THIS TIME WITH ALAN PARTRIDGE
BBC1, FRIDAY 30 APRIL, 9.30PM
The greatest comedy character in TV history is back. The last time we saw Steve Coogan’s legendary creation Alan Partridge, he had somehow finally secured a new berth on prime-time BBC1, having taken over as permanent co-host of mainstream magazine programme This Time, alongside the inestimable Jennie Gresham (Susannah Fielding). But in classic Partridge style, he screwed things up for himself by gossiping about Gresham behind her back. She stormed off the set, leaving him to rely on his nervous sidekick Simon Denton (Tim Key) to join him on the banquette as co-presenter, before Alan was summoned for a big meeting with the producer, Jennie and the director general of the BBC. But as ABC once sang, “That was then, but this is now…”
NEW ALAN
As series two of This Time begins, the spat with Jennie seems to have been resolved, and 30 years after he first arrived as a broadcaster (on BBC Radio 4’s On The Hour), Alan actually seems to be happy in his dream job. But, of course, that can’t last long, and soon the great man is grappling with new worries and fears. It doesn’t help that the producer of the show is leaving, and Alan is now having to deal with the new world of diversity and equality – a world in which old, white, middle-class guys like him have to keep on their toes. Exactly how long a bit of a dinosaur like Alan can survive in this climate becomes a key concern, so he does everything in his power to show how down with the kids he can be. Perhaps too much.
OLD TEAM
Luckily, while Al frets about his role on This Time, the brilliant team we met in series one is back. That means Sidekick Simon returns with his “digi-wall”, and roving reporter Ruth Duggan
(Lolly Adefope) is still roving – and refusing to agree with anything Alan says. We also get more glimpses behind the scenes, when Al’s long-serving and long-suffering assistant Lynn (Felicity Montagu) pops up to keep him abreast of what’s going on. It all makes for a glorious return for Alan, guided superbly by co-writer/directors Neil and Rob Gibbons, in a form even more brilliantly funny and acutely observed than ever.
★★★★★