The Trip

One of the TV highlights of 2010. Coogan and Brydon are superb, the oddest of couples as they bicker about their careers and try to outdo each other with impressions ranging from Al Pacino ('whatta ya got?') to Alan Bennett ('Peter and Dudley, Dudley and Peter'). It's beautifully shot with some stunning locations and also manages the tricky feat of segueing from dark comedy to oddly touching drama and back again. It could so easily have been self-indulgent tripe, and there are admittedly times when you want to reach into the screen and punch the preening, self-obsessed Coogan, but The Trip manages to walk that finest of lines, delivering a love song to the north and a funny, thoughtful meditation on fame and the ageing process. Here's hoping for a second series.