I love this programme dearly. Its examination of the realationship of politicians with beauracracy and the civil service bosses is marvellous in the same way the examination of politicians' relationships with the mass media is astonishingly well treated in The Thick Of It. I hope that we will some day get a programme that deals as well with politicians' relationships with major party funders, as this is perhaps even more pertinent to real politics.
The actors in the stage version of this are on Front Row tonight (7:15, Radio 4) talking about it.
Quote: Bovril @ February 25 2010, 3:42 AM BSTI love this programme dearly. Its examination of the realationship of politicians with beauracracy and the civil service bosses is marvellous in the same way the examination of politicians' relationships with the mass media is astonishingly well treated in The Thick Of It. I hope that we will some day get a programme that deals as well with politicians' relationships with major party funders, as this is perhaps even more pertinent to real politics.
Whilst not exactly satirical or confrontational in the same way that either The Thick Of It or Yes Minister are, The New Statesman does do quite a bit to cover that side of things.
Can't say I liked the new Anthony Jay sketches done for Newsnight over the election, but I do like the original series - rather clever writing, which I do admire in a sitcom.
Hacker as PM, writing in his diary after meeting a foreign politician, "He remarked he was pleased to have come across a Prime Minister with a bit of sense. I asked which country was blessed with such a leader".
Tonight's edition of Mastermind had Yes Minister and Yes, Prime Minister as one of the specialist subjects. It is currently on iPlayer (2:05 mins in).
A friend bought me a copy of the Yes Minister Miscellany recently. It's largely a collection of quotations and bits and bobs, the complete scripts are out there somewhere if you want to quote every line. But those scattered bits and bobs are, I found at least, quite interesting.
Jay and Lynn state in the introduction that they based a lot of the Hacker and Sir Bernard characters on Steptoe and Son, which does in retrospect after all these years, make complete sense. And I quote:
"The minister and his Permanent Secretary had an unlikely amount in common with Steptoe & Son. The minister was Young Steptoe, the one who went out and met the public, the one with all the dreams and aspirations, and the Permanent Secretary was Old Steptoe, the one who really understood the business - sceptical, cynical and constantly deflating and frustrating Young Steptoe's plans and projects. Later, we realised that we also owed a great debt to Jeeves and Wooster and to The Admirable Crichton: like them the basic joke of Yes Minister was the master who was less able than the servant."
Saw the stage show just before Christmas and although it was good it was so difficult not to see Paul Eddington and Nigel Hawthorne in the leads. The show is returning to the West End with a new cast in June I think. Worth going to see.
It's coming to Wolves shortly but . . £30 a ticket? Jeeez.
I'd have paid that for the original cast but not the ones in it now.
HElp! I am trying to remember a comedy/drama about a Dr who lives and works in a small English village and takes place in 20s or 30s. The Dr's son returns to the village also as a Dr with his family. The series is sort of like Ballykissangel focusing on the Drs, but also people in the village.
Thanks so much
You're more likely to get a reply if you create a new thread for the question, yankee.
Quote: yankee @ April 17 2011, 11:14 PM BSTHElp! I am trying to remember a comedy/drama about a Dr who lives and works in a small English village...
That was 'All Creatures, Great and Small' wasn't it?
Quote: Oldrocker @ April 17 2011, 11:05 PM BSTIt's coming to Wolves shortly but . . £30 a ticket? Jeeez.
I'd have paid that for the original cast but not the ones in it now.
I think for that much money you could get Derek Fowlds to come round your house and tap dance for around twenty minutes.
Quote: yankee @ April 17 2011, 11:14 PM BSTHElp! I am trying to remember a comedy/drama about a Dr who lives and works in a small English village and takes place in 20s or 30s. The Dr's son returns to the village also as a Dr with his family. The series is sort of like Ballykissangel focusing on the Drs, but also people in the village.
Thanks so much
The thing with James Bolam? Born and Bred was it?
The Yes PM stage show is very good especially David Hague in the Hacker. However it felt a bit creaky compared to Thick of It even thought he original series is less so. Jay and Lynn should write a spin off about Humphrey's totally hopeless banker mate Sir Desmond Glazebrook, a man for our times if ever there was one.
