Narrated by ex-junkie Tina and set within one of the racially divided Yorkshire communities blighted by the Bradford race riots of 2001, this focuses on two families from separate sides of the estates.

The lives of the Crabtrees and the Khans become irrevocably intertwined during the lead up to Mischief Night – a kind of Tyke free for all for children.

Tina, the matriarch of the Crabtree household has three children from three different fathers, her dysfunctional family a living, breathing advertisement for Asbos.

The main events revolve around Kimberley, Tina's middle child, and Asif, the rambunctious member of the extended Khan family.

Tina is there searching for the father her mother won’t reveal, who she believes is Asian. Asif is there selling drugs to repay a debt to the local hood, Qassim, after crashing into him in a car he has ‘borrowed’ from his family.

Kimberley and Asif plot to kill Qassim with a gun they steal from Kimberley’s older brother, which he has found in a shake down on a gang of rival drug dealers trying to move in on his grandfather’s patch.

All of these story elements build up to a climax on Mischief Night where Asif and Kimberley wait at Qassim’s girlfriend’s house ready to bump him off.

With every ingredient for a gritty Northern drama a la Mike Leigh or Shane Meadows, Woolcock instead has built this as a comedy and pokes fun at racial and socio-economic stereotypes in the same way the Channel 4 drama Shameless did so well.

It isn’t a surprise that this is executive produced by the same two responsible and even features some of the same cast.

Although not as witty, original or effective as that, this stands up reasonably well and is, in parts extremely funny.

But this is also a drama and that which Shameless balanced so well isn’t pulled off with as much accomplishment here.

It seems Woolcock has decided to play almost everything for laughs, drawing upon and exaggerating stereotype to a point of caricaturing her characters, which results in a detached, almost surrealistic world.

Perhaps this is the effect Woolcock wanted but what I feel she loses in doing this is an opportunity to explore the naturally created dramatic tension within the context of racial segregation, which she has purposely chosen as a backdrop for her story and, in addition, the sense of drama generated during the films well structured climax.

Although looking at dysfunction in a light-hearted, often very funny way this seemed restricted by its tonal imbalance and I left with a sense that Woolcock meant only to observe not comment, using context as a generator only for punchlines and not as a political springboard.

Perhaps some may consider this as admirable – a comedy about racial stereotypes without judgement - I felt as though it generated a lack of interest in the central characters and made me wonder whether there really was a point aside from humour.

Gus Crotty