Britain has produced some generational comedic talent over the decades, from the days of French & Saunders to the up-and-comers like SNL UK’s outstanding cast.
After watching the BBC’s new show, Ann Droid, it confirmed to me that actress and comic Diane Morgan joins that number as part of the creme-de-la-creme.
Now, I’ve loved Diane’s work for several years, whether playing the type B mum who offers home truths in Motherland, her utterly absurd yet somehow still insightful interviewer alter ego, Philomena Cunk, or her bold experimental humour in Mandy, a series that will make you wonder if you are hallucinating.
But her latest show Ann Droid, which she created, produced and starred as the titular robot Linda, has confirmed what I already knew deep down. She’s a comedic genius.
The new six-episode comedy sees robot Linda move into Sue!Sue!Sue!’s (Sue Johnston) home, a still-grieving widow who needs help with the day-to-day after her son Michael (Paul Ready) moves back in with his wife.
I went into the show with an open mind, assuming I’d be amused enough, crack a smile or two, perhaps even grow uninterested after a few episodes and switch off.
Diane had not given herself an easy task playing an inanimate being and even spoke about how it was ‘really difficult’ to play a humanoid who couldn’t express emotion, yet was the beating heart of the show.
Somehow, despite the no-blinking, frozen face and generic voice, her performance took full advantage of the physical comedy and stellar timing to deliver several laugh-out-loud moments.
Her absent, wandering gaze to awkwardly end a conversation, the bonkers way her body would bend to do a task and total lack of human social filter fuelled a brilliant turn.
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There was something in the precise tilt of her head after being told a tidbit of the human experience or her candid declarations about people’s affairs and mistakes that were, simply put, wonderfully executed.
A lesser actress would not have been able to pull it off.
She also created the perfect robot smile that she would deploy at the most unexpected times. Even the recurring gag of playing ‘party music’, aka Cotton Eye Joe, whenever the mood got serious had endeared me by the end.
Her dynamic with Sue and the slow burn of their friendship was heartwarming. As with any good comedy, it grounded the show with a profound storyline that made you genuinely invested in these characters and their wellbeing.
What made it all the more impressive is that she actually came across as a believable robot all the same.
I shouldn’t have been surprised.After all, the 50-year-old TV star has honed her ability to play the awkwardly oblivious on TV to a fine point, and it feels as though Linda is the culmination of her onscreen work so far.
And it seems the general public agrees with me, with 4.6 million viewers tuning in across seven days, the highest-rated show beaten only by the World Cup.
What’s more, the figures are already outpacing the previous BBC comedy breakout Small Prophets, which has already been renewed for a season two. Hopefully that means that this is not the last we’ve seen of Linda and Sue!Sue!Sue!.
Diane’s ability to turn truly ridiculous characters and even more ridiculous premises into ratings hits is a rare talent and one that, I believe, cements her in the British comedy hall of fame.
Ann Droid is available to stream on BBC iPlayer now.