Renaissance man
David Brent (Ricky Gervais), Manager of Wernham-Hogg, is an icon for the 21st century. He is an accomplished dancer, poet, philosopher, satirist, and humanitarian. Though he humbly describes himself as "a chilled-out entertainer" we prefer to think of him as a modern Renaissance man. He is also a monstrous walking ball of frustration, insensitivity and desperation. It's a rare thing to fall so much in love with a TV character like Brent, knowing that if you actually worked with him, you'd want him dead.

Slough. The most boring place on earth?
While the Slough Industrial Estate isn't exactly the best advertisement for the area, the region has a rich history. The first recorded mention of Slough was in 1196, when it was spelled Slo. Most historians think that the name came from the slough or muddy land between Upton-cum-Chalvey and Eton. And who said history was dull?

Team effort
Any office manager will tell you that he's only as good as the team behind him and in Slough it's no exception. In fact, anyone who's ever worked in an office will recognise every personality trait that the Wernham-Hogg team displays. We all know a Gareth, the pasty, self-important yes-man and we all avoid people like salesman Finchy, with his overbearing, lecherous patter. We all see a bit of ourselves in Tim, one of the few - humans - working there, who dreams of leaving all this boredom behind and doing something valuable with his life. But he never does.

Sound familiar?
If, like Tim at Wernham-Hogg, you can't stand the boredom of your job, here's a hint to avoid doing any work. Walk around the office holding a piece of paper and pen; people will think you're on your way to speak to someone and leave you alone. After a few hours of this, start looking annoyed. Again, people will think your far too stressed and busy and stay well clear. It never fails.

Will Brent bounce back?
At the end of the second series, Brent was fired. Ousted by his new boss and all round better person Neil Godwin, the last scene proved to be surprisingly touching and depressing, as Brent, moved to tears, begs not to be made redundant from his petty job. Given that Gervais has said there won't be any more series of the show, the British nation is left hoping that some sort of Christmas special will let us see what life throws at Brentmeister General next.