Witty Jo Brand hosts a purrfect ‘Kitten Rescue’

Jo Brand doesn’t suffer fools, and her deadpan wit – which made her name – has terrified wary critics in the past.

Despite all the work she’s done in the years since, her early image as a black-clad rebel has stuck with some people, and a result, she probably isn’t at the top of many folks’ list of fluffy, soft-hearted celebrities.

However, those who work with her regard Brand as one of the warmest, kindest people they know.

In fact, while speaking at the Cheltenham Literature Festival, she bemoaned how nasty she felt society had become in recent years, blaming the influence of reality TV shows.

“I think younger people are nasty to each other and I think a lot of it is under the cover of anonymity,” she claimed at the time. “So you can be as nasty to someone as you like and I also think it is led by that sort of behaviour being displayed on reality shows, for example, and people almost modelling it.

“On Big Brother, for example, everyone knows it makes better telly to be nasty than it does to make everyone a cup of tea and say a poem to them. I just think it has sort have been made acceptable in a way to be nasty.”

In recent years Brand has gained a new following thanks to The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice, in which she and her guests chat about what happened in the most recent episode before speaking to the latest person to leave the tent.

She was reportedly in the running to take over from Sandi Toksvig on the main show – and what could be cuddlier than that?

She’s also revealed her softer side as the presenter of this series, which she claims is perfect (or should that be ‘purrfect’?) for her because she’s a bona fide cat-lover who once shared her home with five members of the species.

These days that’s down to a more manageable number, although Brand has admitted to almost taking some of the moggies home after filming… “It’s very tempting,” she grins.

Here, cameras follow her to RSPCA Harmsworth in Holloway, North London, which was founded using a bequest from Sir Harold Harmsworth in 1968. It’s not the first TV series to be filmed there – the BBC’s Animal Hospital, which ran for 10 years, was also based at the site.

Each episode follows its dedicated staff’s efforts to provide the best care possible for felines in trouble, as well as the RSPCA inspectors on the frontline.

The opening edition begins in dramatic fashion as more than 20 firefighters face a race against time to save tiny kitten Ezri, who has been stuck in a storm drain for 20 hours and is unlikely to survive much longer if the latest attempt to rescue him fails.

There’s a chance to hear about one of the most unusual cases dealt with by inspector Paul, who is called to an emergency involving a cat tied to a fence with a chain. Brand herself mucks in by helping the nurses with Marta, a puss who somehow survived falling four floors from a balcony, before becoming a surrogate mum to three felines.

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