Tim Key's Poetry Programme
#1 - Tim Key's Late Night Poetry Programme: The Complete Series 1-4
Tim Key is never far from stage and screen - from Peep Show to Alpha Papa to Taskmaster. But now he's back doing what he does best - attempting to recite poetry whilst tormenting his friend and musician, the equally brilliant, and long suffering, Tom Basden.
From ruminating on the meaning of family via his narrative poem The Godfather, attempting to get to the bottom of death via his poem The Boy Who Faked His Own Death, and also organising an impromptu stag party, Tim Key uses poetry to help him understand every situation.
'In any other sphere apart from comedy, we'd probably class this way of looking at the world as certifiable. Here it feels like genius.' The Telegraph
"The show... has a kind of artistry and strange beauty that makes it unlike any other hour of stand-up you are likely to see." The Observer
'...You never know when Key will suddenly toss you a fantastic joke or startlingly well-constructed line.' Radio Times
Audio updated April 2019
#2 - Tim Key’s Poetry Programme: The Complete Series 5-7
Tim Key returns with more comic chaos, musically supported by Tom Basden
Award-winning comedian Tim Key is back with three more series of his peculiar poetry programme. Having presented the show from a houseboat, a space simulator and the top of the Shard, he now ventures even further afield in his increasingly ineffective attempts to understand life through the medium of verse.
In these 12 episodes, he finds himself stuck in a cable car high above the Norwegian fjords, making a movie in Rome, stranded in an Austrian cave network with the water rising, and broadcasting live from the labour ward where Megan is having a baby. He also prepares to make his TV debut, gets in trouble with Customs at Stansted Airport, heads out on safari (in Woburn) and hits the road in an Americana special...
Accompanying him on his adventures are regulars Tom Basden and Katy Wix, and guest stars including Miles Jupp, Bridget Christie, Stephen Merchant, Lolly Adefope, Mike Wozniak, Sam Campbell and Morgana Robinson.
‘His sentences never end where you expect them to and the oddly appealing atmosphere he creates is so spellbinding, it's like emerging from a nice fog when he spits you out at the other end.’ Julia Raeside, The Guardian
Cast
Key – Tim Key
Lord – Tom Basden
Megan – Katy Wix
Jiffy – Mike Wozniak
Sir Hayden – Miles Jupp
Pamela – Carlotta Morelli
Bunny – Karl Johnson
Bogle – Bridget Christie
With Stephen Merchant, Lolly Adefope, Sam Campbell, Simon Armstrong, Morgana Robinson
Photo by Jonathan Birch
© 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2026 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

