That's Numberwang!

I was thoroughly of the opinion that Little Britain had killed the sketch show.

Although it started off well (particularly on radio) it slowly turned into a self-devouring monster. The tedious repitition of audience-pleasing catchphrases, the slow descent from wit into vulgarity, the 'speaking' dolls, the tacky greeting cards - like a precocious child, it stoppped being charming and became tedious a long, long time ago.

Unfortunatelty, every other sketch programme since has tried to repeat the formula. Writers have started basing their comedy around money-making catchphrases at the expense of a decent set-up, believable characters and, well, being funny.

But That Mitchell And Webb Look (Thursday, BBC2) has restored my faith. It's like a masterclass in sketch comedy - taking the best bits from Monty Python, The Fast Show, French & Saunders, Adam&Joe and The Two Ronnies (that's right, the Two Ronnies had good bits). For the first time in ages, I find myself laughing out loud at something that isn't a George Bush press conference.

The men responsible are Peep Show stars David Mitchell and Robert Webb. Scarily, they're the same age as I am - which means we were all at Cambridge University at the same time. Which furthermore means that one of them got into Footlghts at my expense (and I was this close. Honestly).

Luckily for their careers, I'm willing to put that appalling miscarriage of comedy justice behind me and recommend that you watch their show. And here's why: Numberwang! (?)

Tweet