YES MINISTER: THE COMPLETE COLLECTION [4 DISKS]

Details

• Release Year: 1980
• Genre: Comedy
• Plot: In politics, you have to really get behind somebody before you can stab them in the back.; ; Named one of the Top Ten TV programs of all time by the British Film Institute, this brilliantly observed comedy of manners pits the well-meaning Jim Hacker, a newly appointed Cabinet Minister, against the machinations of a career civil servant, Sir Humphrey Appleby, in the ultimate political marriage of inconvenience.; ; Paul Eddington ('Good Neighbors') stars as The Right Honorable Jim Hacker, a role that was written especially for him, and Academy Award nominee Nigel Hawthorne ('The Madness of King George') first drew wide notice in the role of Sir Humphrey Appleby.; ; 'Yes Minister' is the first - and only - series to win the British Academy Award for Best Comedy three years running.; ; Disc 1; • Open Government – Newly appointed as Minister for Administrative Affairs, Jim Hacker has pledged to fight for Open Government. He is soon to meet his chief obstacle – his new staff.; • The Official Visit – Hacker hopes to make political capital of an official visit by the president of the African republic of Buranda, until a coup in Buranda throws everything upside down.; • The Economy Drive – Hacker has targeted the Civil Service for cutbacks, only to learn that his own department would be the first to go.; • Big Brother – Hacker will go along with a new National Integrated Database as long as citizens are allowed access to their own files. It sounds reasonable enough, but not to Sir Humphrey.; • The Writing on the Wall – Both Hacker and Sir Humphrey can read the writing on the wall. They must now work together for the first time.; • The Right to Know – An endangered badger colony looms large in Hacker’s world. His daughter plans to launch a pro-badger protest of her own.; ; Disc 2; • Jobs for the Boys – The Minister is proud of his pet sample of government and private sector cooperation. Why is Sir Humphrey so determined to keep it under wraps?; • The Compassionate Society – A newly built hospital has a full administrative staff but no patients. Only Sir Humphrey can see the sense in that.; • Doing the Honours – The Minister decides to limit honors to candidates who reduce their budgets by five percent, making waves in Sir Humphrey’s alphabet soup of CBE, MBEs and OBEs.; • The Death List – The Minister campaigned on his opposition to bugging and phone tapping, but a change in circumstance soon reveals the upside of intelligence.; • The Greasy Pole – British Chemical Corporation is all set to produce Metadioxin at its Merseyside factory. While Sir Humphrey is convinced that the chemical is harmless, its name is political dynamite.; • The Devil You Know – With a Cabinet reshuffle on the cards, Hacker worries whether he’s done all right. Sir Humphrey has his own worries – Hacker’s replacement may be even worse.; ; Disc 3; • The Quality of Life – The Minister has a fine day in the media spotlight when he visits an urban children’s farm.; • The Question of Loyalty – The Minister and Sir Humphrey are called before a select committee scrutinizing the functions of the Department of Administrative Affairs.; • Equal Opportunities – The Minister actively recruits a qualified woman to fill a top Civil Service job. Sir Humphrey counters: “If you’re going to promote women just because they’re the right person for the job, you’re going to face a lot of resentment from the Civil Service.”; • The Challenge – In a re-organization of government administration, Jim has the task of reducing local government bureaucracy. While talking on BBC radio, Jim does not know just how daunting this task will be.; • The Skeleton in the Cupboard – The 30-years-rule is about to expose the identity of a Civil Servant whose error in post-war Scotland cost the government £40 million.; • The Moral Dimension – The Minister welcomes the opportunity to lead a delegation to the Persian Gulf, until Sir Humphrey points out that Qumran is dry.; ; Disc 4; • The Bed of Nails – Jim is quite pleased to be named Transport Supremo until Sir Humphrey explains that the job is a hot potato that every other minister managed to avoid.; • The Whisky Priest – The Minister is in possession of some embarrassing information on the sale of British arms to Italian terrorists. It takes all of Sir Humphrey’s skill to convince Jim not to do anything foolish with the news.; • The Middle-Class Rip-Off – Jim wants to rescue a struggling football club from financial difficulties. Sir Humphrey believes that subsidies are only for art and culture, not for sports and things the people actually want.;
• Cast: Paul Eddington, Nigel Hawthorne, Derek Fowlds, Diana Hoddinott, John Nettleton, Neil Fitzwiliam, Arthur Cox, John Savident, John Pennington, Antony Carrick, Robert Dougall, Richard Vernon, Tenniel Evans, John Barron, Ian Lavender, Nigel Stock, Edward Jewesbury, Rosemary Williams, Lindy Alexander, Frank Tregear, Rex Robinson, Norman Bird, Stuart Allen
• Director: Stuart Allen
• Runtime: 10:13
• Company: BBC Video
• Media Format: Series