The Best New Comedies on TV

It’s a new year, so you know what that means – new TV shows! We’re definitely in the mood for a laugh, so today, we’re taking a look at some of the most anticipated new comedies of 2014. These are all expected to be the highlights of the comedic year – they are the best new comedies on TV.

The Kumars At No. 42B – Sky1

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This addition to the Sky1 line-up is getting critics and fans alike excited. Cancelled by the BBC when they were still going strong, The Kumars are making a welcome return to our screens this year.

The show’s working title is The Kumars at No. 42B, and that’s not all that has changed for the Kumars. They have fallen on hard times, so they’ve moved into a flat behind the shop Ashwin runs in Hounslow. Sanjeev and Bindiya have been divorced for two years, but they share custody of their daughter. Mum Madhuri has had to return to India to take care of her mother, but Ashwin has managed to get the family’s chat show back on the air.

The format hasn’t changed that much, as three celebrity guests find themselves caught in the crossfire of domestic rows that inevitably erupt and Sanjeev tries unsuccessfully to host a professional chat show through it all.

Car Share – BBC1

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Directed by and starring perpetual energy machine Peter Kay, this new odd-couple sitcom sees John and Kayleigh lumped together in their company’s car share scheme. As they travel to and from their jobs at a huge supermarket on the edge of town, they share their lives with each other and reveal unexpected things about themselves. We, meanwhile, get plenty of laughs along the way.

People are really talking about this show because it will debut on iPlayer before it’s shown on BBC1, the first show ever to do that.

Vic and Bob’s House of Fools – BBC2

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Do you ever miss the goofy sitcoms, filmed live in front of a studio audience, of days gone by? Reeves and Mortimer clearly do, as they’ve created this silly, surreal sitcom and have insisted on filming it in front of a live audience.

The show as all the hallmarks of classic sitcoms – it’s almost entirely set inside a home, three cameras capture the action and jokes shift from insults to cheeky wordplay to visual gags at a relentless pace – but it definitely has surreal silliness running all the way through it. Bob and Vic live together along with Bob’s Norwegian love child, Erik. Wacky neighbours and friends Beef and Julie pop by often, and Vic’s brother, the recently released criminal Bosh, shows up, much to Bob’s chagrin. As Bob tries to move on with his life and grow up, his plans to demonstrate his maturity are constantly undermined by all these crazy characters.

Oh, and they break out into song every now and again. So standard Reeves and Mortimer, then.

Babylon – Channel 4

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The Metropolitan Police is the oldest police force in the world, and it is in desperate need of a makeover. So desperate, in fact, that they’ve enlisted an American new media guru, Liz Garvey, to help the PR department cope with a world of 24-hour news, internet-ready smartphones and a population desperate for all the details.

In this Danny Boyle-directed dramedy, Chief Constable Richard Miller tries to work with Liz to improve the Met’s image, and he is assisted in this mission by Deputy Commissioner Charles Inglis and Staff Officer Tom Oliver. Liz meanwhile relies heavily on her second in command, Finn. Then there are the police officers dealing with office decisions and their real-world consequences on the streets, Territorial Support Group (TSG) officers Davina and Robbie. Following them all is TV cameraman Matt Coward, who is eager to spice up his show with action-filled footage.

This biting satire takes a look at the conflicts that inevitably arise when the politics of the office clash with the day-to-day work of keeping the capital safe, all in the unblinking glare of news outlets and PR machines.

W1A – BBC2

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If you watched Twenty Twelve, you know Ian Fletcher. He was the long-suffering Head of the Olympic Deliverance Commission, and he’s got a new job as the Head of Values at the BBC. So no small task, then.

This isn’t a straightforward sequel to Twenty Twelve, the spot-on send up of the teams working tirelessly to put on the amazing 2012 London Olympics. Instead, it takes the heart of Twenty Twelve – a cast of quirky individuals all committed to pushing through their conflicting desires and missioned, barely balanced by Ian Fletcher’s diplomacy and management skills – and takes it to the BBC.

Ian’s simple task is to “clarify, define, or re-define the core purpose of the BBC across all its functions and to position it confidently for the future, in particular for Licence Fee Renegotiation and Charter Renewal in 2016 and 2017”. He soon learns, though, that he has no time for the big issues, what with the little day-to-day problems he has to deal with. Luckily, PR guru Siobhan Sharpe and her team of Shoreditch creatives show up to deliver their unique help.

This year seems to be the year of comedy for many channels, so which ones are you looking forward to? Which ones are you going to skip? Let us know in the comments.