Rarely does a biopic of a comedian succeed in capturing the comic’s talent for being funny. In his fine portrayal in Chaplin, Robert Downey Jr inspired praise rather than chuckles. The same applied for Rod Steiger’s performance in W. C. Fields and Me, and though Donald O’Connor was sufficiently acrobatic in The Buster Keaton Story, he totally failed to suggest the Great Stone Face’s deadpan persona. Delightfully, Stan & Ollie bucks the trend. From the moment Laurel and Hardy check into a hotel on the first leg of their stage tour of Britain, it is immediately apparent that Steve Coogan and John C Reilly will provoke the same merriment and affection that so endeared the comedy team to generations of film-goers.

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Not that it’s a particularly happy time for the duo. Booked into second-rate theatres and hotels, they perform to half-empty houses while forlornly holding out hope for one more picture deal. Already struggling with the physical demands of the tour, the arrival of the men’s wives goads them into evaluating the reality of their current circumstance and soon old wounds are opened up.

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Coogan and Reilly are simply superb as the beloved film stars. On stage they excel at mimicking the team’s idiosyncratic traits (Laurel’s hesitant bumbling opposite Hardy’s resigned exasperation), yet it is off stage that they best demonstrate the foundation for their comedy. For despite Stan and Ollie’s constant squabbling, it is the love that these two performers shared that shone throughout their work.

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Similarly, the obvious affection the makers of this biopic have for Laurel and Hardy can’t help but permeate every frame of this film.