The second series of The Cleaner draws to a close

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Friday: The Cleaner (BBC1, 9.30pm)

The second series of The Cleaner draws to a close tonight, but don’t worry if you haven’t seen any previous episodes.

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Thanks to the nature of the show, which follows crime-scene cleaner Wicky as he gets rid of the gore in a variety of different locations, each episode can be seen as a stand-alone comedy.

It’s a format that appeals to the sitcom’s creator and star Greg Davies, who says: “I love the anthology nature of the show. It’s reassuringly old fashioned in many ways, like play for today from the 70s.

“What binds the series is there is the same man responding to a wide range of extreme situations and conflicted characters. I mean, it’s a bit like a one-man Scooby Doo and you can quote me on that even though it’s not particularly/remotely accurate.”

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It also means that over the course of the series, he’s been able to work with some very impressive guest stars including Simon Callow and Harriet Walter.

Greg says: “Getting to work with actors that I have admired from afar is such a privilege with this show. They were all brilliant in the roles and that we have convinced/ tricked them in to sharing a screen with a fat comedian is a great joy.”

However, in this concluding episode, he’s reunited with someone that he’s worked with many times before – his former Man Down co-star and inaugural Taskmaster contestant Roisin Conaty.

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It seems she was keen to collaborate with him again, saying: “I always love working with Greg, lots of laughs and gossiping between takes. It was a very different dynamic for us as my character has total control over him which was a bit different to Man Down.”

She adds that her favourite bit was “when Greg was tied to the chair and I flicked his nose. It was very funny to film, and I hope it makes the cut.”

We’ll have to wait to find out but what she can tell us is who she’s playing: “My character is part of an inept serial killer couple. She is also really into the mythology of serial killers, so she wants to make sure her killings make the grade of the well-known serial killers.

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“She is very camp and heightened, it’s almost like she is playacting as a serial killer but, you know, she kills people. It was fun to play someone who was so grandiose and dominant. Also, great wig.”

It all begins when a gamekeeper is murdered in rural Wales, and Wicky is called in to clean up the mess. He knows he’ll have to try not to get in the way of the undertakers, but it soon becomes clear that they are not the only people hanging around the scene.

He may be able to keep admirably calm when faced with gore but, as the situation takes a turn for the sinister 9as wel know it always does), will he keep his head? Or will he lose it?

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