Review: Allow Catastrophe into your life

With Peep Show finally coming to an end and our short-lived hopes of a Friends re-union dashed (thanks a goddamn lot, Chanandler Bong), we’re in serious need of a new sitcom to get involved with. Thank goodness then, for Catastrophe. Created/written by and starring Rob Delaney and Sharon Horgan, the show scores 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, which is enough to make us sit up and pay attention. And we’re glad we did.

Catastrophe tells the story of Rob, an American advertising executive, and Sharon, an Irish teacher living in London. After meeting in a bar while the former is on a business trip, they have a brief fling which results in pregnancy. The six-episode season series deals with the fallout from this, and does so in a way which is engaging and laugh-out-loud funny.

The two characters are people to really like and therefore you’ll want to spend time with them. While the overall tone is light-hearted, the jokes are devilishly funny with a bit of an edge to them, meaning the show will appeal just as much to fans of The Inbetweeners as it will to people who like gentler fare such as Outnumbered. There are some notable peripheral characters too, included Carrie Fisher and Ashley Jensen (Maggie from Extras).

Give Catastrophe a whirl. You’ll find yourself really caring about Rob and Sharon’s plight and will be glad to have welcomed them into your world.

Catastrophe is out now on Digital HD and DVD.

Review by Bobby Townsend.