Michael Barrymore: My Kind Of Clobber

Things we never thought we'd say: Michael Barrymore is launching a men's clothing line. Actually, let us rephrase that: Michael Barrymore's dog  is designing a clothing line. Monikered Made By Dave - after Barrymore's Jack Russell - the website is spattered with inane gags, some from a canine point of view ("I personally oversee the strict quality control of every garment. They all have to be 100% perfect…If they are not, I piss on it") and others attempting to make light of the comedian's troubled past ("Frankly, since the demise of the News of the World I've had to dodge less of these FAQing things").

The nadir comes in the Shipping Information subpage saying "Did you know gob is a slang word term for a seaman? Well blow me!", an innuendo which, while just about excusable in a Carry On reboot bears absolutely no relation to the page content.

However the most shocking part of this entire enterprise is that some of the clothes are actually quite good, especially the shoes. Seriously, check out the navy saddle straps. Who knows? Perhaps Barrymore will Strike It Lucky.

Available now. From £19. made-by-dave.com

GQ.com 

A surprisingly generous piece on the much demonised Mr Barrymore - the swimwear section jokes were left to Twitter.

The Daily Mirror reports that Michael Barrymore - or, to give him his full tabloid title; "The recovering alcoholic, with hits including Strike It Lucky and My Kind of People, [who] was dropped by ITV in 2001 after Stuart Lubbock, 31, was found dead in his pool" - is "planning a return to TV after a decade in the wilderness."
Though these plans appear to be at what TV executives might call "the somewhat vague stage".

PS: A full interview about how he "faced his demons" etc appeared in Saturday's Mirror.