The week's best comedy on TV, radio and streaming

The best of the week’s comedy on TV, radio and on demand…

Monday December 26

DETECTORISTS: Mackenzie Crook and Toby Jones are back after five years – and for a feature-length special as the Danebury metal detecting club is facing a threat to its very existence, desperately needing funding to keep hold of their meeting place, the town's scout hut. The BBC blurb teases ‘a shocking break in protocol’ that ‘sends the situation spiralling farther out of control, with a growing risk that Lance and Andy's friendship could go down with their beloved club. BBC Two, 9pm 

BIG FAT QUIZ OF THE YEAR 2022: Question master Jimmy Carr is joined by Stephen Merchant, Katherine Ryan, Richard Ayoade, Maisie Adam, Jonathan Ross and Rose Matafeo. Channel 4, 9pm

RICHARD OSMAN'S HOUSE OF GAMES: Phil Wang is among the contestants in this second week of festive challenges, alongside Brian Conley, Scarlett Moffatt and Anneka Rice BBC Two, 7.30pm.

CHRISTMAS UNIVERSITY CHALLENGE: Stand-up Ria Lina joins the UCL team as they take on the University of Aberdeen in a festive version of the Jeremy Paxman-fronted quiz. The comic got a PhD in viral bioinformatics from the London college, having previously got a BSc in experimental pathology from St. Andrews and a masters in forensic science from London Southbank. BBC Two, 8.30pm

VIR DAS: LANDED: The Indian comic’s fourth Netflix stand-up special lands today, described as ‘a show about freedom, foolishness, the west, the east, and what it means to be a citizen of one nation in a global world’.

JUST A MINUTE: The long-running Radio 4 national treasure of a parlour game is back for a new series with subjects this week ranging from Boxing Day sales to rival towns. Sue Perkins keeps order as Jennifer Saunders, Paul Merton, Anna Maxwell Martin and Julian Clary play the game. Radio 4, 6.30pm

Tuesday December 27

THE LATEISH SHOW WITH Mo Gilligan: CHRISTMAS SPECIAL: The comic is joined by fellow stand-up Jason Manford, father-and-daughter duo Danny and Dani Dyer, singer and presenter Marvin Humes, comedian Sophie Willan, actor Samson Kayo and house band The Compozers. Channel 4, 10pm

CHELSEA HANDLER: REVOLUTION: In her new Netflix special, the comic takes on rowdy rescue dogs, dating frustrations and why society owes women an apology

Wednesday December 28

JON & LUCY'S PARTY OF THE YEAR: Jon Richardson and Lucy Beaumont are hosting a Christmas getaway with Romesh Ranganathan, Judi Love and Tom Allen as they look back at the year gone by. Features include including a Lioness doing Tik-Toks, a late-night swim for chipolatas and Jon strapped to a giant wheel… Channel 4, 10pm

BEST YEAR EVER: Start of a new four-part nostalgia clip show in which talking heads argue for the merits of 1978, 1982, 1994 and 2000. Contributors include Jenny Eclair, John Thomson, Angela Barnes, Shazia Mirza, Kojo Anim and Patrick Monahan. More 4, 9pm

Thursday December 29

TRAVEL MAN CHRISTMAS SPECIAL: Joe Lycett goes to Rio with Stephen Mangan where they try paragliding, the foot/volleyball hybrid Futevoli – and samba. Channel 4, 8pm

PRINCE ANDREW: THE MUSICAL: Kieran Hodgson wrote and stars in this all-singing, all-dancing satirical biopic charting the rise and fall of the Duke of York, which features an impressive cast of comic talent, including Munya Chawawa, Jenny Bede, Harry Enfield, Emma Sidi, Joe Wilkinson and Baga Chipz. The Royal’s downfall gets a West End-style treatment, as Andrew goes from 1980s war hero to present-day royal outcast… Channel 4, 9pm

Friday December 30

JASON MANFORD'S RECENT NOSTALGIA: A live recording of the comic's 2022 stand-up tour - called Like Me when it played theatres - recorded in front of a full house at Sheffield’s City Hall. And it ends with those entertaining school assembly ‘bangers’... BBC One, 10.30pm

CELEBRITY CHRISTMAS HELL: Johnny Vegas narrates as celebrity families open their doors to share their Christmas secrets, including Joel Dommett and wife Hannah, Katherine Ryan and husband Bobby, and husband and wife Michael and Hilary Whitehall. Channel 4, 10.15pm

THE NEWS QUIZ: Andy Zaltzman takes a look back on some of the best bits of News Quizzing from 2022. Radio 4, 6.15pm

Saturday December 31

LAST LEG OF THE YEAR: Guests joininh Adam Hills, Josh Widdicombe and Alex Brooker inlcude Sue Perkins, Tom Davis, Desiree Burch and Mike Wozniak to take a satirical look back at the past year. Channel 4, 9pm

ADAM HILLS: CLOWN HEART: It’s followed by Hills’ 2017 stand-up special, filmed at the  Hammersmith Apollo in London and featuring the comic  laughing in the face of disaster and 'kicking cancer in the dick’. Channel 4, 11pm

THE ARTS HOUR NEW YEAR INTERNATIONAL COMEDY SPECIAL: This year's World Service stand-up showcase is compered by South African comedian Tumi Morake with a line-up that includes Uganda's Cotilda, indigenous Australian comic Dane Simpson, Italy's Luca Cupani and Britain's Lauren Pattison. BBC World Service, 8pm

THE GRAHAM NORTON SHOW: Romesh Ranganathan, Olivia Colman, and Hugh Laurie are on the sofa as midnight approaches… BBC One 10.30pm

Published: 26 Dec 2022