A clear conscience - Yes, Prime Minister - BBC comedy

[najhoant]

"When did you aquire this taste for luxury?"

[Academician100]

Yes, Minister is a show which eloquently illustrates that what ministers say and do, what officicals record and implement, how both are reported by the press and what the public at large recieve and interpret, differ violently from all the others. Whilst simultaneously showing bureaucratic empire building, ministers lining their own pockets and the systematic 'greasing of the wheels' of general administerative practice and on top of all that they still manage to fit brilliantly written wit, 5*

[Washu1973]

A clear conscience... when did you acquire this taste for luxuries.

[The859]

This is bring me back :D. I love this haha

[ovensfat]

Brilliant actor & Coventry kid.

[ovensfat]

Brilliant actor & Coventry kid.

[SIGURDOYVIND]

The purpose of minutes is not to record events, it is to protect people. How brilliant is that!

And some place in the Yes, Minister series he said

-Sir Hamprey, there has been no success in our efforts

-Bernard, you don't measure your result by success but by activities. And our activities have been considerable and productive.

Isnt that just marvelous?

[alidcan]

a clear conscience!!!!

when did you acquire this taste for luxuries????

PRICELESS

[Stantzs]

why do they play the laugh track when they arent doing any jokes?

[Deepsmeg]

@Stantzs Live audiences are unpredictable.

[LondonClarinetist]

"When did you aquire this taste for luxuries?" hahahaha

[mattwho81]

"How can we justify that?"

"You are his sevant!" "Oh..."

[jetmax30]

PM = Pakistani Muslim

[Dominum]

@cent0grassi

Don't be a bigot.

[Dristarg]

Whenever Sir Humphrey tells Bernard off, he's like a headmaster disciplining a naive pupil.

[FransisR]

how come the british accent being used here be more closer to the american accent or standard English thought across the world?

It seems to lack that unique pronunciations, which i see now a days , from users like daivd beckham or james camaroon or daniel redcliffe.

[neanderthalsis]

@FransisR The difference in accents is due to the oxbridge / RP speech of the actors in question rather than the uneducated cockney ramblings of David Beckham.

[FransisR]

@neanderthalsis Thanks

[FransisR]

@neanderthalsis Thanks

[relmmih6]

@neanderthalsis lol

[mrsotter19]

Where did the writers of the masterpiece go???? Please bring them back. I am sick and tired of Big Brother, Somebody in this country has got talent, and makeover shows.

[oneworldfamily]

It's the subtleties I love about this.  If it were being acted now there would be a lot more aggression from Sir Humphrey and more servility from Bernard. Everything's so much more intense now on telly.

[crazyoboist]

No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bells tolls; it tolls for thee." A Quote from John Donne (1572-1631), Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions, Meditation XVII

[crazyoboist]

No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bells tolls; it tolls for thee."

[tobyruncorn2]

one of the greatest scenes of one of the greatest masterpieces of writing and acting....

[Washu73]

A clear conscience ... when did you acquire this taste for luxuries?

[blatch332]

Like cooking :)

[sumptuously]

Nigel Hawthorne, you legend!

[stikitupurcndyass]

0:50 is the best part. best show ever.why did it stop?

[HadasahB]

"How could we possibly be doing anything wrong if it is commanded by those who represent the people?"

love it!

[nikobrown1990]

lmao! "a clear concience.... when did you aquire this taste for luxuries?" =P

[ozphil]

I have the Yes Minister/Yes Prime Minister series on VHS and DVD....the VHS is so much played its worn out, the DVD isnt far behind either. Absolutely brilliant series not matched by anyone.

[relmmih6]

can i ask as an american how you got into this show?

[skristoferu]

I get the whole series once a year from Netflix & watch them. IMHO, it is the best show ever produced for TV, full of comedy but very factual & intelectual. They are all brilliant but Sir Nigel is the best.

[yorkshire1234512345]

nice

[bedsitter1982]

This is simply genius.

[oldstuff]

Brilliantly written and acted by all parties. However, Sir Humphrey (who even convinced the Queen he worked for the Civil Service) was just the most brilliant of the lost. RIP, Sir Nigel and thanks for the ton of laughs I still have over this series.

[DaniMajor]

Yeah that´s true. Sir Nigel said that once he met the Queen in a theatre and she asked him what he was doing there. And he said: I work here ma´am. And she said: you do? Do you really.

That is what I called being a good actor.

[relmmih6]

suerly her maj can seperate a show from reality?

[DaniMajor]

Well, we shall hope so. But it´s more likely that she was joking in order to emphasize how realist and how well made the series were, specifically, the character of Sir Humphrey Appleby.

[bossyboots55]

@oldstuff

rumour has it that they had an '"insider"" who gave the writers the lastest info for their scripts.

[thajr]

I agree. As someone who has spent his life watching government, both in it and outside of it I think that YM/YPM has plenty to say about politics and government on both sides of the pond. An absolute classic that should be required viewing for political science students.

[Leathurkatt]

And for the hilarity of it all. I've always liked this show even though I'm not much for politics personally. Actually, I hate politics and drama, but in this context it's fun and while funny, is also true to the mark and on some levels actually educational.

[agentm83]

I'm a Poli-sci Major (in Canada) and I absolutely love this show! The YM/YPM series' manage to be funny while giving a good, mostly realistic view of how government *actually* works. This was apparently one of Margaret Thatcher's favourite shows, and she said that it was more accurate than she'd care to admit. :-)

[jennieblue22]

...or on occasion, as is sometimes the case in YM/YPM, the politicians themselves (excluding Jim Hacker and a few others) are out to satisfy personal interests themselves, and their interests are in line with those of the civil service ~ although this is much less common in YM/YPM

[spacey5ify]

Never do anything against conscience even if the state demands it... - Albert Einstein

[stegaflaps]

"Your a cynic Humphrey."

"A cynic is what an idealist calls a realist."

LOL! Killer script!! RIP  Johnathon Lynn and Anthony Jay.

[StefanGBucher]

Please note: Lynn and Jay are both alive and well.

[stegaflaps]

Wow! Im glad! Good on them! So........how old are they? The origional Yes Minister scripts are 30 years old......I just thought.........anyway Im glad.

[StefanGBucher]

Sir Antony Rupert Jay, CVO, (born 20 April 1930)

Jonathan Lynn (born 3 April 1943, Bath, England)

Lynn is quite busy as a director in the U.S.: * Clue * Nuns on the Run * My Cousin Vinny * The Distinguished Gentleman * Greedy * Sgt. Bilko * Trail and Error * The Fighting Temptations * The Whole Nine Yards.

He's now directing "Wild Target."

[brianstoats123]

type 'drew schofield contenders' into you tube watch and enjoy funny funny

[tubelogin1]

BBC worldwide

go back to your dead TV, you liars, leave the web alone, scumbags

[apathyriot]

cretin

[tubelogin1]

yo dirty mumma

[RadishOil]

i love British comedy. It gets your brain working rather than the usual scoff at fart jokes.

[Darknessattack]

british comedy ftw

[Ondrus21]

@RadishOil So do I. I absolutely do not understand the people, who don´t like this kind of inteligent British humor.

[2205923358]

Best comedy series ever?

[scudder91]

noooooooo! nirbatemann was the man, i was really digging all the old series. what a swizz. u tube did this to all the old red dwarf series too. what a shame.

[77745554]

you tube are fucking assholes they have taking all the episodes off all fans must protest at this outrage

[sokatlatok]

I agree- bastards! I have been enjoying watching proper episodes of the best comedy series ever and to come here today and see all the painstaking work of nirbatemann (apologies if I've not spelled that correctly) undone is most disappointing. What's the point of youtube if all the good stuff disappers...

[kadudija]

I agree! why in the world would they take away all the episodes???

[sudburylawyer]

if you like the show, buy the DVDs...they are worth it

[geodome83]

This comedy series was made in the 80s. 20 years later today, it is still relevant to us. We haven't made any progress since the 80s.

[ElJefer]

or in the last thousand years

[darkmarkrammstein]

no man is an island, except on youtube.

great vid

cheers

[fires2008]

loved these documentaries on parliament

[loachendormi]

Really funny and a good reflection of reality too.

[travellingman99]

First class stuff...this is probably Peter Mandelsons favourite clip!

[mssca]

British are much better at this kind of stuff than us.

[cleaverwielder]

When you have watched enough of this show you just fall so in love with Humphrey's character more or less anything he says is hilarious. Bernard and Jim come up with some great one liners, but Humphrey he opens his mouth and I start laughing, Hawthorne owns that character like no actor has ever owned any other character, so natural, the more you watch the more you love him. I sense that he really enjoys playing the character as well which probably adds to the whole feel.

[DaniMajor]

I couldn´t agree more with you. Great comment. I feel exactly the same way about Humphrey. Bernard and Jim are great but Humphrey is simply a legend...you really fall in love with him after watching it many times

[rh7onda7]

yes and I love that mischievious twinkle in Humphrey's eye when he's being particularly roguish!

[dizygotegemini]

I can´t believe this is from the 80´ties. Hehehehehehehe!

[Starwithnoname]

How utterly brilliant was this show! It will still be relevent in decades to come...

[MilesTaiIsPrower]

My family are friends of the writers of this show

[debyte]

Can anyone out there post 'A Conflict of Interest' on You Tube please; very pertinent given the present economic climate?

[neothomist1275]

"The rule and measure of duty is not utility, nor expedience, nor the happiness of the greatest number, nor State convenience, nor fitness, order, and the pulchrum. Conscience is not a long-sighted selfishness, nor a desire to be consistent with oneself; but it is a messenger from Him who both in nature and in grace, speaks to us behind a veil, and teaches and rules us." -- John Henry Newman

[DaniMajor]

I really like to think that the reallity is like this.

And Sir Humphrey is probably the best character ever!

[P0werwise]

Reality is no far off from this show.

I don't know if that's a positive or a negative!

[hitchchik]

This show KICKS ASS!!! I am watching it all the time. I love Humphrey. "It tolls for thee Bernard"

[WellExcuseMeeeeeeee]

Nothing better than British humour!

[SianMycock]

This is perfection! I'm dealing with a heap of minutes at the moment and couldn't put it better!

[bubunsrac]

When did you acquire this taste for luxuries?

:-)

[sucka4free]

classic....

a conscience in politics is indeed a luxury!..unaffordable..

[poochengeez]

down with the license fee!! £150 for Robin Hood is a f*cking disgr*ce!

[SIMITZO]

even your ex pm Mrs Thatcher has said she has spent hours enjoying the show..i am not brithish but you gyus have the best/most clever comedies..

[pspboy7]

LOL, very witty, I LIKE IT!!! :)

[oldstuff]

Sir Nigel Hawthorne and co. were just superb in this brilliant comedy that was so loved by those it took the mickey out of (politicians, civil servants) etc. Well-written, smart and funny as hell. America could never do a comedy like this.

[Hero1957]

Was this a documentary?

[tabletschool]

All the scripts were based on real events described to the writers by real politicians. The writers did exaggerate things for comedy effect, but everything was based on something real.

So... fiction based on fact, sort of!

[flying8speedistra]

True. Fiction has always been based on fact as long as humans have imagination to twist everything they contemplate about.

[glassspider66]

why do we only see the truth as comidy?

[oldstuff]

The late, great Sir Nigel Hawthorne and Paul Eddington sparred superbly in this series with some lines that go on for ever. The thinking man's comedy and the one that the politicians love.

[ExMachine]

Such wide appeal!

[MoriaeEncomium]

people should not be afraid of their governments. governments should be afraid of their people. This cleansing we'll have will have a global character...

[xmtz]

Yes Minister & Yes Prime Minister - classic British humor. Sheer comedic genius.

[truthseeker83]

reality beats fiction anyday of the week.

[Hattie28]

Am I the only one who thinks that this is what Whitehall is really like? ( Or any other government, come to that.)

[hifimonkeykong]

ohhh its far worse, my mums a civil servant, its kindof like this except the civil servants have lost a lot of their power and everything is focused around creating news stories.

[DaniMajor]

what do you mean create new stories?

[flying8speedistra]

Well, today the civil servants in most "democratic" govts have become civil slaves, bribed only by their power obsessed masters to keep their mouths shut. Also appearing as the top dog does not mean you are in control or the master, hence the idea of the "shadow govt".

[hugadarn]

A civil servants job is to implement the will of the gov't. If they can't do that then they need to leave their post. They are no more "bribed" "by their power obsessed masters" than anyone else who draws a salary.

[tingmg]

Exactly. A civil servant serves the people. Their "masters", i.e. ministers, are chosen by the people, and represent the people. It makes absolute sense why a civil servant does the government's bidding.

[xshadowx324]

lol civil servants dont do what the minister wants, they do what they want the ministers dont run the government lol

[heckmacbuff]

The beauty of omission!