Staged

How do you do it? With thousands dead, the country slowly going stir crazy and thinking toilet rolls are worth more than gold. How do you pull it off? Get great, funny as hell actors, a brilliant director and write a very clever script, that's how. Surprise cameo's by some proper A-Listers adds to the fun.

Dave and Mike just bounce off each other, the chemistry from Good Omens is still there, they're obviously friends that love some banter. A lot of it seems add libbed but with a definite comedic goal in mind. The Director, Simon, is happy to portray himself as a bit of a knob, double kudos as he concieved and co wrote this with Phin Glynn (that name alone has comedy value).

The premise is simple, use zoom to rehearse a play so that when lockdown ends they can grab a West End theatre and hit the ground running. As I said, simple. What we're served up is a comedy of errors, actors being over sensitive about the small stuff (there's an inspired joke about the credits, so study the actors names carefully for a couple of ep's). A director that has probably contemplated suicide, the pitfalls of Zoom and a bad internet connection or just not knowing who can hear you. Plus some language that is probably the reason Michael Sheen's hair is so curly.

And it's all served up in 15 minute bite sized chunks. Perfect. My only minus is David Tennant's kitchen/diner, when something is that trendy it's quickly out of style, just saying, Dave. (Yes, obviously I'm jealous).

I can pretty much guarantee that if you watch this you'll be happier because of it. If not then all I can say is you're probably cachu hwch.

Series 2 Update; I thought this show couldn't be bettered, yet it was. Dave and Mike get side lined and do their best to sabotage the US version to get their leading roles back. Simon, even more of a dick than in series 1, gets screwed by Hollywood. A ton of A listers jump into the fray, some brilliantly. We get to witness Dave's self absorbed breakdown and Mike being a two faced dick who's happy to throw his mate under the bus. The joke about Phoebe Waller-Bridge hating Dave is hilarious when it transpires why. The way things are going and knowing how badly this whole crisis is being handled I'm certain there's going to be a third series. I hope so, this is one of the few things making lockdown bearable, again.

IMDb is one of my most used apps; I love it. However, I've always skipped past their [consistent, persistent] prompts to create an account because I generally can't be bothered nor haven't been duly compelled to sign up. BUT! "Staged" is so funny and entertaining I wanted to rate and review it.

I stumbled across the show while my family was out on errands and I could watch something they may not be as interested in - I'll be making them watch this anyway, at least passively because it's going to be on when they're around.

The writing is endlessly funny and the performances hilarious. It feels like such a cheeky peek into the lives of these actors and those around them; I hope they enjoy each other's company as much as the show intimates they do. The concept is novel (not coronavirus pun intended), the chemistry superb, the writing witty, and I can't wait to see more from Tennant and Sheen (or Sheen and Tennant...) along with the special guest appearances from so many familiar, fantastic faces. Simply brilliant!

I was very dubious about series three and how they'd make it work post lockdown. I needn't have worried! From the start, you are taken down a roller coaster of fast paced humour with banter between the two leads heading in various directions. Have loved the development of all the characters over time. I watched open mouthed as I got to grips with twists and turns of the story, the pure humour and angst of what was reality and what wasn't. I have to admit I love not knowing who will pop up in the screen at any given time. Very, very clever writing and brilliant performances. The final episode was pure genius. Thank you!

As we are entering another stay at home lock-down, in the middle of a dark snowy winter - thank god for this engaging pair of clowns. Love, love, love this show

Pure comedic genius to take the lock down and life on 'zoom' and make it SO entertaining and funny to the point of . . yes . . . laughing out loud. Any bad reviews you may encounter would have to be written by folks either lacking a sense of humor or just don't get the cultural references. Look I am a yank and loved it , the British , stiff upper lip , stodginess and class consciousness not withstanding are , brilliant , as they say over there, at humor. Family life , work life, show business and the egos that come with it are all skewered without mercy and in a way that makes you #1 love the characters and #2 look forward to the next episode. Just can't imagine anything being more pertinent to the our lives during 'lockdown' and anymore entertaining. Solid eight stars , period.