When my brother and I were growing up, what we were allowed to watch on our black and white TV was severely restricted by our father, who was less than impressed by most things on the "gogglebox". The Woodentops? Yes. Coronation Street? Definitely no.
His own viewing was sporadic at best, but there was one man whose shows he would never miss... Dave Allen.
My dad adored the irreverent wit and charm of the Irish-born funny man with half his index finger missing, who sat on stage on a high stool with a little table attached, smoking a fag and supping a whiskey, taking the mickey out of priests, old folk, and the ludicrousness of life in general.
Dave died in 2005 and his impressive and varied body of television work is very rarely seen these days. The reason for this was revealed in the excellent Dave Allen: God's Own Comedian(BBC Two, Monday) which documented his life, giving a great insight into a lovely man who, it seems, was a thoroughly nice, hard-working bloke, both on and off stage – while not being afraid to court controversy with his outspoken views on the trappings of religion.
Apparently he insisted that his contracts carried a clause that his shows should only ever be repeated once on TV. This seems incredible now in these times of endless regurgitation, but it meant that seeing clips of his observational banter, interspersed with affectionate commentary from his family, friends and colleagues, was an even more special treat.
Best of all, it made me think about my dad and the joy Dave's routines brought him. It's a little ironic, I suppose, that I actually watched it all on catch-up repeat, after deciding to invest my time in a couple of brand new sitcoms on the "other side" – Vicious and The Job Lot(ITV1).
I'm guessing there won't be many people, 40 years hence, who will be reminiscing so fondly about these.
With two gay knights of the theatre – Ian McKellen and Derek Jacobi – taking centre stage, and Frances de la Tour popping in, I was hoping for something a little less cliched than the over-the-top, bitchy, camp confection on offer in Vicious.
Played out on an old-school living room set, it centres on Freddie and Stuart, an old gay couple who spend their days sniping unkindly at each other.
Talk about dated, this first, scene-setting, episode even featured that old chestnut of answering the door to an attractive young man who has come to view the flat upstairs. Cue lots of fawning as the luvvie duo battle for his attention.
You couldn't fault the performances, but they can only work with what they have, and it's not inspiring so far. Hopefully it will develop into something with a bit of wit and contemporary charm about it.
The Job Lot, starring Sarah Hadland (Miranda's sidekick) as job centre manager Trish, and Russell Tovey (Being Human) as disgruntled worker Karl, got off to a more promising start, echoing the vibe I've heard from friends who have worked in that environment and others who have had to sign on the dole in recent years. It's not a pretty picture from either side of the desk, but undoubtedly better if you can laugh about its crazy bureaucracy.
I must quickly mention Bill Bailey's Jungle Hero (BBC Two, Sunday). In this two-parter the deep-thinking comic put on his serious hat for a jaunt through Indonesia on the trail of the groundbreaking, but largely forgotten, natural historian Alfred Russel Wallace. Bill makes an excellent documentarian and this was a great story that clearly absorbed him. Having just been to that unbelievably humid neck of the woods, it was fascinating to learn how this determined 19th century adventurer had battled with the heat, ill health and poor communications, just to have the glory of his theory of evolution through natural selection seized by Charles Darwin. And he was such a nice chap he didn't even make a fuss about it.
