Grownups is like Two Pints without the jokes

As a big fan of Two Pints I should like Grownups too as both are written by Susan Nickson and feature Sheridan Smith but the first series did not grab me that much. But then the first series of Two Pints was a bit weak too and is usually dropped from the continuous repeats on BBC3 so I was happy to give Grownups a second chance and so I went to the recording of the second episode of series two on Sunday evening. I was not impressed.

The second series is quite a change from the first with two of the three main characters gone (Michelle's brother Mike and her boyfriend Dean) to be replaced by Michelle's new flatmate Chris, her boss Rachel, and the frequently topless barman Alex.

The "frequently topless barman" is a clue that the characterisation and snappy dialogue that makes Two Pints so good has been largely replaced by visual humour. In the episode I watched being recorded this included man falls over sofa, man falls and breaks table, woman smacks bottom of blow-up doll and man gets set up with fat girl. Lame. Lame. Lame.

As if to prove that Grownups has no ideas, it featured a scene where Michelle (played by Sheridan Smith) gets sacked by her scatty, black, female boss and one of the two episodes of Two Pints that I watched on BBC3 after I came back from the recording (Homeless and Horny) featured Janet (also played by Sheridan Smith) being sacked by her scatty, black, female boss. Only in Two Pints her boss is Louise (played by the wonderful Kathryn Drysdale) a much better defined character.

Luckily the evening was rescued by the presence of Sheridan Smith and by the warm up man who had us all laughing out loud throughout. I'm going again next week, more for the warm-up man than for the programme itself and this time I'll try and remember his name; he deserves recognition.