BBC3's new sitcom Uncle, starring singer/songwriter Nick Helm, as an out-of-work musician who forges an unlikely alliance with his 11-year-old nephew, may seem familiar to Channel 4 viewers. The show ran as a pilot on C4's 4Funnnies strand last year. Perhaps Shane Allen, the BBC's new controller of comedy commissioning, will have the last laugh on Jay Hunt, his former boss at Channel 4, after "borrowing" a show his previous employer declined to turn into a series. Still, having Channel 4 do the BBC's development work is good value for money for the licence-fee payer.
