Has Partridge lost any of the cringe factor after being away from the Beeb for so long? Of course not. But, as Coogan notes, the character has evolved since he was last on national telly.

“Alan does reflect the times,” says Coogan, who co-wrote the new series with brothers Neil and Rob Gibbons. “The good thing is he doesn’t stay the same. He tries to be in tune with the zeitgeist. We can adapt him and his attitudes to the times.”

“Twenty years ago he was a reactionary, right-wing character. Now, he’s a bit more like David Cameron – he’s economically conservative but he understands you’ve got to be socially liberal. He tries to be on message with things, but he’s not really.”

With a long and varied career – not to mention a compellingly disastrous personal life – Alan Partridge remains one of British comedy’s most legendary characters. Here, we take a closer look at the Partridge story in all its messy, embarrassing, wince-inducing glory. Just click/hover on the images below to find out more…