John Sergeant on the Tourist Trail, Tuesday 8pm, ITV1

Posted by Stewart Turner

A stern rap over the knuckles for whoever at ITV failed to notice John Sergeant’s new show was a shoe-in for a Sunday tea-time slot. Aimed squarely at the kind of people who find the Antiques Roadshow a little too racy and Last of the Summer Wine a little too blue, it was the perfect show in front of which to crack open a packet of biscuits and sip a cup of tea.

Affable John, these days known primarily as “a dancing pig in Cuban heels” rather than a respected BBC political journalist, is on a mission to see the country through a fresh pair of eyes. Instead of the usual celebrity jaunt through the rolling countryside, he assured us he’d be setting out to show us Britain as the millions of foreign tourists who visit our fair isle each year see it.

The British countryside looked undeniably alluring, with sweeping shots capturing the often overlooked beauty of our green and pleasant land – and the show was definitely onto something when it adopted more of an irreverent take on proceedings. The retired newshound’s attempts to explain the appeal of allotments to a bunch of baffled American tourists was a particular highlight.

Despite John’s promise to show us a side of the country which is “often ignored or forgotten”, it wasn’t much of a surprise when he started wheeling out a succession of whimsical oddities like Morris dancers, topiary, croquet games and cream teas. Presumably he’s saving the happy-slapping and dog-fighting for next week.

But to give Mr Sergeant his dues, he does raise the point that we often overlook the miles upon miles of gorgeous countryside on our doorsteps, and seeing our manor through the eyes of some genuinely wide-eyed tourists is enough to make you pack the picnic hamper and head off to the countryside for the weekend. Unless it’s raining.