The Early Edition

The formula is simple: every day posh Marcus Brigstocke and cockney Andre Vincent read the news, pick out the funniest or most appalling stories and make light of them over coffee and pastries in the company of two guest comedians.

Consequently the material changes every day and the conversation swings from serious to superficial via a predictable but amusing dose of Daily Mail bashing. Understandably, given that all the jokes have been written that morning, a few fall flat but these are stand up comedians and they plough on with Brigstocke holding the whole thing together and moving forward when things get stale.

Of course, the show is unashamedly left-wing, fitting largely into the mould which sees Brigstocke spinkling his dry wit over the targets which get a regular dusting on his Radio 4 spots. To an extent, Brigstocke panders to the audience, who are clear about the direction they wish the discussion to go: the live rather than radio format means any agenda must be instantly and continuously gratified.

As the show lacks set material there is no guarantee that one day is the same or as funny as the next but it’s worth a punt if you’re up early and fancy the thought of croissants with your comedy, fitting neatly in between the time you finish reading The Guardian and lunch.