User Reviews

Itv isn't known for a lot of good comedy. It's not all Man About The House, Rising Damp, Only When I Laugh and this goes to show that Changing Ends is a modern exception (Viscous and The Job Lot were very good a few short years ago).

Quality actors like an unrecognisable Sarah Parish, Colin McFarlane and the usual Mark Heap are wasted here while Ricky Champ who played an inmate in a psychiatric hospital in Suspect on Channel 4 this week finds himself in another institution - an unfunny itv comedy.

Characters can take time to develop but, having bingewatched the first (and hopefully, only) series, I am no closer to liking the sexually-repressed characters that can't even supply their own catchphrase to look forward to with each episode.

Perhaps fewer characters might have given more laughs but an unfunny opening titles sequence with an unforgettable theme doesn't hold out for a good show ahead. The Thin Blue Line this isn't.

Many unfunny comedies use eye candy to hide from a poor script. Katherine Kelly in last year's equally bad Ruby Speaking springs to mind and Callie Cooke offers much the same here (Scorpio legs!) but Greeta is probably the most realistic of the recruits but she isn't funny either.

A lot of talented wasted by a group of fifth former writers it seems.

First couple of episodes really were top class. The following became so slapstick and unbelievable. It's a shame. I'm imagining it'll get a second series as it seems pretty low budget. The young actors are OK but it does appear as if it is actually a police training school as an analogy for an acting school. Each situation seems forced and relationships are very surface. Some of the writing is excellent ( first couple of eps) getting to know the characters etc. The arc of police training becomes farcical. Something that could have been utilised as a positive descends into preposterous idiocy. I see that there are a lot of writers involved, given that it doesn't have a consistent flow for a short and sweet British comedy, this feels like it's intended to be a long stayer. The more seasoned actors do a very good job and they are the highlight as well as the young innocent lad from the criminal family. I've watched all 6 opening episodes and I'm mixed emotionally so far. Haven't quite been sold on what's being attempted . 6/10.

I was looking forward to seeing this show but after watching the first episode I was treated to a desperately unfunny collection of ridiculous characters, way over-acted and I just wanted them all to shut up. The worst being Superindent Fry played by the otherwise brilliant. Sarah Parish in ridiculous make up and disasterous dialogue. The talents of Mark Heap are left at the door as he more or less reprises his role of Jim from Friday Night Dinner who walked into Mr Benn's costume shop and came out as a policeman. The running story arc of the "plant" or "prune" is cringeworthy, as are the "piglets" themselves. I had hope for this given that Ricky Champ appears in every episode but he is just overplaying a parody trainer. I persevered to complete the series in the hope of raising a smile but sadly it was not to be. I gave the point for the brief explanations of the Spiderverse.

I so wanted to like this. I'm a great fan of Mark Heap and Rebecca Humphries, and still regard Green Wing as an underrated masterpiece.

But, oh dear. The problem, as so often with comedies nowadays, is that it simply isn't funny because the material is so weak, lazy and uninspired.

Combine poorly written dialogue with an overabundance of second-rate actors and the result is an embarrassing mess. There's no other way of saying it.

I'm going to persevere because I refuse to believe that writers of this auspicious pedigree will not improve as the show progresses. But the signs are not good so far.

About as funny as watching concrete dry, paint drying, wheat growing, sun rising, moon falling, rain falling, dog walking, nails growing...you get the idea.

Like something out of a politically correct Carry on film, only worse and more boring. Someone has made an attempt at an American sitcom, without the canned laughter (perhaps it should have been added).

Why o why, do people get paid to create this drivel.

Why is that a public service gets insulted with this calamity, and then we wonder why recruitment is an issue. Perhaps the losers that created this should actually join, contribute, gain real life experience and then, maybe then might they produce something amusing.

I understand McDonalds are recruiting, so your 'talents' may be best employed there. ITV what were you thinking, the cast of Crossroads would turn in their graves!

A lot of the reviews are making me laugh at how ridiculous they are! Hey, maybe humour has changed that much in the past few decades, and I've just not cared enough to pay attention

There is a mix of Green Wing, Friday Night Dinner, The Young Offenders, The Thin Blue Line, and a number of other comedy dramas in the kind of humour Piglets employs

It is funny in a silly, obvious way, with exaggerated characters and traits, and a story that is more about the relationships between them all rather than supporting a particularly strong message or overarching plot

I enjoyed it for its levity, warmth and ease of viewing, and it did make me laugh.

Well this one is really really scraping the barrel that a world champion barrel scraper had scraped till they couldn't scrape no more. Every single joke falls flat and misses the mark so much it's painful. It jammed full of unlikeable characters that for the most part you can't relate to them.

They throw every stereotype at you, filling the show with too many characters to give a decent story arc or much to do. The problem we have with some of modern sitcoms these days is the writer are to afraid to write something funny in case it offends someone. It's time for sitcoms to be funny once more.

To give you an idea of how unfunny this is, they have more laughs in an episode of Mrs Browns Boys.

Could've been great if it had been written by someone who understood the job of police and could wrote something funny. Unfortunately, this is just amateur, stereotypical drivel that might appease certain demographics, but unlikely to appeal broadly. The jokes are flat, the acting is embarrassing and comedy is just not funny. Such a wasted opportunity to do something new Even Police Academy is funnier than this and I mean the last, really bad one. The best thing that could happen to this show is it quietly moved to the small hours of the morning and dropped slowly so the memory of even having laid eyes on it can be attributed to some kind of fever dream.

I thought this was an really easy watch, it reminds me of the style of Green Wing but not quite hitting the same mark (heap- no pun intended) i really like this style of comedy. I've watched a heck of a lot worse. I think this has got the chance to be as funny as green wing but that is a hard act to follow.

Like I say bit of shame as it just needs polishing up a bit, But I am quite glad to see a British comedy on the tv again.

Again, a really easy watch and I found it funny in places but its just missing something but I am not sure what. The actors all played their parts well, Mark Heap as always is just funny in whatever he's in to be honest.

Mark Heap, Sarah Parish, Colin McFarlane, Ricky Champ - all great performers but there's nothing they can do with writing and direction this poor.

Mark Heap once worked with the mighty Chris Morris, and now he's in this, which will take its place alongside Big Top, the Persuasionists and other notoriously terrible sitcoms. I've no doubt he's doing his best - I'm sure they all are - but you can't make a funny show from terrible writing.

The one amusing aspect of this trainwreck is that OFCOM went from getting one or two complaints for the title, to getting multiple complaints for unfunniness.

The one positive aspect of this debacle (this and The Family Pile) is that ITV, in its search for a "laugh out loud" sitcom, might start trying a bit harder.

This took an episode or two to grow on me, but glad I stuck with it and how refreshing to just have a comedy with no hidden messages or agendas.

20 min episodes are just right for this kind of show and make it a binge worthy treat. A bit like some great comedy shows "here we go" and " the it crowd" , you will pick up on other funny things when you watch it again.

The characters are from all walks of life and the Mickey taking is brilliant with some very subtle moments as well, as I said.

If your a bit pc and easily offended , which is half the population these days, avoid. If you just like to have a laugh and don't take life too seriously I think you will like it.

Wow. Couldn't get further than 5 minutes of thus awful dross.

It's just not funny. Frenetic rubbish with stereotypical cast. The characters appear to be totally one dimensional with a poor display of acting ability, but with such a poor script it would be hard to be stretched.

I try hard to find something to latch onto to encourage further viewing but nothing at all grabs me to subject myself to carry on. Life's to short and these piglets are well and truly runts if a comedy litter.

Please spare your senses of any trauma and look elsewhere for police comedy's - there are some out there. Good luck.

Well it's not good. All the cast are unlikable (which seems to be the current trend), and the "comedy" relies on awkward comic timing from the try-too-hard cast rather than (heaven forbid) some decent writing.

Even the title seemed to be controversial for the sake of it, almost a televisual form of click bait. It did it's job in that it got some headlines before the programme aired, but sadly the show is neither as challenging or boundary-pushing as it thinks it is.

None of the characters make any sense (the chief inspectors come across as simpletons, the recruits as morons) and I'm never sure who I'm actually meant to root for. Or maybe it's because I just didn't care.

It's obviously bloody awful. Frankly we all should demand better.

One of the worst series I've ever watched.

Didn't even raise a smile.

And the awful 'drumming' music that plays on and off throughout really got on my nerves.

Unfunny and incredibly poor acting.

The plot line is rubbish, none of the characters are remotely interesting and it didn't seem to lead anywhere.

Kept zoning out and struggled to get through first episode.

Some of the characters are very child like arguing over pens and acting like sexually charged teens at times.

It was painful to watch which is such a shame as I love Sarah Parish.

Please don't commission another series of this utterly poor, unfunny, dated rubbish.

Yes the best thing about this series are Callie Cooke's legs. Seriously there is nothing else good to say about this pile of Pooh.

I didn't smile once let alone give a chuckle or even a belly laugh. It's not a comedy, it's an embarrassment. I feel for such experienced actors as Sarah Parish, Mark Heap and Colin McFarlane, they must have needed the cash or didn't read the script before signing on the dotted line.

Speaking of Callie Cooke, she changes clothes twice in the first episode from mini skirt and boots to short, no boots and back to mini skirt and boots, was that supposed to be a joke? Nice legs though but not sure I can sit through anymore in the hope of seeing them again.

What has gone wrong with comedy these days ??

This has got to be one of the worst comedy shows that I have ever seen.

The acting is awful, the script is mostly nonsensical and the whole concept of these "recruits" would even be considered for the police force is totally idiotic.

It does remind me (in a very small way) of the police academy movies, but this is nowhere nearly as good.

There does not seem to be one redeeming character in the whole show, none of the recruits seem to be worthy of becoming a police officer, and the training officers all seem like they are rejects that have been transferred from other parts of the force to keep them quiet and out of the way.

All in all, this is a show that I hope never gets a second series.

Just awful. It's trying to be like Police Academy but has completely failed. Casting rubbish, script/writing rubbish, acting rubbish. The two training "superintendents" are superintendents one moment (crown on their epaulettes) then in the next scene they've been immediately promoted to Chief Superintendents (crown and pip on epaulettes), then back to superintendents again.

They tick all the equality and diversity boxes. ITV must be so desperate to commission this @#&* Whoever commissioned this tripe to be aired needs a good holiday or the sacked.

I certainly won't be watching any follow up series, life is precious and I wouldn't waste any of it watching this.

I thought this was absolutely brilliant, well written, funny and such a mixed bunch of characters who gel well together for this type of show; a much needed comedy show in today's TV world! It reminded me of the old Police Academy movies, but a renewed version with a British twist. Please do not take this show as some sort of serious show, it's light hearted and funny; but definitely give it a try! One episode in and already I want to see more! Thats definitely a good sign of a good show!! I don't think I have laughed this much since 'Little Britain' and 'come fly with me'. I can't wait to see more!

This may be one of the worst 'comedy's' I've ever had the misfortune to waste my time with.

With such an enormously broad subject as Police recruitment this was weak to say the least! The characters aren't even remotely relatable.

Poor acting, poor story, not one laugh in the whole 30 minute episode.

Mark Heap was wasted in this. Yes he is erratic and 'odd' but he can be very funny...this however was not his finest hour

I have already deleted my series link and won't even bother watching another episode. The writing is on the wall with this one. Only one series and quickly forgotten.

1/10 and that's being generous.

Firstly I'm aware the latest generations of kids are obnoxious, entitled, self unaware hypocrites who've destroyed long established norms in society and made it a free for all for the vain and lazy. Any recent comedy that's coming of age or slightly older kids adapting for the last few years have been rotten, this is one of the worst shows I've ever watched and I enjoy childish comedy to so it's definitely an issue with this mess.

Firstly it's like they hired Mark Heap to play Jim from Friday night dinner but go completely braindead and forget how to talk or act like a human, as bad as police might be, it's not clever humour putting buffoons into roles for cheap laughs especially when it's unfunny.

Callie (blonde girl) is tragically untalented, seen her in henpocalypse to that rivals this for being 0/10, she's unfunny, clunky on sceen and a poor actress. Even in the stranger she was naff.

It's not just her the woman police officer from trollied had a couple of funny lines but the rest of the characters were so lazily put together and thought out that whoever did it must've been promised a slot no matter what. The dialogue is garbage, the jokes are purple, lazy and basic, I'd be disappointed if 12 year old wrote this.

Honestly couldn't get through ep 3, it was too bad, except the dopey chav who's a clear rip off of many characters, none were funny or memorable or good.

Awful, not to be watched and Mark Heap you should be ashamed .

Just so sad in every possible way. This is the kind of TV show that makes you feel deathly sad whilst watching. The kind of show in which is so unfunny, you wouldn't even be able to laugh at it ironically.

Whoever came up with this should be ashamed, and, funnily enough, dob themselves in to ITV for a crime as heinous as this one.

Please, try harder.

A sitcom written by apes would be funnier, and that is NOT an understatement, this is by far one of the saddest attempts at comedy I have ever seen. The complete incompetency of the acting and character writing is immeasurable, and the actors are so unbelievably poor and annoying you'd be surprised.

Never watch this.

Started watching this after seeing the trailer and man is this utterly terrible.

If you've seen green wing it's kind of similar in terms of character personalities. There's the crazy secretary, the absolute dufus who never gets things right..the b***h, you get the idea. The problem is that it's just so incredibly over acted it doesn't leave much to the imagination. I think during the first episode I chuckled once. The second episode opens with a lad who goes to see his parents who are undercover. His moms a prostitute and the dads a pimp. Desperately trying to give it chance but the more it goes on the worse it gets. Probably best to avoid.

Not funny and also what a stupid name for a show.

Is it ok that a derogatory term for police is allowed?

Imagined if a show was called a derogatory name for someone's appearance or skin colour.... Who decides to make this unfunny rubbish and commission it.

There should be a massive backlash for its title but there won't be. Rubbish like this then allows terms like that to be normalised in society.

Sarah and mark have been in good things previously but this is a new low for them.

I see itv have been marketing it with the same music Chanel 4 use for marks Friday night project. Just pathetic and needy.

If this is British comedy then Britain is in trouble.

It's just so lazy and it's embarrassing.

This has fallen flat on it's backside from the start.

Ignoring the silly title that seems designed to bring attention to the series more than anything else, I thought I'd give it a go - it's a long time since there has been any really good comedy on UK TV.

Ten minutes in and not funny - not even a little amusing. Twenty minutes - nothing. A couple of episodes - zero. By this stage I am wondering how on earth this got through any stage of the commissioning/production process. Someone somewhere must have recognised this for the absolute rubbish it is.

The acting is mostly awful, with Heap over-playing (very badly) his 'usual' character a la 'Colin', and the rest producing various performances of cringe.

The only expectations I had of this was to be a reasonably watchable comedy, and it can't even manage that.