Radio Times: Review by:; Mark Braxton

Dirk Gently is bedding in nicely. Where the show was groping around for a strong identity last week, this second story is much more involving. The series shares the same character dynamic as Sherlock – brilliant but antisocial hero, likeable Everyman-sidekick – but goes its own way with humour and eccentricity.

Dirk returns to the Cambridge college that expelled him for cheating, and finds a centre of research for artificial intelligence. Catching up with his former mentor, Professor Jericho (Bill Paterson), Dirk is soon plunged into a conspiracy of theft, murder, cutting-edge robotics and online gaming. It ends up being this week’s oddest combination: fantastical and touching. It works wonderfully.

About this programme

2/3. Dirk and Macduff visit the university from which the detective was expelled for cheating. They have been asked to guard a robot for Dirk's former mentor Professor Jericho - but soon after their arrival, the robot goes missing and the academic is found dead. While they struggle to clear their names and identify the culprit, Macduff faces another problem - his girlfriend Susan is also in town for a job interview, which, if successful, could put an end to his sleuthing career. Comedy drama based on characters created by Douglas Adams, starring Stephen Mangan and Darren Boyd, with Helen Baxendale, Bill Paterson, Sylvestra Le Touzel (Appropriate Adult) and Will Sharpe (Casualty).