MUMBAI: BBC Two kicks off the new year with a celebration of the best of British comedy presented by Jonathan Ross.

The show Britain's Best Sitcom that launches on 10 January will run over the next three months. The debut episode will be a three hour extravaganza counting down the top 50 sitcoms, as voted for by the public in a first round viewer poll.

The show will first reveal the last 40 in a countdown from 50 to 11 and then the top 10 will be listed in alphabetical order after which a second round of voting will be launched. The BBC has stated that the list is a testament to the British talent for comedy and the voting process will be agonising.

Some of the contenders have had successful runs on Indian television as well. They include To The Manor Born, Drop The Dead Donkey, Blackadder, 'Allo 'Allo, Are You Being Served? In India, the last four have aired on Star World.

Ross will provide viewers with the definitive guide to the greatest sitcoms ever made using a combination of classic clips, unforgettable catch phrases, behind-the-scenes anecdotes and unseen footage revealed for the first time on British television. Following the launch, over the next ten Saturday nights, there will be in-depth one hour documentaries on each of the Top 10. It will be presented by British television celebrities doing some unusual things in the most unexpected places. Each of them will give revealing insights about each programme.