The week's best comedy on TV and radio

The best of the week’s comedy on TV, radio and on demand. Note schedules may be subject to change depending on coverage of the aftermath of the Queen’s death.

Monday September 12

QUESTION TEAM: Richard Ayoade hosts a new series of the game show in which each contestant brings along their own round. Episode one features Jo Brand, Thanyia Moore, Josh Pugh and special guest Bill Bailey. Dave, 10pm

BRITAIN’S GREATEST OBSESSIONS: In each episode of this new series, a different host picks their favourite national preoccupation. It starts with Harry Hill exploring why the British think they have a better sense of humour than anyone else in the world, and in particular, the Germans. Sky History, 9pm

DON'T HUG ME I'M SCARED This bizarre and unsettling comedy-horror puppet show has been described as ‘The Muppet Show relocated to Twin Peaks’. It started life as a YouTube phenomenon. Now 11 years and a quarter of a billion views later, main characters Red Guy, Yellow Guy and Duck have come to All4 on demand.

RICHARD OSMAN’S HOUSE OF GAMES: Comedian Rob Deering is one of the contestants this week, alongside Katya Jones, Phil Tufnell and Jayne Middlemiss. BBC Two, 6pm

MARK STEEL’S IN TOWN: The comic visits Salisbury in Wiltshire and performs for a local audience. BBC Radio 4, 6.30pm

Tuesday September 13

JO KOY: LIVE FROM THE LOS ANGELES FORUM: The American stand-up tackles public sneezing, perseverance, the indignities of sleep apnoea and getting lost in the Philippines in this new Netflix special.

ROSIE JONES' TRIP HAZARD: In this episode, Rosie takes rapper Lady Leshurr to Northamptonshire, where she's arranged to abseil down the 418ft National Lift Tower, despite Leshurr being afraid of heights. Before that, they take a flight in a microlight, crash an 'anti-gravity' yoga class, and Rosie drives a car for the first time at Silverstone racetrack. Channel 4, 10.30pm

Wednesday September 14

NEVER MIND THE BUZZCOCKS: The music panel show returns for a second series with host Greg Davies, team captains Daisy May Cooper and Noel Fielding, and regular Jamali Maddix. Episode one’s guests are Nile Rodgers, Russell Howard and singer-songwriter Mae Muller. Sky Max, 9pm

Friday September 16

AM I BEING UNREASONABLE? This new twisted comedy thriller about obsessive friendship, maternal paranoia and a dead cat has been written by This Country’s Daisy May Cooper and her real-life best friend Selin Hizli - both of whom star. Nic (Cooper) is grieving a loss that she can’t share with anyone and is unfulfilled in her marriage. Only her son Ollie (Lenny Rush), who she adores, keeps her going. But when Jen (Hizli) arrives in town her life is lit up with laughter and through this kindred soul her dark secret starts to bubble up. The creators talk about the show here.

STEWART LEE: TORNADO Postponed from Sunday as the BBC tears up its schedules following the Queen’s death, this is the second part of the acclaimed comic’s last tour, filmed at the Theatre Royal in York. In it, Lee considers his place in the comedy firmament after Netflix described his Comedy Vehicle thus: ‘’Reports of sharks falling from the sky are on the rise again, and no one on the Eastern Seaboard is safe.’ And did not correct it for two years. This special describes how he tries to become friends with other stand-ups, receives a puzzlingly positive review from Alan Bennett, and encounters Dave Chappelle's security detail. BBC Two, 11/45pm

HAVE I GOT NEWS FOR YOU: German comic Henning Wehn is due to be one of the guests this week, with Labour MP Jess Phillips in the chair and former Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson on the facing team. BBC One, 9pm

THE LAST LEG: Guests are David Harewood and Judi Love. Channel 4, 10pm

CROWDSCIENCE: This BBC World Service show this week looks at the neuroscience and social science of laughter. Why is it that if you watch a comedian on TV by yourself you’ll laugh a lot less than if you were sat in a lively comedy crowd watching the same comic in the flesh Presenter Caroline Stee linvestigates whether it’s our personality, the people around us, or the atmosphere of the room that determines how much we giggle. BBC World Service, 8.30pm

DETECTORISTS: The Drama channel reruns series one of the delightful comedy featuring Mackenzie Crook and Toby Jones as members of the Danbury Metal Detecting Club. Drama, 9pm

JAMES ACASTER’S PERFECT SOUNDS: Making its Radio 4 Extra debut is the second series of this previously-released podcast in which the comedian is determined to convince his guests that 2016 is the greatest year for music, ever. Ahir Shah joins him in this first episode. Radio 4 Extra, 11.30pm

Published: 11 Sep 2022