24 April 2012

There’s nothing quite like the English weather, or the English sense of humour come to think of it. And while we can’t guarantee a glorious summer this year, we can promise a scorching season of brand new comedy on Sky Atlantic HD, from some of the funniest Brits around.

BAFTA® nominated writer and actress Julia Davis makes a welcome return to the screen with Hunderby. After her award-winning Nighty Night, she’s back as Dorothy, the obsessive housekeeper to puritanical pastor (Alex MacQueen) in an 1800s English village, watching over the pastor’s new mysterious bride, a shipwreck survivor Helene (Alexandre Roach). Sharp and dark, this Gothic treat features stalwarts of spiky comedy, Kevin Eldon and Alexander Armstrong. And in addition to numerous fiends, hunchbacks, maids, wastrels and crones, it also features an adorable puppy called Susan.

Master of the dead pan, Jack Dee, will be presenting Don’t Sit in the Front Row. Created by two former producers of Have I Got News For You, this is a show with no teams, no quiz, and a group of top comedians who have no idea about their subject matter. And the subject matter? The five audience members who’v e been selected to sit in the front row, and are formally known as the Front Rowers.  It’s these five willing stooges and their history who provide the panel’s material. With eliminations at the end of each round, the remaining Front Rower is awarded the Golden Chair Award, having been the source of the most comic inspiration. Think of it as anecdotal jousting.

For everyone who loved The Thick of It, Armando Iannucci has gone stateside with Veep. Swapping Whitehall for the White House, it stars Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Sienfeld, pictured) as Vice-President Selina Meyer, and offers a less-than-sunny look at the backstage reality of political America. As always with Iannucci, it packs in the jokes as well as the smart stuff. 

And for those who like more silver lining than cloud, there’s Russell Brand’s new show, Strangely Uplifting. Unscripted and filmed in front of a live studio audience, it promises a positive outlook, with a definite chance of thunderous applause.