Every year there are many new TV comedies on the biggest of the networks on US television; CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox. Networks are always looking for the next big hit, and more often than not it falls on the actors and actresses to propel these fledgling television shows to the highest heights. Whether it is the main star, or one of an ensemble, there are always breakout stars that steal scenes and provide the funniest moments in comedy shows. Here are 3 of the newest stars of comedy television in 2012.

Jane Levy

Starring in ABC's new hit sitcom Suburgatory, Jane Levy is definitely a young star on the rise. At just the age of 22, Levy is the lead in Suburgatory, a show about a father who moves his daughter from the bustling inner city of New York to the assumed slower paced and family friendly suburbs only to find out things aren't as normal as they'd hoped. Jane Levy will also be starring in 3 upcoming films to boost her growing reputation so look for her to be a staple on screens for many years to come.

Max Greenfield

One of the co-stars on Fox's New Girl, Max Greenfield is the very definition of a scene-stealer. New Girl is predominantly about star Zooey Deschanel and her life having moved in with three bachelors, and Greenfield plays one of these roommates; Schmidt. With his “douchebag” persona and self-proclaimed ladies' man ways, Greenfield has gone from one of the gang to arguably the funniest person on the show and expect this trend to continue when the show resumes with Season 2 this coming September.

Zooey Deschanel

Celebrity Juice is a formulaic panel show on ITV2 but with a twist of lemon, Keith Lemon that is, and with him at the helm there is no telling what hilarious antics are going to occur. Leigh Francis' comedy creation, Keith Lemon (Business Man of the Year '93) is as absurd comedy character as you will find, with his thick Yorkshire accent. He had a successful show before this called Keith Lemon's Very Brilliant World Tour, but Celebrity Juice is the perfect format to give his rude and crude style full range.

This show is basically an excuse for Keith Lemon to be as dirty as he possibly wants. There is no telling what mischief he will get up to as he has a filthy mind and an even dirtier vocabulary which appeals to a younger audience. He once strapped rapper Tinchy Stryder face down on a massage table and rubbed a cucumber covered in white cream all over his arms, and he had to guess what it was. Very strange, but at the same time, very funny.

There are two team captains, one is the voluptuous TV presenter Holly Willoughby who Keith Lemon overtly fancies and refers to her as Holly “Willa-booby”. On the other side of the stage on the opposing team is Fearne Cotton who is constantly at odds with Keith. It's cat and mouse with these two, she takes the micky out of him for his silly clothes and hair style, while he makes fun of her apparently huge nostrils. Another resident on the show is comedian Rufus Hound, who is known as the dog, and when he is first introduced the crowd bark and make dog noises of appreciation. Verne Troyer, the Mini Me star from the Austin Powers films, is also a friend of the show.

Not everybody is born funny, and a lot more people in the world think they are funnier than they actually are. While some of the funniest people out there, who would make amazing stand-ups if they tried, don't pursue it for some reason. Each has their own reason, but many don't make the leap because of stage fright. 

Not everyone is an extrovert after all and it takes a lot to get up in front of a crowd and tell them jokes which could go one of two ways: very good or very bad. So before you start making plans to become a comedian, make sure this is what you want to do. You have to be %100 committed or you won't survive. Comedy is a serious profession, it requires total dedication and perseverance, but most of all it requires a thick skin, because criticism and heckling will be coming your way at regular intervals. So be prepared.

Don't be one of those arrogant, self-assured, amateur comics who watch the likes of Alan Carr and Sean Locke playing the Apollo, and think: “I could do that!”. Because that is absurd. These men have spent years perfecting their craft, they have toured the length and breadth of Britain just to get their big break. It has took them years to get all their material just right before you see them on TV.

Many of the stand-ups who have risen to the top of their profession earned their stripes in comedy clubs, on what is known as the stand-up circuit. This is where you should make your first inroads into comedy, see a club promoter and ask about the possibility of a guest spot. Another way in is to write some jokes and send them to your favourite comic for their use. If they are good, it could get you more work. This is how Frankie Boyle started.

Last year, British sitcom The Inbetweeners went to the big screen, and became a box office hit. Raking in £45 million, one can just imagine the Hollywood big guns eyeing up the cream of current British comedy for potential. With that in mind, here are a few British sitcom suggestions that would look good on the big screen:

The IT Crowd appeared on our screens in 2006. Screamingly funny, it is based around the ludicrous problems and situations encountered by computer geeks Roy and Moss, and their technophobe ‘relationship manager' Jen. Clever and witty, it derives humour everywhere, from catchphrases and wordplay to satire and parody – and it hits the mark every single time. After six years and four series', the show still hasn't been resolved, making it an ideal candidate for a big-screen release.

Absolutely Fabulous, written by and starring Jennifer Saunders, is now ten years old, but if the critical reception to the recent specials is anything to go by, its popularity isn't waning. Intelligent, multi-layered and downright hilarious, it's brilliant British humour. It features the adventures of chain-smoking chain-drinking alcoholics Eddie and Patsy, and considering they're always jetting off to exotic locations (Marrakech and Paris to name a couple) there is plenty of scope to put this in the cinema. Providing you had Jennifer Saunders firmly in the driving seat, of course.

The hospital is not a natural place for a sitcom. You're usually too worried about catching the latest norovirus to have a good chuckle. But Green Wing defied convention and went on to success, largely off the back of the incredible (and usually mad) characters. The anal Doctor Statham, the adorably preoccupied Harriet from HR, and the psychotic Sue White – the humour is created entirely within the characterisation, rather than through a comedy persona with a character bolted on. The cult following that Green Wing accumulated would be sure to make this a box office success, especially after a somewhat unsatisfying finale.

Comedy is full of characters that we'd like to be – either for their wit, their funny lives, or some other aspect of their lifestyle. Here are some of the best skins we'd like to inhabit – some of them only for an hour or two, for fear of catching something.

Bernard Black in Dylan Moran's hilarious comedy Black Books might not lead a particularly hygienic healthy lifestyle. But part of the reason he is so hilarious is that some part of each viewer would like to be able to lead his life. To be able to sit all day in a chair drinking wine and chain-smoking your way to an early grave is an incredibly decadent concept. On top of that, Bernard is rarely worried or concerned about anything, and it's obvious that he thoroughly enjoys his life. Who among us can't say we envy him for that?

Denholm, from Graham Lineham's The IT Crowd is equally lucky. Armed with an enormous amount of money, he is able to be as eccentric, mad and downright rude to whomever he likes. Whilst he is unsure exactly what his company does, this doesn't seem to matter. ‘ITV!' he proclaims in one episode. ‘I'd forgotten I'd bought that!' Denholm leads a fantastic life, but we wouldn't want to be him in series 2 when he commits suicide due to the police arriving to question him about irregularities in the pension fund.

“Good news, everyone! Futurama is confirmed for another series!” And it's good news indeed. Futurama is currently in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most critically acclaimed animated series, beating even long-running show The Simpsons which was also created by Matt Groening. So it was a bit of a mystery when Fox cancelled the show way back in 2003, especially as it also had such a strong fanbase. Fox have a reputation for cancelling shows in their prime, though, and so it was no surprise when Comedy Central resurrected the show in 2008. And now that we're guaranteed at least another two more years of it, we revisit some of the best episodes from series past.

Time Keeps on Slippin' is the epitome of why the series has been so successful – Futurama is completely unlimited in the way that no other sitcom is. Set far in the future, anything can happen. And anything does. The focus also remains on the group as a whole rather than one character, meaning that the humour is very broad. Top notch stuff.

The Devil's Hands are Idle Playthings features the Robot Devil in his finest hour, performing in a well-written and hilarious opera in order to get his hands back from Fry. Not only will you be humming the songs all day, but you'll keep cracking up as you remember the lines and the bemused reactions of the audience members. The touching finish with Fry and Leela also make this the perfect episode, and it's apt that it was the last before the series was initially cancelled back in 2003.

For a bit of a festive feeling, you can't beat Xmas Story of season 2. Professor Farnsworth stands out particularly well, despite his frequent insistence that he should remove his clothes at every opportunity. His accidental win at a skiing contest whilst asleep stands out as one of the funniest and most random moments in the show's history.

Have I Got News for You is an immensely popular TV panel show in which contestants are quizzed about the events appearing in the week's news. Its longevity is down to several factors. Firstly, it's a format which everyone can enjoy, and it's easy to get laughs from the week's news if you look in the right places (towards 10 Downing Street, for example). Secondly, long-term fans will always tune in because of the social rivalry between Ian Hislop and Paul Merton, the team captains, who get laughs largely by taking the mickey out of one another. And thirdly, the show has a new host and two new participants every week, and so up to three new fanbases are potentially discovering the show every week.

Of course, you don't survive this long on British TV without having a few scandals and close shaves. When details of Angus Deayton's affair came out, it looked as though the show might pack up entirely. Deayton – who was the permanent host at the time – was forced to leave instead, and the show continued with a guest host every week and became stronger than ever. Paul Merton also left the show for a time because he felt it had grown stale and repetitive. But this sabbatical didn't last long, and he returned after only a few series' absence.

If there aren't hair-raising moments, you don't get to enjoy the hilarious moments quite so much. And this is certainly a show with some hilarious moments in its long history. Ian Hislop's editing of the satirical newspaper Private Eye regularly lands him in hot water with guest contestants, for example. It regularly backfires on the angered contestant though, and Hislop always comes out on top. Piers Morgan got much more than he bargained for when he participated in the show. The man quickly started regretting his hate campaign against Hislop when it became clear that the audience was on Hislop's side. The tension was quite incredible, with host Deayton remarking: ‘Would you two like to go outside and have a fight?'

Whether you're a bona fide Londoner or are just visiting the capital for a few days one of the most enjoyable things you can do is pop into a comedy club for a night of laughter and fun. Live comedy is an art form which has always been massively popular and, if anything, it is growing in appeal with long running TV shows like Michael McIntyre's Comedy Roadshow and Mock the Week bringing fresh stand-ups to the nation's attention. It is no surprise that this surge in interest is being reflected in the live scene which is vibrant, exciting and full of variety. There is something for everyone looking for a laugh in London, so have a look at what's on offer in some of the top clubs.

Many of London's most famous comedy venues are conveniently located right on Leicester Square and one of the most well-known is the Big Night Out club. Frequently playing host to many of the nation's most popular acts the club offers lots of discount deals for people planning to make a night of it, with three for one offers including the show, dinner at one of the many great restaurants nearby and entrance to a local bar and club. This is a great deal, particularly if you are just visiting London for a short stay. 

Those who prefer a more alternative taste to their comedy should check out The 99 Comedy Club who run a show every night of the week, every week of the year in a number of venues across the city, in Leicester Square, Oxford Circus and Islington. Frequently cited by comedy critics as one of the best ways to experience live comedy, The 99 Comedy Club provides an atmosphere that is intimate, friendly and, most of all, fun.

Comedy Carnival also run shows in multiple venues, in both their venue in Leicester Square and in The Grand in Clapham. They offer lots of great discount deals on dinners and shows at these venues and often host world famous comedians like Michael McIntyre, Jim Jeffries and Jack Whitehall.