Michael McIntyre returns with his hilarious Big Show

For years, Ant and Dec have had an iron grip on the Saturday night family entertainment crown, with a succession of shows that have delighted the nation.

But could comedian Michael McIntyre, with his boyish good looks, ability to shriek in a voice only dogs can hear, and complete lack of vanity be the pretender to their throne?

With the return of this hilarious, celebrity and fun-packed extravaganza, it’s a distinct possibility.

Last seen on our screens in December 2019, Michael McIntyre’s Big Show is coming back at a time when it feels like the entire nation needs a jolly good belly laugh, as well as an escape from the doom and gloom of the daily headlines.

Filmed in front of the audience at London’s prestigious Theatre Royal in Drury Lane, the opening episode of season six dishes out a slice of unmissable good, clean family fun.

It will see Joel Corry and Tom Grennan perform their smash hit Lionheart (Fearless) and an unsuspecting Antiques Roadshow fan get the biggest surprise of their life, while TV legend Rylan Clark bravely hands over his phone in Send to All.

Have a hankie at the ready for the big finish, with an incredibly heart-warming performance from the Unexpected Star of the Show.

Here’s hoping the wickedly funny Midnight Gameshow format is still among the line-up, but there may also be new goodies for us to lap up during the latest series.

No matter what’s in store, the connecting thread throughout the entire evening is, of course, Michael and his infectious, irrepressible energy.

Watching television with his children on a Saturday night was part of the inspiration behind The Big Show.

“I liked the dynamic of the whole family watching TV together and found trying to create a show that everyone can enjoy really appealing,” he says.

It certainly seems to have struck a chord with the viewing public, with more than seven million people tuning in to watch seasons four and five. It scooped the BAFTA for Best Entertainment Performance in 2017, and has been nominated for Best Entertainment Performance, Presenter and Show in the years since.

You have to wonder how the comedian fits it all in.

In the last couple of years, as well as fronting The Big Show, he’s the host of both the US and UK versions of quiz show The Wheel, which also bagged a BAFTA Entertainment Performance nomination last year. He presented the 2021 documentary Michael McIntyre: In His Own Words, the Showman stand-up comedy for Netflix, spent two years on an eponymous world tour, and is set to launch the Jet-Lagged and Jolly shows at some point this year.

Michael also holds the record for being The O2 in London’s biggest selling artist, following 28 sold-out gigs, and has taken his brand of comedy to more than 20 countries.

As if all of that wasn’t exhausting enough, he’s also a dad-of-two.

We’ve recently seen him host a run of The Wheel, and now, just a few weeks later, he’s back. Is it possible to have too much of a good thing? In this case, certainly not.