Yes, Minister
- Yes, Minister is off air
- Remind me
As our weather is so wet, we Brits like our comedy very, very dry, and you don't get any drier than this! The exploits of James Hacker MP, as he lurches from Department of Administrative Affairs to the top of the heap, make you realise that British politicians haven't changed in the 20 years since the show was first on TV. Sadly, they probably never will.
A civil life
Poking fun at politicians is as British as not being bothered to actually vote, but Yes, Minister also takes a jab at that other self-important British institution, the civil service. We all know someone like the wonderfully devious Sir Humphrey Appleby (Nigel Hawthorne) and watching him keep his head when all about him are losing theirs is at times a delight and at times just a good reminder that this is a skill we could all do with mastering.
Conflict of interest
People always go on about how nothing in Britain works properly, but you only have to watch an episode of Yes, Minister to understand why. Time and again Hacker and his blustery but naive declarations about how to run a country more efficiently are crushed under the sheer weight of bureaucracy in the form of smooth-talking Sir Humphrey and his red tape. Timeless stuff!
Who said politics isn't funny?
Throughout the 80s, Yes, Minister was one of the most popular British comedy series on TV and it was the first to win the BAFTA Best Comedy Series Award three years running. Its success is largely due to its wonderful dialogue and a bitingly accurate portrayal of life in politics. The characters are so convincing that Paul Eddington, who played naïve MP Hacker, once said that when people met him in real life, they "tended to play safe and treat me as a minister just in case".
A winner with Maggie
Among the programme's fans was one Margaret Thatcher, who named it as her favourite programme. "Its closely observed portrayal of what goes on in the corridors of power" the old dear once said, "has given me hours of pure joy". She even wrote a sketch herself where she played the Prime Minister to Paul Eddington's Hacker and it was played on the National Viewers and Listeners Awards 1984. Not only that, she saw to it that co-writer Antony Jay received a knighthood, while Paul Eddington and Nigel Hawthorne both got CBEs in the 1986 New Year's Honours list.
Lasting memory
It is sad to say that only Derek Fowldes, who played Woolley, is still with us. Eddington, who became famous in middle age with this show and The Good Life, died in November aged 68. In 2001 Hawthorne died suddenly, aged 72, from a heart attack. Both actors have left a hole in both British drama and comedy, but Yes, Minister is a permanent reminder of their brilliance.
Poking fun at politicians is as British as not being bothered to actually vote, but Yes, Minister also takes a jab at that other self-important British institution, the civil service. We all know someone like the wonderfully devious Sir Humphrey Appleby (Nigel Hawthorne) and watching him keep his head when all about him are losing theirs is at times a delight and at times just a good reminder that this is a skill we could all do with mastering.
Conflict of interest
People always go on about how nothing in Britain works properly, but you only have to watch an episode of Yes, Minister to understand why. Time and again Hacker and his blustery but naive declarations about how to run a country more efficiently are crushed under the sheer weight of bureaucracy in the form of smooth-talking Sir Humphrey and his red tape. Timeless stuff!
Who said politics isn't funny?
Throughout the 80s, Yes, Minister was one of the most popular British comedy series on TV and it was the first to win the BAFTA Best Comedy Series Award three years running. Its success is largely due to its wonderful dialogue and a bitingly accurate portrayal of life in politics. The characters are so convincing that Paul Eddington, who played naïve MP Hacker, once said that when people met him in real life, they "tended to play safe and treat me as a minister just in case".
A winner with Maggie
Among the programme's fans was one Margaret Thatcher, who named it as her favourite programme. "Its closely observed portrayal of what goes on in the corridors of power" the old dear once said, "has given me hours of pure joy". She even wrote a sketch herself where she played the Prime Minister to Paul Eddington's Hacker and it was played on the National Viewers and Listeners Awards 1984. Not only that, she saw to it that co-writer Antony Jay received a knighthood, while Paul Eddington and Nigel Hawthorne both got CBEs in the 1986 New Year's Honours list.
Lasting memory
It is sad to say that only Derek Fowldes, who played Woolley, is still with us. Eddington, who became famous in middle age with this show and The Good Life, died in November aged 68. In 2001 Hawthorne died suddenly, aged 72, from a heart attack. Both actors have left a hole in both British drama and comedy, but Yes, Minister is a permanent reminder of their brilliance.
Your Comments
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curries
wrote on 21 Jul 2009 at 11:38 AM
Just 1 thing to say about this legendary show!...yes minister!
kevin - Something to say? Add a comment...
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