Mark Steel is back in town

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

Our pick of the comedy on TV, radio and streaming this week…:

Monday June 24

MARK STEEL’S IN TOWN: The comic returns to Radio 4 after his cancer treatment with a 13th series of his award-winning show where he creates a bespoke stand-up performance for the places he visits. He kicks off in Margate in Kent, where TS Eliot wrote a verse of The Wasteland, JMW Turner painted views of the Harbour, Tracy Emin spent her formative years and Pete Doherty has his name on a wall of fame in a cafe for eating a ‘mega breakfast’ in under 20 minutes. In later episodes he visits Stoke on Trent, Malvern, East Grinstead and Coleraine in Northern Ireland. There will also be extended versions of each episode available on BBC Sounds. Radio 4, 6.30pm

Thursday June 27

Douglas is cancelled

DOUGLAS IS CANCELLED: This four-part comedy-drama features Hugh Bonneville as Douglas, a veteran TV anchorman threatened with cancellation after he makes a sexist joke at a wedding. Karen Gillan co-stats as Madeleine – Douglas’s co-host who possibly has a crush on him… but might also be behind the Twitter storm enveloping him. It has been written by former Doctor Who show runner Steven Moffat and also features Ben Miles, Alex Kingston, Nick Mohammed, Simon Russell Beale and Joe Wilkinson. ITV1, 9pm, with all epsiodes then streamed on ITVX

PAUL WHITEHOUSE’S SKETCH SHOW YEARS: Curated and narrated by the Fast Show star, this takes viewers on a journey through the now neglected genre of sketch shows, with each episode covering a different decade. Today it’s the 1970s, though not before going back to the music hall roots with performances from the likes of Tommy Handley who influenced Whitehouse’s Arthur Atkinson character. Then we have Monty Python - including remastered material shown for the very first time, Dick Emery, Benny Hill, The Two Ronnies and The Goodies. Read an interview with Whitehouse about the show here. Gold, 10pm

Saturday June 29

GAVIN & STACEY: Dave repeats James Corden and Ruth Jones’s sitcom from the very beginning. Dave, 7.20pm

HUNTING VENUS: This largely forgotten one-off TV film from 1999 stars Men Behaving Badly's Martin Clunes (above) and Neil Morrissey as former members of a 1980s new romantic pop group Co-starring Jane Horrocks, it eatures cameos from a number of musicians ncluding Simon Le Bon (with his wife Yasmin Le Bon), Tony Hadley, Gary Numan, Phil Oakey and Jools Holland.Talking Pictures TV, 9.05pm

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Published: 23 Jun 2024