Rarely has the phrase "another chance to see" caused such a rush of warmth to our loins.

From Friday night, BBC4 repeats three of the year’s best home-grown comedies: The Late Edition, Don’t Watch That, Watch This and, cherry on the fairy cake, The Thick of It.

Ricky Gervais’s favourite sitcom is solid, pant-wetting nourishment for fans of intelligent satire. Arguably it’s even better second time around, thanks to a whippet-quick script and tight performances from Chris Langham, newcomer Chris Addison and the masterful Peter Capaldi.

Marcus Brigstocke’s Daily Show-esque Late Edition and the cut n’ paste clips of DWTWT don’t work quite so well out of topical context, but they’re both sharply written and apt to cause embarrassment as you laugh bits of food out through your nose.

* The Thick of It, BBC4, six nights from Friday 16 Dec, 11.50pm
* Don’t Watch That Watch This, BBC4, seven nights from Sat 17 Dec, 11.25pm
* The Late Edition, BBC4, six nights from Saturday 17 Dec, 12.25am