Yes Minister

The newly appointed Minister for Administrative Affairs, the Rt Hon. Jim Hacker MP, finds even the corridors of power congested by the machinations of his Permanent Secretary Sir Humphrey and his Civil Service cohorts.

Yes Minister Series 1 release dates →

1. E7

   7. Jobs for the Boys

   Finale 46 years ago

   Jim goes on radio to support the Solihull project a Government, union and private enterprise building scheme, that he has inherited from the last administration, but unknown to him the project is close to bankruptcy, Sir Humphrey hopes to save the deal by offering a quango to the director of the bank involved

2. E6

   6. The Right to Know

   46 years ago

   Jim faces rebellion at home and in the office over the removal of protected status from a badger habitat, while he tries to circumvent Sir Humphrey’s efforts to keep him ignorant of things.

3. E5

   5. The Writing on the Wall

   46 years ago

   A rumour starts that Jim’s department is about to be axed. So with help from Sir Humphrey, they try and defeat the Prime Minister’s plans.

4. E4

   4. Big Brother

   46 years ago

   When the Government is planning to introduce a national database, Jim wants to bring in safe guards, but Sir Humphrey stalls until with some help from the opposition, Jim gets his way.

5. E3

   3. The Economy Drive

   46 years ago

   Jim Hacker is determined to reduce the Civil Service, but he is frustrated by Sir Humphrey, and the only numbers he can alter are the numbers of tea ladies.

6. E2

   2. The Official Visit

   46 years ago

   When the leader of an African country is killed in a coup, his successor, who is an old friend of Jim’s, comes in his place. They negotiate a £50 million deal to help buy oil exploration equipment.

7. E1

   1. Open Government

   46 years ago

   Jim Hacker retains his seat in the election and is given a cabinet post in the new government He meets the permanent secretary for his department Sir Humphrey Appleby but Jim decides to change the way things are done in the civil service so Sir Humphrey sets out to stop him

The Rt Hon. Jim Hacker MP and Sir Humphrey step out again for the second series of the Whitehall waltz.

Yes Minister Series 2 release dates →

1. E7

   7. A Question of Loyalty

   Finale 45 years ago

   Jim and Sir Humphrey pass the buck to protect each other when they appear before a select committee investigating charges of waste in Hacker’s ministry, until Jim’s higher loyalties are called upon.

2. E6

   6. The Quality of Life

   45 years ago

   Sir Humphrey uses Jim’s promise to keep a popular city farm project open to get special permission for an additional nine floors on a proposed skyscraper.

3. E5

   5. The Devil You Know

   45 years ago

   When Jim is betrayed by a Cabinet colleague over his plans to bring in jobs for British workers, he thinks about leaving Westminster and becoming a European Commissioner, But when Sir Humphrey learns who his replacement will be, he tries to change Jim’s mind.

4. E4

   4. The Greasy Pole

   45 years ago

   Jim has the chance of creating jobs, and saving a chemical company, when they are offered the chance to manufacture a highly dangerous chemical, but when the news gets out that it might be too dangerous, he has to back down.

5. E3

   3. The Death List

   45 years ago

   When Jim learns that when in opposition he was bugged by the secret service, he decides to bring in legislation to kerb the bugging, only to find out that he is on the death list of a group of terrorists, and the best way to find them, is by bugging phone lines.

6. E2

   2. Doing the Honours

   45 years ago

   When Jim learns that he can block civil servant’s honours, he blackmails them into cutting their budgets, but when he hears that he might be in line for an honorary degree, he has to back down.

7. E1

   1. The Compassionate Society

   45 years ago

   When Jim learns that a brand new hospital still has no medical staff, but hundreds of civil servants working there, he proposes that half of the civil servants be sacked and use the money saved to open wards with medical staff.

Westminster and Whitehall clash again as the Rt Hon. Jim Hacker, the Minister for Administrative Affairs, locks horns with his Permanent Secretary Sir Humphrey Appleby.

Yes Minister Series 3 release dates →

1. E7

   7. The Middle-Class Rip-Off

   Finale 43 years ago

   Jim and Sir Humphrey collide when Jim acts as an M.P. to sell an art gallery and museum in his district to support a popular local soccer club.

2. E6

   6. The Whisky Priest

   43 years ago

   Jim faces opposition from all sides when he learns that British munitions have been sold to terrorist groups and he decides to start an inquiry into how it happened.

3. E5

   5. The Bed of Nails

   43 years ago

   Jim accepts an unpopular position pushing a transportation bill desired by Number 10, but opposed by everyone else.

4. E4

   4. The Moral Dimension

   43 years ago

   Jim is forced to back down about exposing bribery used to obtain a lucrative foreign contract when Bernard allows a valuable vase from a foreign government to be undervalued so that Mrs Hacker can keep it.

5. E3

   3. The Skeleton in the Cupboard

   43 years ago

   Jim uses a costly mistake from Sir Humphrey’s past to escape chastising an efficient local council for being late with their paperwork.

6. E2

   2. The Challenge

   44 years ago

   When Jim tackles local council administration and civil defence, he runs afoul of a B.B.C. interviewer.

7. E1

   1. Equal Opportunities

   44 years ago

   Jim decides to promote more women to high civil service positions despite Sir Humphrey’s opposition.