Still Game **

BBC1, Thursday

LIKE grandchildren, arthritis and a rise in the price of a Freddo, the arrival of a new series of Still Game has become a reminder of time’s passing, a great big post-it note with “memento mori, ya mugs” scrawled on it.

The original pride of the BBC Comedy Unit (before that whippersnapper Mrs Brown came along) first aired in 2002. It is a teenager still, but one that, on the evidence of last night’s outing, is ageing faster than a ripe banana in July.

As the eighth series began it was business as usual for the pensioner posse led by Jack and Victor (Greg Hemphill and Ford Kiernan). Boabby was moaning for Scotland about the boys spending nothing in his pub, Isa was still mopping the smallest shop floor in Scotland, and Navid was just back from the cash and carry. The “sit” in the com was twofold: Winston had to leave his flat after asbestos was found (they never had that plot line in Our Family), and Isa’s birthday was looming.

READ MORE: From beefy bakes to belly buttons and Boabby the barman - behind the scenes on Still Game

As is the law in comedy land, hilarious consequences were meant to ensue. In truth, it was a struggle to raise a smile in what was a long half hour. Isa and Navid replaced Jack and Victor as the show’s funniest turns some time ago, and they kept the crown last night.

The rest of the cast, meanwhile, were left to lumber through the same schtick, playing old bufferdom for laughs that never came. A sure sign of a comedy running out of ideas is the over-reliance on swearing and vulgarity.

READ MORE: Director Michael Hines shares the secrets of Still Game

While Still Game was always near the knuckle, some of the lines last night were heading in the direction of Bernard Manning. A lot of youngsters like to watch this show, even if it is on after the watershed. The targets, too, were tired, with pot shots at “West End *******” and fancy restaurants.

READ MORE: Why Still Game still has us smiling 16 years down the line

What saw the programme through was lingering affection for the characters and a hefty slug of sentimentality at the end. With a show as beloved as this, sometimes it is just enough to see auld faces again, but writers Kiernan and Hemphill cannot rely that forever, hence the much heralded developments coming along, including the death of a character. Who knows, perhaps there will be life in the old dog yet.