I really wanted to love King Gary. So much so that I watched the first episode of the second series twice just to doublecheck that it was as bad as it seemed. I'd watched it the first time round as I was getting ready to go out on a Friday night and maybe I was distracted. But distracted or not, I was right. I have no idea why it was commissioned for a second run.

I suppose the BBC might claim that this tale of suburban lower middle/working class folk needs a bit of time to bed in. Only Fools And Horses famously took a while to settle down and there are distinct echoes of that show here. But Gary King ain't no Del Boy.

It's certainly got a good cast - Tom Davis (Gary), who also writes it with James De Frond, was so good in the innovative celebrity improv comedy Murder In Successville. Romesh "reliable" Ranganathan is on hand as a neighbour. Simon Day plays Gary's dad Big Gary King, even though he is smaller (long story...).

And there are a couple of good jokes in the first episode, which mainly revolved around Gary getting territorial over his skip and having to watch out for "skip liberty takers". I liked the scene where he had to fend off liberty takers like the last survivor fending off zombies and I liked Davis doing an Ali shuffle when he was planning for a punch-up.

But that was about it for me. A subplot involving a big mark-up on cheap Vietnamese candles was a bit too close to Only Fools. Just as it looked as if they were going to make a mint their dreams went up in smoke...

i guess some people will like this and maybe the BBC's faith in the series will be rewarded. Maybe it's just not for me. Maybe it's a bit too broad. I might give it another shot, but first episodes usually set the tone for a series and it did not set my must-see bells ringing. 

King Gary, Fridays, BBC One, 9.30pm. 

Pictured: Teddy King (RILEY BURGIN), Terri King (LAURA CHECKLEY), Gary King (TOM DAVIS), Denise King (CAMILLE CODURI), Big Gary King (SIMON DAY)

Image Credit: BBC/Shiny Button