sighed: ‘Probably it will be a massive hit.’

The Glasgow Herald also awarded just two stars, saying: ‘Between the sitcom cliches, including jaunty music and folk forever bursting through the back door, characters did things they only ever do in TV comedies.’

And here at Chortle we were unimpressed with a ‘tepid script and an unlikeable undertone’.

Twitter was generally not kind.

Jeff Leppard tweeted: ‘When Frankie Howerd said 'Titter Ye Not' he was clearly on about the new @BBCOne sitcom #holdthesunset.’

Jen Farrow said: ‘Oh my goodness what cringeworthy tv, such a shame to see comedy greats in this utter tripe’

And Andy Mabbett said: ‘Good to see that John Cleese is trying something new. Y'know, instead of sticking to comedy.’

But the sitcom did find some fans online. Bernadette Horton posted: ‘I loved #HoldTheSunset and the quality cast of @JohnCleese @Jason__Watkins @PeterEgan6 and Alison Steadman a joy. With sons at Uni I had a dejavue Of 15 years from now if I’m not careful!’

And a viewer with the handle @BarnsleyEmma122 said: ‘Absolutely fantastic to see the utterly brilliant @JohnCleese back on our TV screens. A lovely comedy and Alison Steadman and @Jason__Watkins make it even better. It had me at the theme tune, I love that song! ‘

Published: 19 Feb 2018