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EPISODE GUIDE
YES MINISTER - SEASON ONE
1. Open Government (25 FEB 80) Jim Hacker's party has just won a General Election. Jim waits by the telephone, hoping for a summons from the new Prime Minister. Eventually, he learns that he has been appointed the Minister for Administrative Affairs. He meets his Principal Secretary, Sir Humphrey Appleby, and quickly begins to wonder who's actually in charge of his ministry. Also Starring:
2. The Official Visit (3 MAR 80) The leader of an African nation is about to make an official visit to Britain. Suddenly, he's overthrown in a coup. His successor turns out to be someone Jim Hacker knew at the London School of Economics. Jim does his best to talk his guest into buying the offshore drilling equipment he's looking for from Britain. Also Starring:
3. The Economy Drive (10 MAR 80) Jim tries to introduce cost-cutting measures. Sir Humphrey doesn't approve, so he does his best to manouevre Jim into cancelling the planned economies. Also Starring:
4 Big Brother (17 MAR 80) Jim tries to have privacy safeguards implemented for the new national computer database. He meets resistance from Sir Humphrey. Also Starring:
5. Writing On The Wall (24 MAR 80) The Prime Minister gives his backing to Jim's latest cost-cutting exercise, so it looks as if Sir Humphrey will be forced to cooperate for a change. Also Starring:
6. The Right To Know (31 MAR 80) Jim supports the removal of protected status from a badger habitat. He learns that his daughter will be a leading figure in the group planning to oppose his plans. Meanwhile, Jim tries to prevent Sir Humphrey from keeping information from him. Also Starring:
7. Jobs For The Boys (7 APR 80) Jim is supporting a government project which looks like being cancelled because of financial problems. The only way for Jim to 'save face' seems to be to make a union leader an offer he can't refuse. Also Starring:
YES MINISTER - SEASON TWO
Jim learns that a new hospital has 300 administrators but no doctors, nurses or patients. He wants to make the staff redundant and 'mothball' the hospital. Sir Humphrey opposes the idea. Eventually, a group of refugees provides a solution. Also Starring:
2. Doing The Honours (2 MAR 81) Bernard suggests that Jim refuses to approve the the annual recommendations for honours for civil servants until their departments implement cost-cutting measures. Sir Humphrey arranges an honour for Jim in retaliation. Also Starring:
3. The Death List (9 MAR 81) Jim wants tougher guidelines for electronic surveillance. Then he learns that he's on the "death list" of a terrorist organisation. Also Starring:
4. The Greasy Pole (16 MAR 81) Sir Humphrey tries to manoeuvre Jim into supporting a politically unpopular measure. Also Starring:
5. The Devil You Know (23 MAR 81) A cabinet reshuffle is imminent. It looks as if Jim will lose his post as Minister for Administrative Affairs. Sir Humphrey, deciding that "the devil you know" is preferable to the possibility of a "new broom", takes action to prevent this from happening. Also Starring:
6. The Quality Of Life (30 MAR 81) Jim makes a public statement to the effect that a popular city farm will be saved from closure. Sir Humphrey acts to save Jim from embarrassment. In return, Jim has to approve the addition of extra nine floors to a 'white elephant' skyscraper favoured by the Civil Service. Also Starring:
7. A Question Of Loyalty (6 APR 81) A parliamentary committee is investigating waste in the Ministry of Administrative Affairs. Jim and Sir Humphrey are called upon to give evidence. They are forced to protect one another. Also Starring:
YES MINISTER - SEASON THREE
1. Equal Opportunities (11 NOV 82) Jim wants to see more women in senior Civil Service positions. He meets opposition from Sir Humphrey. Also Starring:
2. The Challenge (18 NOV 82) Jim has problems with a BBC interviewer when he looks into local civil defence. Also Starring:
3.The Skeleton In The Cupboard (25 NOV 82) A local council which normally has an exemplary record is late sending in paperwork. Sir Humphrey wants to make an example of them. Jim uses a spot of blackmail to ensure Sir Humphrey's cooperation. Also Starring:
4. The Moral Dimension (2 DEC 82) When Jim learns that bribery was used to obtain a lucrative foreign contract, he wants to expose the scandal. Meanwhile, Bernard allows a valuable gift from a foreign government to be undervalued so that Mrs Hacker can keep it. Also Starring:
5. The Bed Of Nails (9 DEC 82) Jim finds himself forced to support a transport bill favoured by Number 10 but opposed by everyone else. Also Starring:
6. The Whiskey Priest (16 DEC 82) Jim learns that British arms have been sold to a terrorist group. He wants to organise an inquiry, but faces opposition from all sides. Also Starring:
7. The Middle Class Rip Off (23 DEC 82) Jim supports the sale of a museum in his constituency because the money raised will be used to support the local football club. Sir Humphrey is horrified and tries to sabotage Jim's plans. Also Starring:
Xmas Special Party Games (27 DEC 84) The Prime Minister suddenly announces that he intends to retire. The two leading contenders hoping to succeed him are persuaded to step aside when it's revealed that civil servants plan to leak details of past indiscretions. Jim Hacker becomes the surprise favourite to get the job when the Civil Service decides to back him.
YES PRIME MINISTER - SEASON ONE 1. The Grand Design (9 JAN 86) Jim is horrified when he learns how weak Britain's defences are. He decides to cancel the order for Trident missiles from the USA. Under pressure to come up with an alternative, he announces a plan to reintroduce conscription. He's opposed by the Civil Service and the military.
2. The Ministerial Broadcast (16 JAN 86) Jim is preparing for his first TV broadcast as Prime Minister. He wants to concentrate on his 'Grand Design' for defence. Sir Humphrey teaches Bernard how to design a survey which gives whatever result you want it to give. As a result, Jim is convinced that public opinion is against the idea of conscription. He decides to change his speech. Also Starring:
3. The Smoke Screen (23 JAN 86) Dr Peter Thorne, the Minister of Health, has written a report condemning smoking. Jim Hacker announces that he agrees with his ideas and plans to deter people from smoking by raising taxes. In reality, he's only trying to frighten the Treasury into supporting his proposed tax cuts. Eventually, the tax cuts go through. Hacker drops the anti-smoking campaign and promotes Peter Thorne to Chancellor of the Exchequor. Also Starring:
4. The Key (30 JAN 86) Jim Hacker is talked into restricting Sir Humphrey's access to Number 10. Sir Humphrey is very unhappy, particularly when his key to Number 10 is taken off him. Eventually, Jim relents and returns the key on condition that Sir Humphrey only comes into Number 10 when he's sent for. Also Starring:
5. A Real Partnership (6 FEB 86) Jim Hacker isn't happy with the idea of giving backbench MPs a pay rise. At the same time, the Civil Service is pushing for an even bigger increase in pay. Jim is manoeuvred into agreeing to both sets of pay rises. Also Starring:
6. A Victory For Democracy (13 FEB 86) The communists are trying to sieze power on St. Georges Island, a remote Commonwealth country in the Indian Ocean. Jim is worried that the Americans will invade the island if Britain does nothing to prevent a coup. In spite of opposition from the Civil Service, Jim sends British troops to the island to defeat the communist rebels. Also Starring:
7. The Bishop's Gambit (20 FEB 86) A British nurse has been sent to prison in Qumran for possessing alcohol. Hacker feels that he should do something, but the Civil Service advise against taking any action. Meanwhile, Jim has to appoint a new Bishop of Bury St Edmond. Sir Humphrey suggests an old friend of his, the Dean of Bailey, but Jim isn't convinced of his suitability. Sir Humphrey arranges for the Dean to go to Qumran, where he manages to arrange the nurse's release. Jim appoints the Dean as Bishop of Bury St Edmonds. Also Starring:
8. One Of Us (27 FEB 86) Jim is worried about his declining popularity among the general public. Sir Humphrey has problems with a public inquiry when it's revealed that he cleared a confessed Soviet spy many years earlier. Jim is talked into ordering the Army to help with the rescue of a dog trapped on a firing range on Salisbury Plain. The rescue, which costs 130,000 pounds, helps to improve Jim's standing with the public. It also makes it more difficult for him to push through proposed defence cuts. Also Starring:
YES PRIME MINISTER - SEASON TWO 1. Man Overboard (3 DEC 87) Dudley, the Employment Secretary, suggests moving Army units to the North of England in order to reduce unemployment there. Jim backs the plan because it will increase the Government's popularity. The military are opposed, however, because senior soldiers don't want to move away from London. Sir Humphrey manages to convince Jim that Dudley is plotting against him. Hacker decides to drop the plan, so Dudley resigns. Jim then decides to reinstates the plan. Also Starring:
2. Official Secrets (10 DEC 87) Jim Hacker's predecessor wants to publish his memoirs. Jim isn't happy about a chapter dealing with himself, so he tries to get it suppressed during a 'clearance meeting'. The chapter in question is then leaked to the press, along with the fact that Hacker tried to suppress it. Jim is angry, particularly when he realises that the material must have been leaked by someone who was at the clearance meeting. Sir Humphrey shows Bernard how to 'doctor' the minutes of the clearance meeting to hide Hacker's attempted suppression. The Press Secretary suggests giving the press something else to think about, so Hacker agrees to Sir Humphrey's request for the expulsion of seventy-six diplomats. Also Starring:
3. A Diplomatic Incident (17 DEC 87) Jim Hacker learns that his predecessor has suddenly died, so his memoirs will not now be published. The British and French Government's are arguing about where to put the border between their countries when the Channel Tunnel is built. The French President plans to give the Queen a puppy at the former Prime Minister's funeral. He plans to use the gift, which will be in breach of quarantine laws, to create an incident which will give the French extra leverage in the argument over the Tunnel. Jim learns that French Police have planted a bomb in the French Embassy, in an attempt to make British security services look incompetent. He uses this to blackmail the French President into agreeing a compromise over the Channel Tunnel. Also Starring:
4. A Conflict Of Interest (31 DEC 87) There's trouble looming for Jim Hacker as a scandal breaks in the City. He and Sir Humphrey disagree over the appointment of a new governor for the Bank of England. Also Starring:
5. Power To The People (7 JAN 88) Jim Hacker is preparing for an interview about local government. Sir Humphrey introduces him to Agnus Moorhouse, a local councillor with strong ideas about the reform of local government. Jim likes her ideas and decides to implement them. Sir Humphrey is strongly opposed to the proposed reforms, thinking that they will weaken the civil service. He convinces Jim Hacker that implementing them will make backbench MPs a lot more independent, so Jim decides to drop the idea. Also Starring:
6. A Patron Of The Arts (14 JAN 88) Jim Hacker is about to give a speech at an arts event. He's worried because his government has just announced funding for the arts at a level below that which was expected. Sir Humphrey gives information about future government spending to his friend Simon Monk, who manages the National Theatre. Hacker, learning that Monk plans to use the information in his speech, threatens to sell the National Theatre Building on the South Bank. Monk suddenly decides to change the content of his speech. Also Starring:
7. The National Education Service (21 JAN 88) Jim Hacker wants to abolish the Department of Education and Science, arguing that reduced bureaucracy will increase the amount of money available to schools. Sir Humphrey is appalled at the idea. Hacker visits a local school and is presented with a gift, which he later learns is stolen property. The Departmant of Education and Science have to decide whether or not to prosecute. Sir Humphrey points out that, if Jim insisits on going ahead with his plans to abolish them, the DES will alomost certainly prosecute, causing him embarrassment. He decides to drop his plans for abolition. Also Starring:
8. The Tangled Web (28 JAN 88) While answering a question in Parliament, Jim Hacker denies that his governemt have been involved in the bugging of MP's telephone calls. Later, Sir Humphrey tells Jim that government officials have, in fact, been involved in bugging. He thinks he has a duty to report the matter. Before he gets a chance to do so, however, he makes some unguarded remarks about unemployment after an interview at the BBC. Hacker is sent a tape of the conversation in question. He uses it to blackmail Sir Humphrey into confirming his statement about bugging. Also Starring:
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