American Reacts to Yes Minister Explains the EEC (EU)

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  • čas přidán 26. 10. 2021
  • American Reacts to Yes Minister Explains the EEC (EU)
    In this video I react to Yes Minister explains the EEC in which the Minister and civil servant have a discussion over the merits and benefits of being in the EEC.
    Original Video: • Yes Minister explains ...
    #YesMinister #AmericanReacts
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    American Reacts to Yes Minister Explains the EEC (EU), Yes Minister, Yes Minister explains the EEC, British sitcom, british political satire, Paul Eddington, Nigel Hawthorne, Eclectic Beard Reactions, reaction channel, reactions,
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Komentáře • 598

  • @davidcook7887
    @davidcook7887 Před 2 lety +137

    The best British sitcom ever made. Brilliantly written. Every damn episode.

  • @januzzell8631
    @januzzell8631 Před 2 lety +229

    The writers actually had 2 people within Government, at the time of writing, who were giving them examples of what was happening - and, in fact, some of the examples were SO outrageous, they couldn't use them :D

    • @RK-zf1jm
      @RK-zf1jm Před 2 lety +20

      I ve said it before i think on another reaction to yes prime minister my brother is a fairly senior civil servant for the chancellor and he said basically if you could memorise most of the lines in this show and behave the same way essentially you would blend into the background in westminister.

    • @Nounismisation
      @Nounismisation Před 2 lety +7

      One of them was the PPS to the PM... Wow

    • @fathertedcrilley3988
      @fathertedcrilley3988 Před 2 lety +2

      Wales

    • @aaronmicalowe
      @aaronmicalowe Před 2 lety +2

      @@fathertedcrilley3988 Is an endangered species.

    • @sim5847
      @sim5847 Před rokem

      @@Nounismisation who were they?

  • @samkershaw8474
    @samkershaw8474 Před 2 lety +119

    There is a great accompanying clip "Why The UK Is In The EU" beyond brilliant dialogue.

  • @mervinmannas7671
    @mervinmannas7671 Před 2 lety +78

    The comic timing of these 3 actors was unreal. Nigel Hawthone in particular would go of on monologues often 2 mintues long all shot in one long take and was impecable. They are all gone now but by many will never be forgotten. I still say the funniest episode was how Jim Hacker went from MP to PM changing the series to Yes, Prime Minsiter (Thatcher was a huge fan)

    • @jonajacket
      @jonajacket Před 2 lety +2

      Was that the one about nukes? If so, I agree. If not, it will still be an amazing episode!

    • @logicalnetwork1611
      @logicalnetwork1611 Před 2 lety +2

      It was not the comic timing but the sheer genius of writer Jonathan Jay

    • @ianhere9290
      @ianhere9290 Před 5 měsíci

      USA and UK may speak the same language, broadly speaking, but when it comes to comedy, there's a cultural chasm, half a millennium wide.😂

  • @idristaylor5093
    @idristaylor5093 Před 2 lety +40

    The two writers had very different politics and only included material if it made them both laugh. They kept the standard up in each episode of both versions of the show. (The other being "Yes Prime Minister".) I was highly impressed with it all.

  • @CEP73
    @CEP73 Před 2 lety +63

    Wonderful series, with wonderful actors sadly none of them are with us anymore. Miss these well thought, well acted out comedies.

    • @generaladvance5812
      @generaladvance5812 Před 2 lety +2

      Mhmm, there hasn't been another comedy to match yes minister & yes prime minister.

    • @Ben-Hollingbery
      @Ben-Hollingbery Před 2 lety

      The guy in the grey suit is still alive, he's in a series on Sky 1 called COBRA - He plays the Prime Minister

    • @thechumpsbeendumped.7797
      @thechumpsbeendumped.7797 Před 2 lety +1

      @@Ben-Hollingbery
      Sadly all 3 are dead. Paul Eddington in 95, Nigel Hawthorne in 2001 and Derek Fowlds in 2020.

  • @hiramabiff2017
    @hiramabiff2017 Před 2 lety +56

    I have the full box sets of both series, and I cannot express how much viewing hours of pleasure they have given me. E.B covers some of the finest British comedy we have and has done so much for USA/UK hands across the water friendship, I advocate we contact the Home Office to get him a " Honoury British Citizenship ".

    • @eamonnclabby7067
      @eamonnclabby7067 Před 2 lety +2

      Totally agree....maybe an honorary knighthood from Her Maj,s people, or maybe an honorary Scouser award like Jurgen Klopp...

    • @hiramabiff2017
      @hiramabiff2017 Před 2 lety +1

      @@eamonnclabby7067 Or we could just crowd fund, and buy his title like 60% of the House of Lords have done. : )

    • @vallee3140
      @vallee3140 Před 2 lety

      me too , and yet I hate politics

    • @logicalnetwork1611
      @logicalnetwork1611 Před 2 lety +1

      I agree EB should also be given an honoury knighthood.

  • @clarestewart877
    @clarestewart877 Před 2 lety +15

    Glad you got back to looking at more of Yes Minister . A brilliant show! 👍

  • @martingibbs1179
    @martingibbs1179 Před 2 lety +56

    This original is so good and so terribly accurate about the real attitudes of the time. They tried to do a remake a few years ago, but it never took off because it didn't seem real enough in my opinion. The scary thing is I really don't think parliament has really changed all that much.

    • @petermizon4344
      @petermizon4344 Před 2 lety +1

      It's same today nothin ever changes, give with one hand take with another

    • @jessicascoullar3737
      @jessicascoullar3737 Před 2 lety +1

      They actually had insiders in the parliament feeding the script writers info.

    • @michaeldowson6988
      @michaeldowson6988 Před 2 lety +1

      You were watching the wrong remake, try 'In The Thick Of It'.

    • @barryhumphries4514
      @barryhumphries4514 Před 2 lety +2

      It seems the EEC (EU) as seen at the time still relates exactly the same today! The gravy train continues for now anyway… 👎👀

    • @marvinc9994
      @marvinc9994 Před 2 lety +1

      "I really don't think parliament has really changed all that much."
      It has ! It has more opinionated nonentities than ever before, an almost total absence of 'characters', a timid reluctance to 'offend' anyone, and few memorable speeches - dreary backbenchers often reading _directly_ from their 'notes'. And as for the Common's lickspittle obedience to the latest cruel and absurd dictates of their Globalist Masters......................(supply your own examples).

  • @Glund117
    @Glund117 Před 2 lety +61

    It makes it even funnier years later due to it being spot on

  • @simon8864
    @simon8864 Před 2 lety +6

    The show is about 35 years old and is surprisingly relevant today
    ...Great comedy!

  • @samuelforsyth6374
    @samuelforsyth6374 Před 2 lety +12

    yes minister and yes prime minister is the best show ever

  • @patdavis6383
    @patdavis6383 Před 2 lety +9

    This is one of the cleverest and funniest comedy shows ever produced in the UK.
    It was massive in the UK and around the world at the time.
    When Paul Eddington ( The actor who played Prime Minister Jim Hacker) visited Australia, he was greeted as and treated like the actual PM!
    BTW, if you want to delve into the lesser know UK comedies, try "Drop The Dead Donkey", another clever and hilarious comedy.

    • @speleokeir
      @speleokeir Před 2 lety +2

      Yes I loved Drop the Dead Donkey. The scripts were about current news stories and were so up to date that the actors only got the final script a couple of hours beforehand which was really impressive.
      For this reason some of it would probably go over the head of someone not familiar with the news stories of the time if they watched them now.

  • @andrewdoubtfire4700
    @andrewdoubtfire4700 Před 2 lety +18

    There’s another scene where Humphrey talks about why the British went in to the EU in the first place. All about the same plan the Brits have had for the last 500 years. Really worth looking for.

    • @charliegeorge9393
      @charliegeorge9393 Před 2 lety +1

      EEC

    • @joaopauloadlergomesdacosta282
      @joaopauloadlergomesdacosta282 Před 2 lety +1

      czcams.com/video/ZVYqB0uTKlE/video.html

    • @Si_Mondo
      @Si_Mondo Před 2 lety

      That strategy is solid too. Why would we want a united Europe just across the channel?
      European hegemony has never worked out well in history....

    • @paul1979uk2000
      @paul1979uk2000 Před rokem

      @@Si_Mondo The irony is, now that us Brits are not in the EU any more, a united EU is more likely because the UK always tried to put the brakes on it.

  • @achloist
    @achloist Před 2 lety +44

    I’m afraid the minister isn’t being 100% honest here. He doesn’t want the directive because he planned to place a huge order for word processors in his own constituency (gaining votes).

  • @darrenbuckley2082
    @darrenbuckley2082 Před 2 lety +6

    Priceless and so relevant even today, you need to watch them all my friend.

  • @libertinoradio4597
    @libertinoradio4597 Před 2 lety +8

    So glad you enjoyed this. Possibly our greatest ever comedy series. Exquisite writing and expert performances, just brilliant. Funny and intelligent satire. The last time we had any of that here was a series called "Brasseye". You should watch that. It's another contender for the "Greatest UK satire ever" prize.

  • @chrismorris76
    @chrismorris76 Před 2 lety +9

    This was one of my father's favourite shows (and Yes Prime Minister). He was a civil servant for about 50 years and scenes like this would have had him in stiches... :)

  • @dcanmore
    @dcanmore Před 2 lety +5

    of the same era as Yes Minister I would highly recommend Tinker Tailer Soldier Spy and it's sequel Smiley's People, both starring Alec Guiness as a spy catcher in the British Secret Service. Not a comedy but a great slow burn intelligent Cold War spy drama and insight of Government machinations of the time.

  • @paulhanson5164
    @paulhanson5164 Před 2 lety +18

    To this day we in the UK dismiss senior civil servants as "Sir Humphry's" such was its impact.
    You need to watch whole episodes, these scenes are often cut before they've even finished.

  • @petercrowley453
    @petercrowley453 Před 2 lety +10

    This series should be readily available on BritBox, no DVD player necessary.

    • @stu2333
      @stu2333 Před 2 lety

      Thanl you!

    • @Happyheretic2308
      @Happyheretic2308 Před 2 lety

      The dvds are better, as Britbox is guilty of cropping episodes of classic comedies for "pc"/"woke" reasons.

  • @highpath4776
    @highpath4776 Před 2 lety +15

    Having worked in at least two companies which for the number of nationalities represented it was like the league of nations, one was a smallish company in south london the other a pan national division of a state run enterprise. We had printed up in the tea room at one
    "Heaven is where: The police are British The chefs Italian The mechanics are German The lovers are French and it's all organised by the Swiss
    Hell is where: The police are German The chefs are British The mechanics are French The lovers are Swiss and it's all organised by the Italians.
    (other versions exist)

    • @snafu313
      @snafu313 Před 2 lety +3

      I have that saying on a T-shirt...

    • @TheSimmr001
      @TheSimmr001 Před rokem

      as long as its not London Metropolitan.

  • @ducati916SPS
    @ducati916SPS Před rokem +2

    One of best Political Comedy Series Britain produced......funny thing is its so true, we are not European we are an island. Fast forward to Brixit...🤣🤣

  • @Walesbornandbred
    @Walesbornandbred Před 2 lety +14

    This was Margaret Thatchers favourite comedy tv sitcom, cleverly written and enough truth to be credible.

  • @vaudevillian7
    @vaudevillian7 Před 2 lety +10

    Yes, Minister / Prime Minister is a phenomenal series. If you want a more recent take on British politics and government then I highly recommend The Thick of It

    • @keatsmeister
      @keatsmeister Před 2 lety +2

      Absolutely. I love the fact that we didn’t get more series from The Thick Of It because the writers felt they couldn’t come up with anything nearly as crazy as what was actually happening

    • @vaudevillian7
      @vaudevillian7 Před 2 lety

      @@keatsmeister same with The Day Today from the same writers, well Armando at least

  • @marcusalford1750
    @marcusalford1750 Před 2 lety +1

    Congrats on 70k subs your deserved all the subs and praise you get ive been here since 25k subs and i've enjoy every minute of it 👍👏☺

  • @corringhamdepot4434
    @corringhamdepot4434 Před 2 lety +4

    Takes me back to working in the 1980s when dumb terminals on mini-computers only did one thing, like word processing. So you had a standalone "electronic" typing pool to do your documents. We had the same thing in the 1990s to do programming, and another system to do data entry. I think in the real world before the Internet, you had common EU electronic document file standards. So you could easily share documents. The EU rules on hardware purchasing were that over a certain value, you had to open the bidding to all other EU countries, and not write the specifications so nobody else could bid on it.

  • @henryviii6341
    @henryviii6341 Před 2 lety +3

    The late great Mrs Thatcher’s favourite programme. enough said. timeless brilliant searingly relevant in 2021.
    to truly understand the LEVELS of humour and way beyond that encapsulated in this micro-segment and the entire series itself you really HAVE to be born here in England , to have worked in Govt or the City or Big Business. you can watch it from USA just as a comedy but it’s so so much more. So true to reality it’s unique it’s scary too. brilliant acting in a typically understated English way with the humour is as dry as a Gordon’s &Tonic 🍸
    you gotta realise what is said is not what is REALLY said or meant and behind each line or so many layers which any political Brit is familiar with. It’s from 1970s but is as relevant in 2021 Britain as 1961 1971 or 1981 Britain.

    • @pittarak1
      @pittarak1 Před 2 lety

      The late, but not great Thatcher.

  • @AlexFlanderzzz
    @AlexFlanderzzz Před 2 lety +1

    Glad to see you back up and running EB- you make every viewers day a little brighter.

  • @susanbooth6793
    @susanbooth6793 Před 2 lety +1

    The British Civil Service adopted a number of phrases from the show which are still in use. Probably the most famous is "That's a courageous decision, minister," meaning "Go with that one, mate, and your political career is at an end."

  • @alfiourso4587
    @alfiourso4587 Před 2 lety +2

    You’re gonna love both series. The word play is amazing. Best comedy series I’ve seen and its still relevant today.

  • @basildon9008
    @basildon9008 Před 2 lety +1

    Yes Minister (and it’s sequel Yes Prime Minister) were Margaret Thatchers favourite shows. We even have stage play versions which are very funny 😁

  • @maryhook9478
    @maryhook9478 Před 2 lety +1

    Peter Hitchens has hit the nail on the head worth watching his lecture. The EU is the continuation of Germany by other means. You can download it on youtube.

  • @user-kf9cx1wl2r
    @user-kf9cx1wl2r Před 5 měsíci +1

    I'll make a prediction now: in two or three hundred years, episodes of this show will not only still be watched and enjoyed (goodness only knows what devices people will be watching them on), but in the ranks of great English political satire, they'll enjoy the same status that the works of Swifte and Chaucer do nowadays.

  • @abzzeus
    @abzzeus Před 2 lety +2

    The Greeks have defaulted on debts numerous times. When they went into the Euro, the books were like potatoes that had been boiled - for a day and a half.

  • @robertward7382
    @robertward7382 Před 2 lety +2

    I often see clips of this scene, but the funny thing is how they completely reverse positions on Europe part way through the episode! Great series, gets better with every watch.

  • @AncientHermit
    @AncientHermit Před 2 lety +1

    Glad you did this one. The whole "on screen format " business is looking very tidy now, good job Alan, be well.

  • @davidcook7887
    @davidcook7887 Před 2 lety

    You have been saying that would be doing this again. The best British sitcom ever!

  • @matthewsharman591
    @matthewsharman591 Před 2 lety +2

    This is one of Britains finest sitcom's, also the follow up series Yes Prime Minister. The series deep political jargon and even some situations were real as the writers had two high profile politicians at the time consult with them over the scripts and that was kept a secret for years.

  • @jonathanalves5078
    @jonathanalves5078 Před 2 lety +2

    One of the best written series ever and only gets more relevant with time

  • @davidmccarthy6390
    @davidmccarthy6390 Před 22 dny

    It was VERY accurate to real life. That is because 2 of the shows advisors (secret) were working in government at the time. They not only told them of the dynamics between the civil service and the MP's, but of real life situations they had experienced.
    Most of the episodes are based on real events, with just enough twisting to obscure their origin.
    One great example of this is the episode "The official visit" - totally based on real events. lol

  • @pjmoseley243
    @pjmoseley243 Před 2 lety +1

    Margaret Thatcher said this was her favorite TV show, because it was so true to life.

  • @paulgilson2347
    @paulgilson2347 Před 2 lety +2

    This and the thick of it are the best two shows to understand British politics.

  • @stevecarter8810
    @stevecarter8810 Před 2 lety +1

    4:16 is local to the time and place : olive mountain and retsina lake reference the "butter mountain" of the time, which was the metaphor for the unintended consequence of EEC quotas leading to large amounts of food going to waste. "some of your friends are Greeks" is a reference to the fact that Prince Consort (the queen's husband) is from a Greek family

  • @paulbradnick786
    @paulbradnick786 Před 2 lety +2

    Without doubt,the best written and performed show ever on British T.V....untouchable.

  • @felonmarmer
    @felonmarmer Před 2 lety +14

    The word processing standard is something that actually went through the EU and they settled on ODF (Open Document Format) as opposed to Microsoft Word. Microsoft had to add ODF as an option to Word after complaining bitterly about it (actually they did it quite quickly). It was to make sure that the various governments could pass documents amongst themselves digitally without any compatibility problems and not force people to make Mr Gates richer as a result.

    • @allenwilliams1306
      @allenwilliams1306 Před 2 lety +2

      ODF was a necessary choice since not everybody uses a Microsoft OS or word processor (I never would). Governments, wanting to put stuff on line increasingly, could not use a proprietary format obliging people to purchase a commercial product.

    • @janickpauwels3792
      @janickpauwels3792 Před 2 lety +4

      The EU has set up many of those standards, which has an impact on the whole world. A recent one is forcing the use of USB-C as a common charger for ALL mobile devices. This will make life much easier for the consumer. Apple will moan about it, but they will have to adopt it. If you buy an iphone in the future in the US, and it has a USB-C port, you can thank the EU for introducing/forcing that standard.

    • @jonjohnson2844
      @jonjohnson2844 Před 2 lety

      @@janickpauwels3792 another one the EU are claiming when the market is going that way anyway - the proposed a standardised charger about 7/8 years ago and never mentioned it again. Apple have had USB-C on iPads since 2018.

    • @Muckylittleme
      @Muckylittleme Před 2 lety

      @@janickpauwels3792 The EU is currently fining Poland £1M per day for not accepting diktats on how their own judicial system should work.
      The EU demanded they do what they say, the EU accused them of running their own affairs, the EU oversaw the court ruling, and the EU found them guilty and the EU issued the fine which is directly payable to them.
      And remainers still don't understand it is there to destroy sovereignty and a huge criminal protection racket?

    • @lucylu9624
      @lucylu9624 Před 2 lety +3

      @@janickpauwels3792 never knew that was EU thing. Stupidity of brexit. We'll end up having to comply with most EU regulations anyway but will have no say in writing them and def no veto like only us, the French and Germans had.

  • @petcatznz
    @petcatznz Před 2 lety +1

    In a word, this is a perfect example of satire. Wonderfully executed too.

  • @sharonsnail2954
    @sharonsnail2954 Před 2 lety

    @EB Got to dig out that DVD and watch FULL episodes.

  • @KeplersDream
    @KeplersDream Před 2 lety +21

    As an ex-Civil Servant, though at a more lowly level, I can say with experiance that this portrayal is spookily accurate.

    • @Garryck-1
      @Garryck-1 Před 2 lety +2

      I have a friend who's a very highly placed senior analyst in the Australian govt. He assured me a couple of years ago, that 'Yes Minister' and 'Yes Prime Minister' are extremely accurate portrayals of the way politics works in Australia to this day.

  • @mwscuba
    @mwscuba Před 2 lety +4

    It’s almost like the NI protocol which we signed was just a smoke screen too get it past parliament 😂🤷‍♂️

  • @Alcagaur1
    @Alcagaur1 Před rokem

    As someone who has taught C1 and C2 (Advanced and Proficiency levels) English with the aid of this gem of the first water, this is probably my single most used scene.

  • @tonygriffin_
    @tonygriffin_ Před 2 lety +2

    Ah, 1980...when 'word processors' were actual machines, not an app. Mind you, I'd been using a Telex machine and a hand-cranked photocopier barely 3 years earlier so they probably seemed like magic to me. A time when one could enjoy slamming the receiver down to end a call...there's no app to replicate that...yet.

    • @ftumschk
      @ftumschk Před 2 lety +2

      I asked my parents for a word processor in the 1980s, but they got me a food processor by mistake. I ended up mincing my words.

  • @shadoman7682
    @shadoman7682 Před 2 lety +2

    This was such a good show and so funny because it so mirrored the truth.

  • @Lord_Ronin_The_Compassionate

    The character playing “Sir Humphrey” is Nigel Hawthorne*, an absolutely amazing actor. He had to memorise various long winded, long worded speeches for every episode and every one of them was funny as heck and unfortunately very, very accurate. Looking back at the stories as told in Yes, Minister and later on, Yes, Prime Minister it was an incredible insight into the workings and thought processes used by our politicians and their enemies aka the Civil Service.
    * that’s not to say that Paul Eddington as the Minister, or Derek Foulds as Bernard the PPS were anything other than amazing in this series.

  • @shenysys
    @shenysys Před 2 lety

    The actor who played Bernard - younger of them was also in Heartbeat.

  • @htershane
    @htershane Před rokem +1

    Much as I appreciate an American appreciating our general appreciation I would give the episode “moral dimension” a go just cos It’s as close as this show goes for slapstick. Basically “hacker gets drunk”. After you’ve done that move on to “Yes Prime Minister”

  • @lextex3280
    @lextex3280 Před 2 lety

    i remember watching this when it first hit the tv,

  • @generaladvance5812
    @generaladvance5812 Před 2 lety

    I loved the episode about UK defence and nuclear arms. Well worth a watch.

  • @lesliemackay7853
    @lesliemackay7853 Před 2 lety +2

    There's a minor, original reason for the European experiment. At the time of the USA was playing its minor local disagreement, Europe was having to deal with Napoleon. A hundred years and countless deaths later in interminable, wars still following eternal precedent, humans got so good at it that for the sake of effeciency they mechanised it! Twenty years later, in keeping with the schedule, Europe was at it again. This time mechanisation and technology were vastly improved, birth of cruise missiles, invention of ICBM etc.
    So come the end of the second half of the WW the leaders of the UK, France and W Germany had decided that the fixture couldn't be retained, not even if the schedule was extended from the approximate 2 decade time scale, it just wasn't viable any more.
    Churchill lost His job, Labour had other priorities, France and W Germany got started. By the time that the UK was ready De Gaulle, to experienced to be an Anglophile, had influence and a veto. When the UK were eventually allowed to join it was to late to manipulate a controlling interest, engineering petty squabbles was still possible though.
    The other one I like is the UK problem with its gristle filled fat tube, a perfectly contrived drama for local/media consumption that was inconsequential everywhere else.

    • @rnsc8342
      @rnsc8342 Před 2 lety

      France required the original basis of the European coal and steel community for an even narrower reason -to have sight of and some control over German industry and the thrrat that Germany would rearm again, Russian occupation of East Germany and NATO with forces from the US, France and Britainin west Germany solved that problem after about 1950 , but the original idea grew into the EU, and still was seen as a way of controling Germany after the experience of 1870, 1914 and 1939.

  • @farmduck2762
    @farmduck2762 Před 2 lety

    When they're talking about the word processor format, you have to remember that this was made in 1986. There wasn't any standard format back then and cross-compatibility was limited. There were multiple different operating systems and many brands came with their own OS and WP.

  • @annedunne4526
    @annedunne4526 Před rokem

    As someone who is not British it's interesting to see how little the British understood then and now the idea of countries working together for the greater good. No country has to accept anything it doesn't want but most decisions are for the benefit of the member countries. Indeed many of the regulations were British innovations.

  • @kirstymorgan4770
    @kirstymorgan4770 Před 2 lety +1

    Check out "The New Statesman" starring Rik Mayall (of "Bottom") - hilarious 1980s comedy show about a Tory MP!

  • @snafu313
    @snafu313 Před 2 lety

    Later on in the episode, you find out that the "wrong people" is actually a fellow minister by the name of Basil Corbett. This sets up one of the funniest lines in the episode:
    Hacker" Don't forget there's Basil Corbett. He's out to get me
    Annie (Hacker's wife): He's out to get everybody..
    Hacker: He's a smooth tounged, hard-nosed, cold-eyed, two-faced creep.
    Annie: Why is he so successful?
    Hacker: Because he's a smooth tounged, hard-nosed, cold-eyed, two-faced creep.

  • @NxDoyle
    @NxDoyle Před 2 lety

    The dynamic is that of a politician trying to effect change and a senior civil servant trying to maintain the status quo.
    Like Basil Fawlty, who thought that his hotel would run beautifully were it not for the guests, Humphrey believed that government would work perfectly if not for politicians.

  • @DeneF
    @DeneF Před 2 lety

    Thanks Mr E.B.

  • @juliehanns802
    @juliehanns802 Před 2 lety

    Very, very clever writing and an amazing cast made this outstanding tv.

  • @adamhofman4933
    @adamhofman4933 Před 2 lety

    Yes minister is my favourite documentary!

  • @alansmithee8831
    @alansmithee8831 Před 2 lety

    Hello Alan. I probably commented this before, but I used to watch this in fits of laughter at university with Alok Sharma, who is the UK minister organising the Glasgow climate conference.
    Still so funny.

  • @annemariefleming
    @annemariefleming Před 2 lety

    This, in part, explains why many of us campaigned to leave for 40 years. We paid in a huge amount more than we received back. We, with the French and Germans, subsidised all the other members. And this show portrays an accurate picture of the corruption and greed og politicians and and public servants who made a lot of money and influential associations by our membership.

  • @geeShahGee724
    @geeShahGee724 Před 2 lety

    You need to do more yes minister reactions

  • @snafu313
    @snafu313 Před 2 lety

    Watch the whole episode... actually I think the funniest bit in the entire episode is later when he's sitting at home with his wife. He gets a phone call from Brussels asking him if he wants to put his name up for consideration for one of the EU commissionerships. He gives the reasons why it would be the end for him in British politics and then he explains what it would entail and in the process convinces himself and his wife that it might be worth a shot.

  • @AlexFlanderzzz
    @AlexFlanderzzz Před 2 lety +2

    I highly recommend you watch 'The Thick of It' if you enjoyed this. The writer, Armando Ianucci was regularly asked by people within UK government how he was so accurate and predicted real events. You'll love it. Give this a like to let the boss man see...

  • @Cabdrum1
    @Cabdrum1 Před 2 lety

    Well done for taking this on 👍. There's a lot British subtlety in this than many a Brit will miss ....

  • @deepfriedhamsters3273
    @deepfriedhamsters3273 Před 2 lety

    Happy Halloween to to you and yours from me and mine !

  • @kensmith8152
    @kensmith8152 Před 2 lety

    This show was soooooo far ahead of it’s time!

  • @travelledfar
    @travelledfar Před 2 lety

    You do not need to study at university for years to understand British politics. Just watch this series. The Sir Humphry character is an almost perfect representative of the civil service, (even today 2021). A certain Mrs M Thatcher stated on serveral occasions, she recognised the civil servant attitudes, as displayed in this programme.

  • @henryhartley9993
    @henryhartley9993 Před 2 lety

    Brilliant series..

  • @sas2300
    @sas2300 Před 2 lety

    The eec or eu as it is now operates similarly to states in the US. The states try to operate in the best way for the people that live in those states whilst the federal gov seems bent on issuing edicts which it then expects the states to carry out which seem designed to make life as difficult as possible.

  • @PeterPrestonUK
    @PeterPrestonUK Před 2 lety +1

    One of the most cutting political comedy ever written. Ministers of the time had said it was uncomfortable because it was so accurate.

  • @dnr2089
    @dnr2089 Před 2 lety

    Yes Minister was one of the cleverest and funniest things on British tv. It showed politics as it really is….baffling, ludicrous and self-serving! Everyone should watch it. True class! 🤣👏👏👏

  • @craigmorris4083
    @craigmorris4083 Před 2 lety

    Ah, Sir Humphrey Appleby GCB KBE MVO, truly an amazing example of a civil servant.
    My favorite quote from this silly character must be this from 'The Skeleton in the Cupboard' (Series 3, episode 3): "The identity of the official whose alleged responsibility for this hypothetical oversight has been the subject of recent discussion is not shrouded in quite such impenetrable obscurity as certain previous disclosures may have led you to assume; but not to put too fine a point on it, the individual in question is, it may surprise you to learn, one whom your present interlocutor is in the habit of defining by means of the perpendicular pronoun." To which Minister Hacker asks "I beg your pardon" to which Sir Humphrey replies simply, "It was I". :D

  • @martinhunt4086
    @martinhunt4086 Před 2 lety +1

    Hi, You missed the best bit of that scene ..it comes next ! Made in the 1980s and is still relevant in the most today

  • @casinodelonge
    @casinodelonge Před 2 lety

    It's also timeless. The same things are still being said today as they were then, and in the same way.

  • @himarkburdett9378
    @himarkburdett9378 Před 2 lety

    Yes Minister was made in the 80s it's a brilliant comedy but also accurate satire. I suggest the Christmas special of 1984 called party games

  • @patricke2088
    @patricke2088 Před 2 lety

    The best documentary on Government ever made

  • @danielvincent5306
    @danielvincent5306 Před 2 lety

    Please react to them discussing scrapping Trident and the nuclear deterrent. That and 'the key'.

  • @chrispalmer7893
    @chrispalmer7893 Před měsícem

    This video provides some clue as to why Brexit happened. Not because it's an accurate representation of the EEC (the EU as it became), but because it's an accurate representation of the cariacature that the Brits were constantly sold about how it works. It leans heavily in on the idea that the EU is a centralised ogranisation with Brussels dictating everything in the minutest detail. I'll let them off for not mentioning the European Parliament because that was still very new when this was made, but the reality is that "Brussels" (a synonym for the EU Commission) issues fairly broad directives and it is for the individual member states to decide how they are implemented. That the French would typically respond with a fairly brief summary of the most light-touch methods to comply, whilst the UK would respond with enormous documents covering the issue in the most minute detail is an indictment of British, not European adminstration. It would make sense that Sir Humphrey would defend the bureaucracy of the EU because in truth it was the British Civil Service he represents that were responsible for almost all of it.
    There is another element to the anti-EU sentiment of some in the UK, and that comes from a steady drip of stories about ridiculous regulations that were about to be imposed "by Brussels". A law demanding that bananas be straight and the abolition of prawn cocktail flavoured crisps are examples I still sometimes heard referenced today. They are instructive because neither of those stories were even vaguely true. Indeed, the prawn cocktail crisps thing is still sometimes brought up by Boris Johnson, who made that story up in the first place. He was responsible for about 25% of these types of stories, all coming from the few years when he was Brussels correspondent for the Telegraph. He has openly admitted that he had a stored paragraph in his computer "Britain stands alone tonight in Europe..." which he'd then follow with whatever nonsense he chose to invent.
    During the Brexit campaign an advert was run by the Leave side talking about "Regulated EU" man in which a man is seen going about his morning routine and on-screen captions flash up all the EU regulations that control what he's doing. When an enterprising journalist took the time to freeze-frame and investigate that advert it was found that most of the regulations listed were entirely fictional, and the few that were real didn't even vaguely relate to what was claimed.
    As for why certain parts of the media engaged in this gaslighting for the duration of our membership, you only have to look to Rupert Murdoch's explanation of why he was anti-EU. He said "when I go into Downing Street they do what I say; when I go to Brussels they take no notice" (something that for me is sufficient on its own to justify permanent British membership of the EU). Add to that dash of UK exceptionalism, a large dollop of "but we won the war!" and you get the biggest single act of self-harm perpetuated by any democractic nation in modern times...

  • @daveofyorkshire301
    @daveofyorkshire301 Před 2 lety +3

    This was confirm by politicians as being a very accurate depiction of political thinking in Whitehall (UK government). Its a great show "Yes Minister" and later "Yes, Primeminister", its worth buying the box set...

  • @papajohnloki
    @papajohnloki Před 2 lety

    Excellent summary

  • @davidspendlove5900
    @davidspendlove5900 Před 2 lety

    Great stuff.

  • @pollybayfield8332
    @pollybayfield8332 Před 2 lety +1

    More please

  • @annalieff-saxby568
    @annalieff-saxby568 Před 2 lety

    The writers said that they satirised *government* not politics. IMO that's why Yes, Minister will always be relevant - and laugh out loud funny.

  • @kennethgarland4712
    @kennethgarland4712 Před 2 lety

    Certain uncanny parallels that may interest Americans:
    US: Former colonies get together for a single common cause (to get rid of the British)
    EU: Former independent countries get together for a single common cause (free trade)
    US: Colonies (now independent states) agree on the Articles of Confederation, which provides for limited joint government, including a joint assembly, but each state must agree on action to deal with fundamental issues. This turns out to be a very cumbersome arrangement.
    EU: Hitherto independent member states agree to a series of treaties providing for limited (but increasing) joint government, including a joint assembly, but each nation must agree on action to deal with fundamental issues. This turns out to be a very cumbersome arrangement.
    US: Hardened federalists sneakily introduce a federal constitution, giving extensive power to the federal assembly and government, and individual states have limited power to disagree. There is no mention of the possibility of secession from the Union.
    EU: Hardened federalists sneakily devise a treaty giving yet more power to the EU administration, although for the present every state has to agree on fundamental issues. They grudgingly accept provision for the possibility of secession in the expectation that this will never be used.
    US: One Southern state, followed by others, secedes from the Union on the grounds that the federal government and assembly is interfering too much in state policy. There is a long and bloody Civil War.
    EU: One state secedes from the Union on the grounds that the central administration is interfering too much in its policies. Rumours that others may consider following their example. Outcome...............?

  • @jumpferjoy1st
    @jumpferjoy1st Před 2 lety

    You must try this short sketch. "Yes Minister Special Sketch (Christmas at the ministry)- 1982" on CZcams. Hilarious!

  • @robertwright7937
    @robertwright7937 Před 2 lety +1

    Now this is the stuff.

  • @socialite1283
    @socialite1283 Před 2 lety

    The story in this episode is based on the difference in perspective between civil servant and politician. Brussels is code for Civil Service, road-blocking, and bureaucracy. towards the end of the story, Humphrey and Hacker change positions. The humour comes from them changing sides of the argument.

  • @KeplersDream
    @KeplersDream Před 2 lety

    "A lot of big words on that one!"
    Me: grabs popcorn

  • @gwaptiva
    @gwaptiva Před 2 lety +1

    Your first comment nails the weirdness of the British attitude to the EU :D It's not surprising that De Gaulle was dead set against letting them into the EU

  • @timpreston459
    @timpreston459 Před 2 lety +1

    Try to imagine as an American how it would feel if you were part of an institution that dictates how you run your country from let’s say Mexico City where they have their headquarters part of the year the other part of the year they will all shift off down to Buenos Aires. How would you feel about losing control of your country and at the same time you would be paying vast amounts of money into the common pot where much of the money simply disappears. The accounts for the EU have never been signed off because of this disappearance of money. Boris Johnson has made a cock up of so many things but at least he took us out of the EU

    • @paul1979uk2000
      @paul1979uk2000 Před rokem

      Is it really that different from the US federal government dictating terms to US states or the UK government dictating terms to its members in the union?
      Yes I know two of them are countries whiles the EU is not but the fact remains that decisions are being made by a power far away.
      But like all things, there's a balance of power from country and EU or from the US to states.
      But the argument you are using could also apply to the US and UK, but in any case, if done right, there is a lot of benefits to being in the EU just like there is for US states being in the US.
      As for the UK, we've been a joke ever since we left the EU and things don't look to be getting better with the civil war that's been building in the Tory party thanks to Brexit, in other words, don't expect any real change once the new leader is in power because the leadership isn't the problem, the party is, especially the ERG part of it and until us Brits get that, we're just going to keep lurching from one mess to another that will in the long run lead to Scotland and Northern Ireland wanting to leave the UK, after all, would you want to be ruled by this Tory lot?
      What's funny about it, the Tories pushed for Brexit with the aim of keeping the party together and yet Brexit has created more divisions for the party that they could be heading for a slaughter at the next election.

  • @mickohara7268
    @mickohara7268 Před 2 lety +1

    Glad you enjoyed that. Please embrace Blackadder, you'll giggle and laugh. Anyhow much joy.