The legendary series is finally here, in full.

Long before it became ABC’s biggest improv TV show, Dan Patterson and Mark Levison’s unusually monikered creation began its life as a BBC radio show designed to showcase the cream of talented English entertainers including Tony Slattery, John Sessions, Josie Lawrence and Stephen Fry.

As the medium changed, those fresh-faced young comedians became the linchpins amongst a list of ever-changing irregulars orchestrated by the always cynical delivery of Clive Anderson.

Ignoring the obvious ‘80s feel that most of the shows recorded in the latter part of that decade projected, it became one of the highest regarded and adventurous show formats to be produced by Channel Four. Whose line… is first of its kind that actually allowed the performers to fail (spectacularly in some cases) in front of a live studio audience.

Instead of being unsettling, it gave most of the cast a chance to surprise its viewers with a sense that what resulted through the chaos was unique, and gave insight into how awkward it can be to be instantly comedic.

Once the structure of the show was broken in, different game styles such as film & theatre styles, party guests, voice-overs, authors were introduced to flex comedic muscles further. The contestants appear in various guises for as long as they can manage before Anderson’s inevitable buzzer cuts them short, and sometimes for their own good!

The unsung hero of these two series (and unfortunately never surpassed since) is the uncharacteristically brash Tony Slattery. Seemingly out for blood throughout the entire run, gleaming a comedic repertoire that lets him to toy with his audiences expectations instead of elevating himself above them.

Juxtapose this with his female counterpart Josie Lawrence, whose jump from the comedy store players is worthy of praise, can instil hysterics whilst still adhering to the singer or style. Her vocals add even more depth to the show, proving that you can be talented as well as funny.

As the show itself proves, it’s not possible for it to hit the mark with every sketch. There is the odd episode which defies convention and make for hideously cringe-worthy viewing. Especially when the guests exercise their rap skills and end up drawing more from being a third-rate Vanilla Ice than NWA (proving that there is a price to pay for improvisation).

The fact that the show lasted for ten series in the UK and now seems almost never ending in the United States (thanks to Drew Carey’s commitment to keeping it alive) makes the show’s formula as important as it was when it first emerged. The more real the comedy, the more an audience enjoys it.