Auntie's hidden asset

It's a BBC3 Monday night black comedy with crass Shameless overtones but some terrific performances - notably from the ex-Corrie star, one of the most interesting people in the business, with her writing skills (she nearly clinched a Dennis Potter award) matched by turns like Alan Partridge's Ukranian girl-friend and her work with Chris Morris, including the famously infamous paedophile effort.

The new show (catch up with it on BBC iPlayer) capitalises on her great dual talents for comedy and drama. She's a black sheep returning to England as a pre-op transsexual to look after an orphaned niece and nephews, to get a bit of revenge and generally prove that she's not the biggest freak in her family.

It's great these days that Auntie Beeb has channels to showcase stuff like this which they wouldn't dare flaunt in the face of the Last of the Summer Wine crowd. Don't forget that mainstream favourite Little Britain took a while to ease from radio down through the numbers to reach BBC1.

There are some great laughs and some genuinely moving moments in Mrs Inbetweeny, that strange but fertile ground where embarrassment shades into comedy with tragic overtones - the Ricky Gervais shtick.

I've said all I wanted to say, really, just a heads up to anyone who enjoys great acting. It's brilliant the way Bullmore convinces you that she's a bloke enjoying looking like a woman.

Whatever you might think about her false male appendage, there's one thing you must say about her as a performer - she's got balls.