From the – no doubt currently jubilant – production company behind The Inbetweeners comes this new sitcom about ‘the world’s worst brother and sister’: Hannah (Charlotte Ritchie, Fresh Meat) and Dan (Tom Stourton, Common Ground).
Over the course of the six episodes that make up this first series, we will see Hannah and Dan expose, often unwillingly, their selfishness, idiocy and general ineptitude as they muddle through life with seldom much effort at all. The first instalment served up pretty predictable sitcom fodder, with Hannah trying to impress her new boss (but, unlike in most sitcoms, actually managing it pretty well for a while) and involving her brother, who agrees to pretend to be disabled in order to portray his sister as a caring person with a difficult home life.
As I said, this is typical sitcom fodder – and even the seemingly novel plot of a character posing as someone in a wheelchair, leading to a very awkward social situation or two, will be familiar to fans of shows like Not Going Out, The IT Crowd and Seinfeld. This barely matters, however, as what writers Keith Akushie and Daran Johnson lacked in originality, they made up for in gags. Admittedly, Siblings only really hit its stride, joke-wise, about half way through the first episode, but once it did it was quite a joy, and Dan and Hannah were instantly likeable; he’s incompetent, and she’s only mildly competent, with an abundance of incompetence always threatening to burst out – and sometimes doing so. Their incompetence, laziness and slight depravity make them nothing particularly new on the sitcom scene but they do are potentially hilarious characters, and although this potential was only partially realised in tonight’s opening episode, I have no doubt that the more time we spend with Hannah and Dan, the more we’ll love them and the funnier we’ll find them.
So, Siblings may not have thrown up anything excitingly original but it did provide a good thirty minutes of the sort of enjoyable, cringe-worthy and often bawdy comedy that leaves the audience in no doubt that it’s the work of Bwark Productions. I’d say it’s been a pretty good week for them, wouldn’t you?
Image thanks to: BBC; Bwark; and Ed Miller – ©Bwark
Siblings is on Thursdays at 10:30pm on BBC3
What did you think of Siblings? Do you agree or disagree with my review? Please comment below or tweet me – @UKTVReviewer
a haemophobic doctor who, having quit his job as a surgeon in London, relocates to Cornish village, Portwenn and struggles to tone down his stubbornness and improve his people skills to fit in with the close-knit way of life. Running throughout the six series, which we have enjoyed since 2004, has been the will-they-won’t-they relationship between Martin and local headmistress, Louisa Glasson. It took them three series to even go on a date, Martin called off their wedding in 2009 and then in the last minute of the show’s returning episode in 2011, Louisa revealed that she was pregnant! So, with baby James bringing them closer than ever, Martin and Louisa finally made it down the aisle in the sixth series last year. In true Doc Martin style though, even the wedding was plagued by complications: Louisa was late, the couple had a tiff at the reception and the villagers’ gift of a honeymoon resulted in a shotgun being pointed at the newlyweds by a madman whose life Martin eventually saved when a caravan collapsed onto him. ‘Twas quite an episode!
with his mother, Isobel, sparks flew as he was reluctant to marry one of the Crawley daughters and be the new air of the Abbey. However, when he saw Lady Mary, he instantly fell in love with her – it’s just a shame that she didn’t feel the same, as she displayed open hostility towards the twenty-something solicitor. The Dowager Countess felt quite the same about Isobel – and while the two women continue to be acerbic with one another four years on, Matthew and Mary thankfully got together, with the unlikely kiss that was nominated as Best Drama Moment.
sometimes temporarily, sometimes permanently. An example of the latter occurred in October 2012 when, during the third series of the show, almost twelve million viewers mourned the death of feisty Feminist, Lady Sybil. Having qualified as a nurse and married Irish chauffeur, Tom Branson, in late 1919, Sybil found herself pregnant – but sadly died during childbirth, making that episode one of the most poignant and best-written of the four series.
attracted and intrigued millions of viewers with the cases that down-to-earth cop Ronnie Brooks comes across. The moment that finds Law & Order: UK in the poll is from the final episode of the fifth series, in which Ronnie attempted to save his colleague and surrogate son, Matt Devlin after he was shot twice by a masked gunman. In a gripping and emotional scene, Ronnie ran to the ailing Matt and placed his coat over him in a desperate attempt to stop the bleeding, before the screen faded to black. It would be almost five months until British viewers discovered whether Matt lived or died.
tribulations that Harry Gordon Selfridge faced when he came to London to create his now famous Oxford Street store. Having had success in Chicago with his transformation of the department store, Marshall Field’s, Selfridge came to England in an attempt to do the same, but unfortunately his business partner pulled out at the last minute. Undeterred, Selfridge soldiered on, recruited the help of Lady Mae Loxley and saw his store built in record time. Of course, many other obstacles would stand in Harry’s way over the coming months and years but this moment, when Selfridges opened for the first time, was a truly great one.
alternative look at the infamous Great Train Robbery. Told from the perspective of Ronnie Biggs’s wife, Charmian (who helped writer Jeff Pope with some of the scripts), the series saw Daniel Mays nominated for a National Television Award, while Sheridan Smith was recognised by not only the NTAs but also BAFTA and the Royal Television Society. The use of Biggs’s wife to tell the story of the raid was ingenious and offered an insight into her trauma and turmoil that much of the nation had previously not considered. Whereas it could not match the impeccable timing of the BBC’s The Great Train Robbery last year (the first episode of which aired on the same day as Ronnie Biggs’s death), Mrs Biggs was a truly great drama which provided numerous memorable moments.
Belgian detective Hercule Poirot solved his last-ever case. Entitled ‘Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case’, this final instalment saw the immobilised sleuth and his old friend Captain Hastings return to their first case in order to prevent a looming murder. In Styles Court, where the pair first met thirty years ago, Hastings acted as Poirot’s eyes and ears, attempting to uncover, from a long list of possibilities, the killer in their midst. It was a gripping conclusion to the story of Hercule Poirot and more than satisfied the super-sleuth’s fans, even delivering the twist in the tale to which they had become so accustomed. Incidentally, ‘Curtain: Poirot’s Final Case’ will be the first programme shown on ITV Encore at 7:00pm tonight.
Downton Abbey writer, Julian Fellowes’s four-part miniseries was met with a mixed reception, with critics seeming undecided as to whether or not it was worth the £11m it cost to make and nearly three million viewers fleeing after the opening episode. ITV Encore clearly believed it to be worthy of a place on this list, however, so the iconic moment of the Titanic hitting the iceberg was nominated for Best Drama Moment.
just a small part of her act, as her violin-playing is exceptional. I loved her singing, too, although it was a shame that we only got a little burst of it – it seemed a bit out of place, really. I think it would have made much more sense for her to sing the ‘Wake me up inside’ line, rather than simply leaving a gap. She’s still an exceptional talent, though, and I really do hope that she does well in the future.
is not bad looking either. I’m sure he’ll have had the teenage girls of the national fawning over him tonight. Oh, and his voice is amazing too – I mustn’t forget about his voice. I just hope my boyfriend isn’t reading this review, else I’m going to be in a bit of trouble…
ever seen on Britain’s Got Talent. I have to be honest, I thought that his audition and semi-final performances were much better and more impressive than tonight’s; the fact that ITV were allowing such a trick to be broadcast in a live pre-watershed slot removed the danger of him being seriously injured somewhat. I’m sure this show will have given him the platform to be recognised and celebrated across the world – not just in his native Canada.
Buble’s crown, as Amanda claimed they did, I’m not sure but one thing’s for certain: they are brilliant! Not only do they look great, they sound it too. I said it when I reviewed their semi-final performance and I’ll say it again: they are a true breath of fresh air and I’m sure Simon will snap them up straight away.
singers/songwriters are talented, but I just can’t get over their sycophancy. Last week, they made a huge deal of telling Alesha that she looks beautiful. On This Morning on Thursday, they told Holly Willoughby the same – and had no qualms about stressing the point. A lot. Then tonight, when Simon said that he hoped that his son, Eric, grows up to be like them. Now, to that lovely comment a simple ‘Thank you’ would have sufficed but instead, Leondre (the youngest of the two) gushed that he hopes that he turns out like Simon when he’s older. Don’t get me wrong: I know that that’s better than them being miserable, unappreciative and insincere but…oh, it was all just a bit too much, in my opinion.
started chucking eggs at Simon Cowell during Collabro’s slot tonight, we’d have had a truly traditional Britain’s Got Talent performance! I was very surprised that Collabro won – yes, they have an abundance of talent and are incredibly popular and likeable but I thought that Bars & Melody, James Smith or even Jon might have just pipped them to the post. I am of course very pleased for them, though, and can’t wait to see where they go from here. Worthy winners!
All images thanks to ITV, ©Thames TV/SyCo
uktvreviewer 