Harry Brown

[AndyM]

It was a corker.

[garth cartwright]

Likely Lads was before my time - as was Steptoe but that gets repeated. Very Beckettian humour but the endless struggle between Harold's middle class aspirations and filthy old Steptoe - surely John Lydon's cackling role model? - gets a bit thin.

Porridge was wonderful. Would like to see that again. My dad loved Dad's Army and I recall that being very entertaining.

Fawlty Towers perhaps the funniest. Only a handful of episodes wasn't it? Or maybe I keep seeing the same ones repeated. Blackadder, at its best, was enjoyably silly.

Only Fools & Horses remains my favourite by a distance. Great characters, great lines, it built and developed as it went along. John Sullivan, what a writer! I vaguely recall Citizen Smith as a kid and think that was probably pretty good too - especially as I'm met a few Citizen Smith characters over the years. OF&H is very popular, as Andy notes, but also very good.

Most overrated sitcom? Alan Partridge, perhaps? Are there any really good recent ones? I try to watch recent shows like The Book Club but just can't warm to them. Flight Of The Conchords was the best recent comedy series. Not that its British. Just the last I followed week by week.

[Jamie Renton]

Just watched the 1st episode of Early Doors online and liked it a lot. Thanks for the tip-off on that one Gary (and Andy).

Garth: They only made a couple of series of Fawlty Towers and (I think) 3 of Porridge. That's why they're so fondly remembered, they weren't given a chance to go stale. Only Fools and Horses on the other hand went on for that bit too long and also suffers from being too popular and shown too often, so that it's become part of the furniture. It is very funny though, particularly early on.

Of more recent sitcoms, I've enjoyed The IT Crowd, The Inbetweeners, The Office (although god knows Gervais has lost it since then) and Peep Show (The Inbetweeners older and sadder sibling). The Thick of It is very good too, but will date quickly I imagine.

Alan Partridge does get better as he goes on. I was never convinced by him as a chat show host. Whereas the latest ones have him doing a mid-morning phone in on a local digital radio station and are far more believable (and funny-sad).

[gary booth]

Glad you like Early Doors, Jamie, I hadn't thought of online viewing but Amazon do both series as a 2DVD set for £5.49p which I rate as unmissable. I don't believe in the concept of ' guilty pleasures' at all but I often think why am I enjoying Modern Family so much? I think it's only ever shown on Sky? Or online I suppose.

[Jamie Renton]

I'd put today aside to work on a feature for fRoots. So far I've done no work on it at all but have watched 3 episodes of Early Doors

If I miss the deadline Gary it's all your fault. Don't blame me if Ian Anderson comes after you with one of those sticks they use for Morris dancing.

[gary booth]

Hang on a minute, suddenly it's all my fault. Firstly, Andy's name was put in brackets and now he seems to have dropped out of the picture - I know he has a bit of fondness for some of those finger in the ear warbling folkies and might even buy or subscribe to Anderson's rag but he did endorse my recommendation. Okay, bring Ian on, if he hangs around with Morris Dancers then I can take the little folker on!
But enough is enough Jamie, turn the Internet off and start typing...good luck.

[AndyM]

I do read fRoots and when I see Jamie's name in it I go "ooh, I ''''know'''' him". So jump to it, Renton.

[Jamie Renton]

Gary, Andy, please, I don't need this sort of thing, I've already got a Jewish mother.

I'll get down to work soon, I had an important episode of The Simpsons to watch (I'd only seen it about 40 times before). Then I had to listen to and purchase this lovely, dreamy bit of reggae from Brighton (neighbours of your's Andy?) that someone posted on Facebook: http://soundcloud.com/wahwah45s/sets/wa ... surrender/

Right, now I'm going to get down to it (honest)