What happened to the second sketch from the YPM series 2, episode 4? This is the next episode, isn't it? It would have been great to see the exchange between Sir Desmond Glazebrook (The excellent Richard Vernon) and Jim Hacker. Especially this one, "If you spill the beans, you'll open up a whole can of worms. And how can you let the sleeping dogs lie if you let the cat out of the bag?"
I first heard that in the original Avengers when the head, the big guy, would ask Stead and Peel, "shall I be mother?" As a kid I was flummoxed at the meaning.
I loved this as a kid (though I probably understood less than half of it). But what amazes me now is how incredibly well the series has aged. Forty years later, it is still as fresh as ever.
This is one of the greatest moments in the series. I also love the moment where they meet for the second time but they realize they have more in common with each other than they thought.
Yes. It turns out that self serving avarice whether it be disguised as "public service" or "social justice" isn't unique to any gender or political affiliation.
@@rkgaustin Nor is self-righteous moralizing to justify or deny said self-serving avarice, though Humphrey is less inclined to the latter (probably because, unlke politicians, he doesn't need to explain himself publically).
This whole episode is pure gold. The interplay between there two is wonderful, particularly when they discover that their whole reason d'etre is the same: the ordinary people can't govern themselves, they need "us" the guide them. I love the line as Dear Lady Agnes says, "...and this china" and Sir Humphrey can't stop himself from correcting her, "porcelain."
Sadly the best part of this scene is missing. After saying she would get rid of the Monarchy, the courts, and Parliament; Humphrey asks if she'd like to burn down his office too. Agnes tells him not to be silly, as she might need it. The look on Nigel Hawthorne's face at the implication is a top 5 moment in the show easily.
That's not the best part. The best part is when Sir Humphrey points out that the "poor people" she claims to represent can't afford the free range chickens she also claims to represent, and would never vote for her hypocritical, elitist goals. When Humphrey shows the Prime Minister's plan to let the public vote on it she cries. "But that would be..." "Yes Madam, that would be Democracy, and none of us wants to see that!"
@@thomashogan9196 She's the same kind of awful self-important elitist bureacrat only at the opposite spectrum to Humphrey. She "serves" the country yet she wants to burn down all key institutions and pillars of it. She's pretty emblematic of the newer generations of civil servants, who are just as insufferable if not moreso than the old generations.
@@iggyzeta9755 SHE, is a character in TV show. So unknot your fucking knickers and stop trying to find new ways to justify your unwillingness to engage with the political conversation. Woe betide you should tear yourself away from Facebook and TH-cam long enough to take a look at this world.
You just have to love the Yes Minister series, they so eloquently and convincingly expose the double standards and hypocrisy of governments in general, and of civil "servants" in particular.
Agnes' arrogance and hostility are not much of an improvement. You need to be able to build relationships and compromise if you're going to get anything done in government.
I wish this clip included part where Jim selected Humphrey to meet with her. His horrified reaction and desperate attempt to talk his way out of it was really hilarious.
It should be required viewing in every political science course. Literally nothing has changed since the 1980s when it first aired. People are still arguing over the same issues while the politicians and other "public servants" rob them blind.
@@benedictjohnson here in the states we have a Representative named Katie Porter. when she pulls out her graphs and whiteboard repubs (and likely a few dems) start to sweat. in the Senate we have a Senator Whitehouse who is similarly armed and who also strikes terror when he brings his own graphs and whiteboard out.
@@daveyboy6985 Ditto and my favourite one is the war on waste committee. where he does a complete 360 on Humphrey, who finds out later Jim did it at prime ministers behest and rants about the going rate of betrayal being30 pieces of silver
I like how Jim Hacker went from a Minister uncertain of himself to a confident and capable PM. And how Bernard Woolley went from starry-eyed assistant, to confident strategist. Sir Humphrey Appleby going from so sure of himself to obviously in-over-his-head, living in abject poverty on only £81,000pa in the 1970s, brilliant. You can tell how much the performers enjoyed the series by the way they just throw themselves into their characters.
"Certainly not, that's why I never stood for parliament". Nigel Hawthorne's deadpan delivery is so good that Gwen Taylor cracks up little 😁. Same happens with "Shall I be mother?"
Is the actress cracking up, or is she in character? I feel like the Agnes character could reasonably have a derisive chuckle at both lines. That's not to take away from Hawthorne's delivery, of course, but to avoid unnecessarily indicting Taylor's performance...who's also very good in this scene.
@@Punnery You might be correct. But on repeated viewing, it seems to me that Nigel's delivery on those two occasions caught her a bit off-guard and her reaction is more spontaneous than scripted.
@@MrPsychomonkey Or, actually, how little they've changed. The government is still populated with corrupt self serving cowards who's only true loyalties and ambitions lie in getting re-elected increasing their power and wealth.
A conversation ahead of its time, and you could see the punchline from a mile away. Glorious comedy. Oh, happy days, even if the economy was still in a mess.
Love it! Love it!! Love it!! I love the whole series. Pure British humour. Laughing at themselves. And applies in toto to Indian politics. And I imagine to other Commonwealth countries, too.
Thank you for uploading these clips; I wouldn't have come to know this show were it not for this superb channel. The ending of the previous clip was especially hilarious.
Fun fact about this clip: The secretary bringing in the tea is played by Miranda Forbes aka Mandy Weet. Her original big claim to fame was the part of hostess Wendy Winters in "Magical Mystery Tour". She had a long career playing mainly small parts in all sorts of TV shows until she passed away in 2001, aged 54.
Programmes like this will never be remade because the magic and interaction between the actors will never be repeated, they tried it with dads army and failed. 😂😂😂😂😂🇬🇧🇬🇧
In the mid 90s I had a contract working in the Papua New Guinea public service. I went back to Melbourne on a leave break, on my return I gave the Departmental Secretary a 3-part tape of Yes Prime Minister, he found it hilarious
@@yourmum69_420 if you aren't already I donate to Compassion in World Farming. They have been actively campaigning to end cage farming and a petition reached 100,000 signatures recently so will be debated in parliament. I also donate to PETA but their stance is 100% vegan which isn't a realistic aim so I think CIWF can really do some good. Take a look.
@@AthelstanEngland I’ve actually heard peta have been involved in animal cruelty and stuff. Also I’m not vegan or vegetarian. That other thing sounds good though. I’m very poor though tbh so I won’t be donating… but I do my bit by only ever buying free range
Visit Whitehall, things haven't changed. Though the patronising is much less gender based it's more class based again. (Women who went to Oxbridge are no less patronising than the men who did)
The yes minister along with the yes prime minister series goes far beyond comedy, it's so educational on how government is run with hilarious moments that never tire or age. One of the classics is where Hacker takes away the key to downing Street from Sir Humfrey - very few moments when Sir Humfrey isn't in charge - simply inspired writing.
Based on only the briefest of searches, margarine at the time would have sold for between 20 and 30p for 1/2 lb. So Humfrey wasn't far off with the first guess, though he wasn't to know that.
One of the very rare occasions were Humphrey is left completely at sea and has no clue how to deal with the situation. So much so he left shell shocked by the experience and needing a stiff drink.
I think Sir Humphrey would have called her Ms on meeting her because Ms was in common usage at the time. I remember when the idea of saying Ms instead of Miss or Mrs seemed awkward at best, but it turned out to be absolute genius!
What follows later in this episodes is one of Sir Humphrey's finest long dissertations - "we did a deal". I can't quote it _verbatim_ (but I'm sure Sir Nigel Hawthorne would've been able to!)
"To put it simply, Prime Minister, certain informal discussions took place, involving a full and frank exchange of views, out of which there arose a series of proposals which on examination proved to indicate certain promising lines of enquiry which when pursued led to the realization that the alternative courses of action might in fact, in certain circumstances, be susceptible of discreet modification, leading to a reappraisal of the original areas of difference and pointing the way to encouraging possibilities of compromise and cooperation which if bilaterally implemented with appropriate give and take on both sides might if the climate were right have a reasonable possibility at the end of the day of leading, rightly or wrongly, to a mutually satisfactory resolution".
@@freddieg1095 He was a classically trained actor. He played in many Shakespeare plays with the Royal Shakespeare Company. Nigel was well used to very long pieces of dialogue. Only look at Shakespeare plays and you can see how his training at the RSC helped for Yes Minister/Yes Prime Minister.
"Shall I be mother...?"
What happened to the second sketch from the YPM series 2, episode 4? This is the next episode, isn't it?
It would have been great to see the exchange between Sir Desmond Glazebrook (The excellent Richard Vernon) and Jim Hacker. Especially this one, "If you spill the beans, you'll open up a whole can of worms. And how can you let the sleeping dogs lie if you let the cat out of the bag?"
Sir Humphrey Meets His Match?! | Yes, Prime Minister | BBC Comedy Greats 1842pm 21.2.22 the feminists can even be bought...
What a Patronising Snob
and
completely
impertinent
is this lady in the
blue dress.
I first heard that in the original Avengers when the head, the big guy, would ask Stead and Peel, "shall I be mother?" As a kid I was flummoxed at the meaning.
@@briananthony4044 27.2.22 1135am i usually walk away when it gets to that part of the proceedings... sounds COSPLAY to me...
"would you get - um, you know - her a cup of tea" lmao
Today you could add her outrage over her gender being assumed.
Not to forget that the British consuming tea (originally Chinese(?)) could also be construed as cultural appropriation
I loved this as a kid (though I probably understood less than half of it). But what amazes me now is how incredibly well the series has aged. Forty years later, it is still as fresh as ever.
I could honestly see kids being appealed by the anti-authoritisms inherent to the show, even if they couldn't comprehend most of it.
Either that or British politics has not moved on from the 80s.
It was much awaited TV programme in those days....whole family sat down to enjoy it....
@@IndigoIndustrial Everything but the sleaze, allegedly.
Should it "amaze" you that it's still as fresh -- or should it "startle" you that the issues there still haven't been overcome?
"That's half true. You agree, I don't" will be my daily line in my office whenever I disagree with someone
It only really works when someone says something like "we both agree that..."
Which half is true ? Your's or mine ?
Or you might say,: 'i'd agree with you, but then we'd both be wrong'.
@@mauricegold9377 Wishful thinking ! perhaps stemming from the fear that " I could be wrong and you could be right !"
This is one of the greatest moments in the series. I also love the moment where they meet for the second time but they realize they have more in common with each other than they thought.
"Oh, Humphrey. You're a great loss to the militant revolution!"
"And you, my dear Agnes, are a great loss to the Civil Service".
Two sides of the same coin.
@@ugolomb sheer brilliance, sharp and scarily accurate.
Yes. It turns out that self serving avarice whether it be disguised as "public service" or "social justice" isn't unique to any gender or political affiliation.
@@rkgaustin Nor is self-righteous moralizing to justify or deny said self-serving avarice, though Humphrey is less inclined to the latter (probably because, unlke politicians, he doesn't need to explain himself publically).
This whole episode is pure gold. The interplay between there two is wonderful, particularly when they discover that their whole reason d'etre is the same: the ordinary people can't govern themselves, they need "us" the guide them.
I love the line as Dear Lady Agnes says, "...and this china" and Sir Humphrey can't stop himself from correcting her, "porcelain."
The series was beautifully written & beautifully acted. All superb in their characters.
The snob in Sir Humphrey couldn't resist showing Agnes the error of her ways.
Sadly the best part of this scene is missing. After saying she would get rid of the Monarchy, the courts, and Parliament; Humphrey asks if she'd like to burn down his office too. Agnes tells him not to be silly, as she might need it. The look on Nigel Hawthorne's face at the implication is a top 5 moment in the show easily.
That's not the best part. The best part is when Sir Humphrey points out that the "poor people" she claims to represent can't afford the free range chickens she also claims to represent, and would never vote for her hypocritical, elitist goals. When Humphrey shows the Prime Minister's plan to let the public vote on it she cries. "But that would be..." "Yes Madam, that would be Democracy, and none of us wants to see that!"
@@thomashogan9196 She's the same kind of awful self-important elitist bureacrat only at the opposite spectrum to Humphrey. She "serves" the country yet she wants to burn down all key institutions and pillars of it. She's pretty emblematic of the newer generations of civil servants, who are just as insufferable if not moreso than the old generations.
@@iggyzeta9755 That's why I cringe everytime a politician says "Reform" or "Progessive."
@@iggyzeta9755 SHE, is a character in TV show. So unknot your fucking knickers and stop trying to find new ways to justify your unwillingness to engage with the political conversation. Woe betide you should tear yourself away from Facebook and TH-cam long enough to take a look at this world.
Kinda typical of "i hate authority, except mine".
Absolutely brilliant to see him squirm.. what a brilliant brilliant witty sitcom this was . . Simply outstanding .
He didn't squirm for long. She is as phony as he is.
Clever writing and brilliant acting. Unsurpassed.
And still just as relevant over 40 years later.
"That's why I never stood for Parliament" - knew that was coming 😂
Always adored Sir Humphrey's use of "dear lady" for all interactions with women
I woulda thought he'd say that it was just like public school
I think that give him one point in her books. Giving him a grand total of zero
In this case, he's not wrong.
You just have to love the Yes Minister series, they so eloquently and convincingly expose the double standards and hypocrisy of governments in general, and of civil "servants" in particular.
Halfdan ingolfsdon ,yes indeed , the parasite classes have elevated hypocrisy to an art form.
Deserved a Nobel prize for literature
Agnes' arrogance and hostility are not much of an improvement. You need to be able to build relationships and compromise if you're going to get anything done in government.
@@robinlillian9471 "Minister, what gave you the impression that I -wanted- to get anything done in government?"
I wish this clip included part where Jim selected Humphrey to meet with her. His horrified reaction and desperate attempt to talk his way out of it was really hilarious.
This episode has surprisingly held up pretty well over time. Amazing.
It should be required viewing in every political science course. Literally nothing has changed since the 1980s when it first aired. People are still arguing over the same issues while the politicians and other "public servants" rob them blind.
Not surprising. Rigorously researched, cleverly scripted and beautifully acted.
@@benedictjohnson here in the states we have a Representative named Katie Porter. when she pulls out her graphs and whiteboard repubs (and likely a few dems) start to sweat. in the Senate we have a Senator Whitehouse who is similarly armed and who also strikes terror when he brings his own graphs and whiteboard out.
If you ignore the clothes, cars, moustaches, hair and decor..........they don't just stand up well. They still mirror reality.
Yes because back in 1980, half a pound of margarine cost close to 20p and in 2023 it's going to be much closer to £2.40.
The part that is arguably the best piece of interaction between them is where they agree that the people don’t know what’s best for them.
Wait until they upload next week's clip
It's the best because it's true.
Both Remainers then ;)
@Danny I notice that it's only people with authority over others that say that...
... And they're usually assholes.
So, they're both authoritarians. Oh, goodie.
Indeed, whenever Humphrey doesn't get his way or is blindsided by a masterful or unplanned stroke of Jim's is always a sight and privilege to behold.
Indeed it is 😅
@@daveyboy6985 Ditto and my favourite one is the war on waste committee. where he does a complete 360 on Humphrey, who finds out later Jim did it at prime ministers behest and rants about the going rate of betrayal being30 pieces of silver
@@wedgeantillies66 👍😊
_Agnes Moorhouse_ (Gwen Taylor) is my absolute favorite one-episode character from _Yes, Minister_ and _Yes, Prime Minister._
Was the character Agnes Moorhouse a deliberate ploy by the writers to associate her with Endora played by Agnes Moorehead?
She’s gorgeous.
@@stevetaylor7403 Any relation by any chance?
@@Battismore-Blue : Unfortunately not.
I like how Jim Hacker went from a Minister uncertain of himself to a confident and capable PM.
And how Bernard Woolley went from starry-eyed assistant, to confident strategist.
Sir Humphrey Appleby going from so sure of himself to obviously in-over-his-head, living in abject poverty on only £81,000pa in the 1970s, brilliant.
You can tell how much the performers enjoyed the series by the way they just throw themselves into their characters.
"Certainly not, that's why I never stood for parliament".
Nigel Hawthorne's deadpan delivery is so good that Gwen Taylor cracks up little 😁.
Same happens with "Shall I be mother?"
Is the actress cracking up, or is she in character? I feel like the Agnes character could reasonably have a derisive chuckle at both lines. That's not to take away from Hawthorne's delivery, of course, but to avoid unnecessarily indicting Taylor's performance...who's also very good in this scene.
@@Punnery You might be correct. But on repeated viewing, it seems to me that Nigel's delivery on those two occasions caught her a bit off-guard and her reaction is more spontaneous than scripted.
The best television series I ever watched. It's just brilliant.
Sir Humphrey is an absolute gem 💎
Absolute legend.
So much so that 'Sir Humphrey' is now a generic term for any civil servant!
If ever there was a time for the BBC to rerun Yes (Prime) Minister it is now - February 2022.
I agree they should rerun it on TV, as it would illuminate how things have changed
They are! On BBC Four, alas
Which is why I cannot see them - live in continental Europe Cheers Andrew
That's dangerous talk. You don't want to be giving people ideas!
@@MrPsychomonkey Or, actually, how little they've changed. The government is still populated with corrupt self serving cowards who's only true loyalties and ambitions lie in getting re-elected increasing their power and wealth.
Part of its magic is that this show has hardly aged!
Marvelous!
A conversation ahead of its time, and you could see the punchline from a mile away. Glorious comedy. Oh, happy days, even if the economy was still in a mess.
I love Humphrey's face when he tells her she's getting all she wanted, a truly democratic system and she balks at the idea.
The writing and acting in this program was so clever and on point. It should be required viewing for everyone.
how about in civics class at high school level and above.
I love it that we find out later that they've got the same motivations and ultimately cooperate.
It's all about power.
I'm 16 years old and I am so glad this was in my TH-cam recommendations... I love this show!
Love it! Love it!! Love it!! I love the whole series. Pure British humour. Laughing at themselves. And applies in toto to Indian politics. And I imagine to other Commonwealth countries, too.
One of my favorite series. It seems to span the world of governments, and decades of time.
Thank you for uploading these clips; I wouldn't have come to know this show were it not for this superb channel. The ending of the previous clip was especially hilarious.
Great writing + great acting = great show!
Fun fact about this clip:
The secretary bringing in the tea is played by Miranda Forbes aka Mandy Weet.
Her original big claim to fame was the part of hostess Wendy Winters in "Magical Mystery Tour".
She had a long career playing mainly small parts in all sorts of TV shows until she passed away in 2001, aged 54.
Only 54? Leukaemia! Awful. :(
Amazing how this has become even more relevant and accurate in current times!
*_Hilarious!!!_* 🤣🤣🤣 Humphrey is really put back in his box by "dear Agnes" 🤣🤣
For Agnes, a brilliant piece of writing.
Programmes like this will never be remade because the magic and interaction between the actors will never be repeated, they tried it with dads army and failed. 😂😂😂😂😂🇬🇧🇬🇧
3:35 - as soon as she said "600 other" I knew the House of Commons would be the target! Brilliant writing.
In the mid 90s I had a contract working in the Papua New Guinea public service. I went back to Melbourne on a leave break, on my return I gave the Departmental Secretary a 3-part tape of Yes Prime Minister, he found it hilarious
Margaret Mead would have loved this skit.
"Oh Humphrey, you are a great loss to the revolutionary movement"
- Agnes
😅
“And you, dear lady, are a great loss to the Civil Service!”
In an alternate universe, Comrade Humphrey probably helped General Secretary Hacker to rule the People's Republic of Britain.
@@ihathtelekinesis almost, he said “dear Agnis”
@@ihathtelekinesis 😁
@@thiagodeandrade7081 That's possible. 😄
Love Gwen Taylor. Such a good actress.
That's why I never stood for Parliment.... Brilliant !!!
1:29 is one of the best moments of this show 🤣
‘You can call me Sir Humphrey’😂😂😂😂
Great clip .funny seeing sir humphrie flustered
Love when someone corners sir Humphrey
The last line by Sir Humphrey was on par with Bernard's one-liners
Relevant today
Where's the rest of her videos I wanna watch them she's awesome!!
Aside from the superlative comedy, the animal rights point is well ahead of it's time. Bravo.
and they still haven't banned battery farms sadly
@@yourmum69_420 if you aren't already I donate to Compassion in World Farming. They have been actively campaigning to end cage farming and a petition reached 100,000 signatures recently so will be debated in parliament. I also donate to PETA but their stance is 100% vegan which isn't a realistic aim so I think CIWF can really do some good. Take a look.
@@AthelstanEngland I’ve actually heard peta have been involved in animal cruelty and stuff. Also I’m not vegan or vegetarian.
That other thing sounds good though. I’m very poor though tbh so I won’t be donating… but I do my bit by only ever buying free range
Absolutely brilliant a classic
2 great actors.
This extract comes from my favourite episode :)
Brilliant casting
Visit Whitehall, things haven't changed.
Though the patronising is much less gender based it's more class based again. (Women who went to Oxbridge are no less patronising than the men who did)
Gwen Taylor almost cracked up twice.......a joy to see😃 She held it together..
She's like a female version of Dennis Skinner.
Terrific scene .
So now. Remarkable 👍👍
Brilliant! I always loved this show.
Mrs.Swinburne from the Beiderbecke Trilogy springs to mind
The yes minister along with the yes prime minister series goes far beyond comedy, it's so educational on how government is run with hilarious moments that never tire or age. One of the classics is where Hacker takes away the key to downing Street from Sir Humfrey - very few moments when Sir Humfrey isn't in charge - simply inspired writing.
Last seen on Heartbeat, she was always marvellously funny, but when this age, she was gorgeous!
"Certainly not, that's why I never stood for parliament".
Great!
"That's why I never stood for parliament."
Perfect line
I need. To buy. This Series.
Agnes can intimidate any man 😂
One of the best British sitcoms...
Where can I watch the full documentary?!
This was so awesome to watch. 👍
Gwen Taylor is a legend
when art reflects reality so bloody well..
Truly superb!!!
I have seen this show numerous times, 1:29 always gets me 🤣
The lovely ..Gwen Taylor..💕💕💕
The moment she said 600 I knew what was coming 😄
This is brilliance and will not be repeated in this time ,,, it takes intelligence ,,,, not anymore
One of the best things The BBC did 👌 🙌
Brilliant!
I love Gwen Taylor, loved her in Duty Free.
I too loved her in Duty Free.
Marvellous.
Based on only the briefest of searches, margarine at the time would have sold for between 20 and 30p for 1/2 lb. So Humfrey wasn't far off with the first guess, though he wasn't to know that.
Love at first sight
Flustered Humphrey might be the best thing about this show.
Great acting.
One of the very rare occasions were Humphrey is left completely at sea and has no clue how to deal with the situation. So much so he left shell shocked by the experience and needing a stiff drink.
Half a pound of margarine costs half a pound obviously. :D
One bar fire,in this rate lucky half an hour
All great revolutionaries say all the same things. Once they achieve power all the ideals go out the window.
What episode was this in? I can´t remember seeing this on the DVD-set.
Rare to see Sir Humphrey on the backfoot from the off.
As Hacker might say, "Oh Humphrey!"
Is this Aunt Peg from Heartbeat? Massively different character!
I think Sir Humphrey would have called her Ms on meeting her because Ms was in common usage at the time. I remember when the idea of saying Ms instead of Miss or Mrs seemed awkward at best, but it turned out to be absolute genius!
one of the funniest sitcom scenes ever
Nigel really played the Buffon perfectly
Which episode is this??
Gwen Taylor was great in everything she was in.
What follows later in this episodes is one of Sir Humphrey's finest long dissertations - "we did a deal". I can't quote it _verbatim_ (but I'm sure Sir Nigel Hawthorne would've been able to!)
"To put it simply, Prime Minister, certain informal discussions took place, involving a full and frank exchange of views, out of which there arose a series of proposals which on examination proved to indicate certain promising lines of enquiry which when pursued led to the realization that the alternative courses of action might in fact, in certain circumstances, be susceptible of discreet modification, leading to a reappraisal of the original areas of difference and pointing the way to encouraging possibilities of compromise and cooperation which if bilaterally implemented with appropriate give and take on both sides might if the climate were right have a reasonable possibility at the end of the day of leading, rightly or wrongly, to a mutually satisfactory resolution".
@@johnking5174 how did he remember all this..and deliver it so brilliantly?!
@@freddieg1095 He was a classically trained actor. He played in many Shakespeare plays with the Royal Shakespeare Company. Nigel was well used to very long pieces of dialogue. Only look at Shakespeare plays and you can see how his training at the RSC helped for Yes Minister/Yes Prime Minister.
@@johnking5174 - now , Humphrey , could you say that in plain English !!
@@hanszlh6522 We did a deal
Quality telly..
3:45 - BINGO! :-)
OMG ! was it always like this ?
Top level works with summary view, not specific price of the product as general knowledge. Asking him margin price is not sensible here.