Oh, The Good Life... full of fun seems to be the ideal. Mm, The Good Life... lets you hide all the sadness you feel. Yessir, I'm the first human in history to do that joke about Tony Bennett and '70s sitcom, The Good Life. Good thing too because The Good Life is celebrating a birthday! For the first time ever, the first series is coming to DVD to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the show.

The sketch show format has been dead for a while. Basically, The Fast Show kinda spoiled it for everyone by reducing sketches to not much more than a punchline and slaying all the useless fluff that usually surrounds these shows. Bo Selecta and Little Britain reprised the role... and now... Bellamy's People (BBC Two, Thursday, 21 January, 10pm)

The 'who is the best character?' question doesn't really work with many TV shows. I mean, ask someone who their favourite Friends character is and it'll be a reasonably short conversation because there's about 10 people to choose from. However, ask it of The Simpsons and you could be there all day. Such is the depth of the show that it's near impossible to get a satisfying answer... however, the official Simpsons' comic has asked just that.

It might not be ITV1's biggest show, but Harry Hill's TV Burp is the best programme on the roster. While The X Factor and Britain's Got Talent grab all the headlines, TV Burp is a refreshing dose of real quality from a broadcaster that has been irrelevant for too many years. However, Hill and ITV may well be parting ways in a deal that could bag Harry a handsome £3million.

Okay, after last night's Victoria Wood-fest, Christmas Eve sees the Christmas Special proper in Victoria Wood's Midlife Christmas (BBC One, Thursday, 24 December, 9pm). She really is a national treasure isn't she? Along with Julie Walters, the pair have made more great belly laughs that most and yet, somehow, are consistently overlooked in the annals of great comics. Maybe it's because they never went to Oxbridge universities?

Next week sees something of a Victoria Wood fest on BBC Two. On Monday night, we get a huge chunk of the listings dedicated to her and her unique brand of keenly observed cutesy comedy. Of course, there'll be those spitting feathers at all this, demanding something more edgy... but sometimes, you need the gentler stuff to keep you from turning into a clenched buttock of satire fury.

It's time to paint the town yellow as Sky1 celebrates 20 years of television's most famous, and reassuringly mental family, The Simpsons. The residents of Springfield are marking their 20th anniversary with three brand-new programmes voiced by self-confessed Simpsons nut Ricky Gervais.

James Corden, of Gavin and Stacey fame, has reportedly kicked off talks with the BBC about hosting a football World Cup show. According to The Sun, the programme wouldn't be a million miles away from David Baddiel and Frank Skinner's Fantasy Football series.

If you haven't heard the weary world wisdom of Karl Pilkington yet, you're really missing out. Pilkington, of course, is Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant's mate and he has a very round head indeed. He's set to star in a new Sky1 travel series which see him going off in search of the seven wonders of the world.

BBC Two has commissioned a comedy pilot with female comedy duo Lorna Watson and Ingrid Oliver. There's not been much on TV in the way of new female comedy (it's probably wise not to make a gender issue out of it though, eh?). Anyway, the show will take place in front of a live studio audience and will also feature a host of other comedy talent. And there's a nice video over the jump if you want to see them in action.

America's answer to Outnumbered continues apace this evening on Sky 1, and we have some preview clips of Modern Family (Sky One, Tonight, 29th October, 8pm) for you to chew on until it transmits. Tonight sees Phil getting buddy with his father-in-law and Phil has problems with a model airplane and "threading the needle". Click over to see the vids!

I don't know what to tell people when they ask me if I think Peep Show (Channel 4, Friday, 25 September, 10pm) is funny. Yes. People are always asking me questions like that in an awkward "You're a TV critic... is it alright if I like this show?" With most shows, I have a strong opinion or at least some pointless bit of trivia to appease... but Peep Show... I never know what to say and the new series is proving just as tricky to pin down.

Related: More Peep Show

Whilst there is a clear absence of new comedic talent cracking TV's veneer, the old guard keep popping back to try and cheer us up. I know we're barely out of summer and thereby, it's way too early to be mentioning Christmas... but in this case, it is warranted. Basically, the news is that come the Yule, twee comedy fave Victoria Wood will be returning to our screens with an hour-long special for BBC One.

Related: More comedy

If you're from a small town you don't let anyone take the piss out of it. Like slagging your mum, only you are allowed to do it. In the crevices of the countryside are great people with rare senses of humour. You complain about the lack of anything to do, always aware that pacing around like a caged cat in a zoo. However, the people are good. So often, TV misses this fact in favour of mere nose pulling to those unable to defend themselves... so step forward Hardy Bucks, championing the slackers of the wilds.

Related: More comedy on TV Scoop

You may have seen Friday Night With Jonathan Ross at the weekend and thrilled at the great clip of Elmo and Ricky Gervais. It featured all manner of adult themed fun as well as Elmo totally holding his own against a man who has a habit of being intensely irritating at times (although, on his game, he's almost unmatchable). Should you have missed the clip, you'll be glad to know you can find it over the jump and seriously, you really should watch it. It's a ray of sunshine in the face of the imminent cold snap!