Remembering Victoria Wood on her 70th birthday
Our pick of the comedy on TV, radio and on demand this week:
Sunday May 14
THE BIG FAT QUIZ OF SPORT: Roisin Conaty, Judi Love, Joel Dommett, Dane Baptiste, Kerry Godliman and Tom Allen answer the questions posed by Jimmy Carr. Chanel 4, 9pm
A NIGHT IN CASABLANCA: The 1946 Marx Brothers comedy was a later outing for the siblings, which saw them come out of retirement for a production originally planned as a spoof of the Humphrey Bogart classic. Here, Groucho is the new manager of the Hotel Casablanca who ends up taking on the Nazis alongside Harpo and Chico. Talking Pictures TV, 3pm
Monday May 15
HAPLESS: A second series of the British comedy lands on Amazon’s Prime Video. It stars Tim Downie as Paul Green a truth-seeking poorly paid journalist for a fictitious Jewish publication, Jeany Spark plays Naomi his super-sweary single-mum sister, Mike Fenton Stevens their playful Dad and Josh Howie as Paul’s geeky best friend. Guest stars over the series include Ronni Ancona, Linda Robson and Sally Phillips. Writer and director Gary Sinyor, writer, and director said: ‘What we’ve tried to do is make laugh-out-loud comedy that addresses the confusions of our society. It’s a world that stand-up comedians take on, but recent sitcoms seem to steer clear of.’
JUST A MINUTE: Paul Merton, Felicity Ward, Ivo Graham and Josie Lawrence take on the challenges to speak for 60 seconds, set by Sue Perkins. Radio 4 6:30pm
ALEXEI SAYLE'S IMAGINARY SANDWICH BAR: The alternative comedy godfather’s mix of stand-up, memoir and philosophy comes to Radio 4 Extra, seven years after it was first broadcast on Radio 4. Radio 4 Extra, 7:30am
Wednesday May 17
VICTORIA WOOD - FROM SOUP TO NUTS: Radio 4 Extra marks 70 since the birth of one the comedian on May 19, 1953, by repeating this look at her stand-up and songs built on rare material from Wood’s archives and tapes, including never-heard-before material. Radio 4 Extra, 8.30pm
Thursday May 18
INSIDE NO 9: It’s the On The Buses episode, with Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith as Wolfie and Clarke, who love their bus - but perhaps not as much as the mysterious Mr Cole and his dolly-bird nieces. And it 1970s comedy star Robin Askwith guests.
30 ROCK: It’s been on Amazon Freevee for a while but now Tina Fey’s excellent comedy, in which she plays quirky TV writer Liz Lemon, comes to ITVX. Alex Baldwin is conservative company executive Jack Donaghy, and Tracy Morgan and Jane Krakowsk are the stars of the Saturday Night Live-style comedy show she’s trying to keep on track.
VICTORIA WOOD IN GREAT LIVES: Daniel Rigby, who played Eric Morecambe with Victoria as his mum in a TV drama, nominates the comedy icon for acclaim in this repeat to celebrate what would have been Wood’s 70th birthday Radio 4 Extra, 8.30pm
Friday May 19
HAVE I GOT NEWS FOR YOU: Fresh from her Eurovision triumph, Mel Giedroyc guest hosts for the fifth time. Comedian Chris McCausland and broadcaster Kirsty Wark, are the panelists alongside Paul Merton and Ian Hislop. BBC One, 9pm.
THE CHRIS AND ROSIE RAMSEY SHOW: Bickering father and son Michael and Jack Whitehall are the guests this week. BBC One, 10.40pm
VICTORIA WOOD’S ALL DAY BREAKFAST: This comedy special, first broadcast on Christmas Day 1992, was largely a parody of British daytime TV shows with sketches linked by Duncan Preston and Victoria Wood as husband-and-wife presenters Martin Cumbernauld and Sally Crossthwaite. Gold, 9.40pm
THE NEWS QUIZ: Andy Zaltzman is joined by Kiri Pritchard-McLean, Geoff Norcott and others Radio 4, 6.30pm
DMs ARE OPEN: Radio 4 Extra’s open door sketch comedy show returns with hosts Ali Official and Athena Kugblenu. For series 2, the show loses its topical brief and invites anyone to submit sketches and one-liners based around a changing weekly theme. Click here to learn about the submissions process. Radio 4 Extar, 10.30pm
Saturday May 20
POINTLESS CELEBRITIES: Comics Chris McCausland and Sarah Keyworth are among the competitors. BBC One, 7.35pm
Published: 14 May 2023