Ludwig, review: David Mitchell’s cosy cryptic crime series is a comedy triumph

David Mitchell stars as John 'Ludwig' Taylor
David Mitchell stars as John ‘Ludwig’ Taylor - BBC

The BBC has made a show that I think you’ll love. I know, it’s a big claim to make. But Ludwig (BBC One) is really very good. It’s cosy crime without being twee, blessed with a witty script. The only reason to avoid it would be if you’re not a fan of David Mitchell, because the whole thing is built around his David Mitchell-ness.

He plays John, a chronically awkward puzzle-setter who uses the professional name Ludwig. One day he receives a call from his sister-in-law, Lucy (Anna Maxwell Martin). He learns that his identical twin brother, James, has vanished, leaving behind a coded note. James was a detective, and Lucy thinks that the key to his disappearance may lie at work. So she persuades a reluctant John to pose as James and gain access to police headquarters. Lucy tells him to make small talk if someone tries to engage him in conversation. “What small talk?” he flusters. “Have you heard my small talk?”

This leads to an opening episode of fish-out-of-water comedy, set in picturesque Cambridge, as John navigates the office and attempts to fool his brother’s colleagues. But when he ends up at the scene of a crime, John realises that his puzzle-solving skills can be put to good use.

Each episode (there are six) features a Cluedo-style murder case, which is neatly wrapped up in the space of an hour with John identifying the murderer in a room full of suspects, à la Poirot. Meanwhile, writer Mark Brotherhood unspools the mystery of James’s disappearance over the course of the series.

David Mitchell and Anna Maxwell Martin
David Mitchell and Anna Maxwell Martin - BBC

As the series goes on, John becomes more comfortable in the detective role, which does mean it gets slightly less funny with each episode. Mitchell needs a good comic foil, and this isn’t Maxwell Martin – who brings an impatient, slightly eccentric quality – but Dipo Ola as John/James’s competent police partner, DI Russell Carter. It’s a strength of the series that even actors in the smallest supporting roles are very amusing. Felicity Kendal and Derek Jacobi are guest stars.

It’s pleasingly escapist, with a quirkiness that lifts it above the likes of Death in Paradise. The show takes bits of every other detective show – Columbo, Inspector Morse, Midsomer Murders. It’s not reinventing the wheel, and David Mitchell isn’t reinventing himself. He essentially plays his best-known character, Mark Corrigan from Peep Show, if Mark had less ambition and slightly better furniture. This is fine with me, as I consider Peep Show to be the best British comedy of the 21st century. And you don’t want David Mitchell trying to be anything else, do you? He couldn’t play hard-bitten or sexy or a northerner or someone who wears jeans. He can only be David Mitchell, agonisingly uptight, so let’s just commend him for doing it so well.


Ludwig is available on BBC iPlayer now and begins on BBC One on Wednesday 25 September at 9pm