Kevin Bishop's Porridge sequel savaged by viewers
Porridge was back on the BBC on Friday (October 6) for its first full series since 1977. No, you're not living in a timewarp.
Last year, a one-off sequel to the classic '70s sitcom was commissioned starring sketch comedian Kevin Bishop in celebration of BBC Comedy's rich history - and garnered decent enough ratings that the Beeb ordered a full series.
Instead of being a direct continuation of the original Porridge, Bishop stars as the grandson of Ronnie Barker's shifty prisoner Norman 'Fletch' Fletcher. A chip off the old block, Nigel Norman Fletcher has landed behind bars too for computer hacking.
In the series premiere on Friday night (October 6), the next generation Fletch tried to turn over a new leaf by helping his fellow inmates with their appeals… but trouble arose when his writing impressed another man's girl.
As you can probably expect, the initial reviews from viewers were quite harsh - although there were some supporters of Kevin Bishop, in particular, in the leading role.
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