Yes, Prime Minister

Jim Hacker is England's Prime Minister. He does have some good ideas, but Sir Humphrey -- played by Nigel Hawthorne -- always makes sure that none of Jim's ideas are realized. Jim Hacker is a Tory, alright, but he is in fact more of a liberal man -- that keeps Sir Humphrey busy, who would do anything to keep the UK from adopting progressive politics. Of course, Jim himself does have some serious flaws himself, not so much on the political, but rather on the personal side -- this makes Sir Humphrey's "job" a lot easier.

Nigel Hawthorne spreads the same kind of Tory charm that he does in _Her Majesty Mrs Brown_, where he interprets D'Israeli. _Yes PM_ is for those who like a bit of politics and LOTS of humour: the eternal fight between progress (Jim, his wife, Dorothy) and reaction (Sir Humphrey and Bernard, Hacker's secretary, who's always driving the others mad with his speeches on Latin and Greek grammar...)

James Hacker MP didn't expect that he would be the next prime minister. Unlike in America, the party is elected in Britain while we, Americans, vote for candidates regardless of their party. Despite the differences, Paul Eddington CBE's performance as minister turned prime minister almost overnight is helped by his senior adviser, Sir Humphrey, played by another knight, Sir Nigel Hawthorne, and veteran actor Derek Fowlds also returns to the scene as well. Now instead of pleasing some people, he has to please the nation rather than his constituency. Now, he has a hard job to do even more difficult than before. Now, he must approve the honors list and work with Her Majesty as well on a regular basis. Hacker is not the hacking type. He is rather than the every man who we like and don't want to dislike and turn into a villain of sorts or a vicious dictator. Now, we see the prime minister's point of view and all the pleasing that must go on as well as handle strikes.

I've been listening to the radio adaptation on Audible recently and watching some episodes via Amazon video. The humour is still sharp, immaculately timed, and the acting brilliant. Even though "a week is a long time in politics" , the issues presented are not too different from those we face today.

This series is simply the best political comedy ever. From first hand experiences not with the british but the european administration and from my studies of political science I can pledge the satire to be really, really sharp. The dialogues are superb and I simply love the characters. Sir Humphrey is unbeatable. As a fellow writer already commented a must see for everyone into politics.

In my years as a student of political science at the university of Leiden, one of the professors used to rave about these series whenever the subject of British politics was on the agenda. And even though that professor wasn't the most humorous of chaps, his quotes and tales from the series always guaranteed a good laugh.

I recently got hold of the entire series, and even though I do view them with a somewhat scholarly mind (old habits, and such), laughing out loud is my usual response. So cleverly written, such an exquisite cast of characters, such a mild way of portraying profound cynicism ("A cynic is what an idealist calls a realist", dixit Sir Humphrey Appleby).

I will probably still look at it in ten, twenty, thirty years time (if I live to see the day) ... knowing that there will always be a Sir Humphrey Appleby, a Bernard Woolley and a Right Honorable James Hacker around somewhere preventing the series from becoming outdated.

I don't know if that's something to look forward to, but if it guarantees the same laughs, I'm all for it!