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SERIES 1 - First broadcast 1980
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Open Government
British MP Jim Hacker's party has won a general election,
and Hacker is waiting for The Call. "You sound as if
you're going to enter the ministry," says his wife. "Yes,"
replies Hacker, "but which Ministry, that's the whole
point!" As it happens, Hacker is tapped to head the Department
of Administrative Affairs, where he intends to fight for his
party's manifesto commitment to Open Government. He faces
a few obstacles, however: his Permanent Secretary, Sir Humphrey
Appleby; his Private Secretary, Bernard Woolley; and his own
party's Prime Minister.
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The Official Visit
The President of Buranda is to visit Scotland (coincidentally,
on the very day before three Scottish by-elections). Unfortunately,
a coup in Buranda interferes with Hacker's plans. Shrugging
off Sir Humphrey's warnings, Hacker insists on letting the
visit go ahead, despite the little matter of not knowing who's
coming.
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The Economy Drive
"Economy begins at home," Sir Humphrey tells his
Minister, and thus begins "Operation Hairshirt,"
a Civil Service scheme to convince Hacker that perhaps budgetary
cutbacks aren't such a good thing after all.
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Big Brother
Her Majesty's Government is inaugurating a huge new database
containing information on every citizen of the UK. Hacker
wants strict safeguards on the use of this information. Sir
Humphrey does not. By consulting with his predecessor (now
in opposition), Hacker begins to see how the civil service
can, on occasion, be beaten.
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The Writing on the Wall
Jim Hacker has succeeded in cutting government waste! Unfortunately,
the bit of waste to be eliminated is his own Department of
Administrative Affairs, which wasn't what he had in mind at
all.
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The Right to Know
Hacker is outraged to be told that "there are some things
it is better for a Minister not to know." Sir Humphrey
sets out, with the aid of Hacker's daughter and a threatened
badger colony, to show him why.
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Jobs for the Boys
Hacker is outraged to be told that "there are some things
it is better for a Minister not to know." Sir Humphrey
sets out, with the aid of Hacker's daughter and a threatened
badger colony, to show him why.
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SERIES 2 - First broadcast 1981
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The Compassionate Society
Hacker is surprised to learn that a brand-new hospital has
500 administrative staff and no medial staff--or patients.
Sir Humphrey merely praises its efficiency. After all, it's
the cleanest hospital in London.
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Doing the Honours
Hacker wants to withhold honours (knighthoods, MBEs, and
the like) from civil servants who fail to make budget cuts.
Sir Humphrey is aghast, believing that honours for civil servants
should be automatic. After all, they're civil servants! Meanwhile,
Sir Humphrey's old college at Oxford is facing financial difficulties
which only Hacker can solve for them.
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The Death List
As editor of the magazine Reform, Hacker came out
against government wiretapping and bugging. Now he learns
that as Minister for Administrative Affairs he is, in the
words of Private Eye, "the Government's chief
bugger."
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The Greasy Pole
The British Chemical Corporation needs Hacker's permission
to manufacture a perfectly harmless chemical with a politically
unattractive name. Hacker is faced with a choice: should he
look like a heartless pawn of industry or a spineless political
jellyfish?
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The Devil You Know
An impending Cabinet reshuffle has Hacker in a tizzy. This
is perfectly normal; that's what reshuffles are for. Stranger
is Sir Humphrey's negative reaction to the possibility of
losing his Minister. After all, one Minister is much like
another...unless the other is Basil Corbett.
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The Quality of Life
Hacker is manoeuvred into sort-of-promising to keep a City
Farm for urban schoolchildren open. Unfortunately, he has
already been manoeuvred into signing (but not reading or understanding)
an order to close it. To top things off, the City Farm director's
husband is an editor at a major newspaper. Can Sir Humphrey
get his Minister out of this mess? And what will he want in
return?
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A Question of Loyalty
Hacker is desperately trying, with the aid of his civil servants,
to cover up his--and their--failure to cut government waste.
The Prime Minister is not pleased with his performance...though
not for the reasons Jim thinks.
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SERIES 3 - First broadcast 1982
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Equal Opportunities
Hacker wants an immediate 25% quota for women in the top
grades of the Civil Service. Sir Humphrey believes that this
would mark the end of civilisation as we know it.
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The Challenge
Responsibility for Local Government has just been transferred
to the DAA, making Jim Hacker "Mr. Town Hall as well
as Mr. Whitehall." Hacker sets out with characteristic
zeal to clean up local bureaucracy...and blows it, giving
an embarrassing taped interview to the BBC. Can Hacker get
the interview cancelled? Of course, the BBC couldn't possibly
give in to government pressure....
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The Skeleton in the Cupboard
Thirty years ago, a young civil servant drew up a contract
which will soon cost the Government 40 million pounds. The
papers will soon be due for declassification, and Hacker has
promised to ensure that they will all be made available. For
some reason, the prospect seems to terrify Sir Humphrey.
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The Moral Dimension
Hacker learns that a huge export order from the Arab oil
sheikhdom of Qumran was obtained by bribery. In a fit of moral
indignation, the Minister insists that this must be made public.
Unfortunately for Jim, he has some skeletons in his own cupboard.
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The Bed of Nails
Jim Hacker is pleased to be made Transport Supremo, though
his pleasure is short-lived once Sir Humphrey explains that
the Civil Service vernacular for the position is "Transport
Muggins." How will Sir Humphrey get Jim out of this one?
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The Whisky Priest
When Hacker learns of the sale of British weapons to Italian
terrorists, he thinks the Prime Minister would want to know.
Sir Humphrey, by contrast, thinks the PM would want not
to know. With the aid of the Chief Whip, Sir Humphrey convinces
Hacker to see it his way. But Hacker's source has other ideas.
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The Middle-Class Rip-Off
Hacker suggests selling an art museum in his constituency
and giving the money to the struggling local football club.
Sir Humphrey is aghast that government money might be taken
away from the arts and spent on something people actually
want.
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Christmas Special - First broadcast 1984
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Party Games
The Prime Minister has announced his resignation. Will the
Foreign Secretary or the Chancellor of the Exchequer be the
new PM? Jim Hacker has, in his even-handed way, promised to
support both. The party establishment and the Civil Service
don't like either one. But who is moderate enough and malleable
enough to satisfy both the party and the Civil Service...?
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