Great night tonight, HIGNFY and the Citizen Khan. Great comedy.

Citizen Khan is a throwback from the 1970s. The fact that it's a Kashmiri sending up stereotypes of Kashmiris doesn't make it funny or even mildly entertaining. The BBC could've saved a fortune by simply showing repeats of Curry and Chips.

Mind you, I think I understand why you enjoy it

Don't be such a bore, it's terrific.

Watched the World Cup Rugby League forum on the BBC Red Button and am currently viewing Scrum V on the same medium.

It's terrible, just awful.

Is it as bad as that Mrs Browns rhubarb?
Oh, and I miss our TV thread on here. Used to get fairly well used and it'been cr@p since it got its own thread along with films.
Bring it back home to the Sin Bin I say.

It seems on a par to me, though I couldn't stand more than 2 minutes of either of them.

Is it a toss up between Graham Norton or Alan Carr after Citizen Khan, Dally?

It's just started. Looks like being a cracker - he's fasting.

So how have you judged it is terrible? Closed mind I say.

2 minutes, plus the numerous trails on BBC, is more than adequate to tell how pathetic it (and Mrs Browns Boys) is. As codead says its a throwback to the 70's and even worse, isn't funny.
An immigrant talking in a funny voice doing stupid things? No thanks. Same goes for someone playing a woman, Les Dawson did it better.

On a similar theme, why are there no top quality sitcoms anymore? Has the writing talent dried up?

Earth, Wind, and Fire on't Jules Holland, ain't no going wrong there.

That Khan lark is utter shizzle.

Didn't think HIGNFY was on last night, thought it was the Giles Brandreth show

Lousy script and shouty over-acting.

Agreed, that twerp killed it stone dead.
How he gets a gig at all is beyond me.

I've never watched Mrs Brown's Boys ... the trailers were enough amateurish slapstick to put me right off.

Trailers put me off as well – and for [iCitizen Khan[/i too.

As for [iHIGNFY[/i, I've never quite forgiven it for the attitude toward Angus Deayton.

For years I didn't watch The Royle Family because it looked stupid when I flicked it on. When I actually watched, rather than prejudging it, I thought it was very good. Class like Citizen Khan, Mrs Browns Boys. Blankety Blank, etc have to be watched a couple of times to understand and appreciate them.

Bugger me, you'll be championing Count Arthur Strong next.

For those who may not have seen him, he's like Harry Worth with a speech impediment

Never liked Harry Worth.
Love Count Arthur Strong, especially on the radio.

And there is the strange thing for a lot of his first TV series scripts had already been done via his radio show almost word for word, compare the two and for me the radio medium wins every time, comedy isn't always visual.

Could you give us an example of a "top quality" sitcom from the past ?

I can't really think of more than a handful from the last 40 years that I would gladly watch again even with the glut of TV channels showing such programs now, off the top of my head and without any serious thought I'd pick "Sykes" as being a series of brilliantly comedic episodes being based on three genius comedy actors, I struggle to think of others though especially where "normal" actors are involved and a strong reliance on a good script becomes so important.

And anyone who mentions a Carla Lane scripted series ( I refuse to call them comedies) needs to have their brain refurbished,

Your bait has dropped off the hook.
Time to reel in and cast again.

This week's Question Time should be an interesting watch, the panel includes:

Matthew Hancock MP - Business Minister

Chris Bryant MP - Shadow Work & Pensions Minister

Jeremy Browne MP - LibDem gob[is[/ihite

Harriet Sergeant - Author & journalist

Paris Lees - Transwoman, activist & journalist

With an openly gay MP and Paris Lees on the panel, it should be enough to keep the homophobes blood pressure up. I expect letters to the Dally Wail on the promotion of non-heterosexual people

The first episode of the series was, for me, a bit shaky ... but it improved as it went on.
By the last episode it was actually quite poignant.
Good script and I can't think of any actor in it who wasn't good, especially Rory Kinnear, who was my man-of-the-match.

I can see the Harry Worth comparison on the surface but it's a bit darker and more nuanced than that.

The pismonunciation also owed much to Hylda Baker's Nellie Pledge

Used to listen on radio 4 to Count Arthur. Found it hilarious. The TV series at first, was a bit of a let down, it seemed to lose the pathos and was just plain daft but it grew on me. Hope they make another series.