Gavin and Stacey

BBC2 played a blinder last night by showing the first series of "Gavin and Stacey" back-to-back. I missed it the first time around - mainly I guess because it was described as a "Romantic Comedy".

Now, I have nothing at all against either Romance or Comedy - the world needs more of both of these - but when you put the two together you usually end up with the kind of braindead chick-flick mush that infests suburban multiplex cinemas.

This however succeeds where the usual Hugh Grant romcomathon fails for a number of reasons :-

• Likeable characters
• Clever genuinely funny dialogue
• A number of excellent acting performances
• No Hugh Grant

You are warned that there is an almost total absence of plot and that the humour is subtle to the point where some may not even see it, but for me it was an amazing achievement - funny, moving and rude.

There is to be a new series on BBC3 this month and judging by the preview clips online, it's going to be well worth watching.