The Office
Watched the first series of the hit BBC programme The Office at the weekend. Brilliant. Hilarious. The show is a savage parody of motivational management gibberish and has deservedly attracted a huge following in Britain. Ricky Gervais is superb. As well as co-writing and co-directing each episode, he plays the main character, David Brent, a manager at dysfunctional paper merchant Wernham Hogg who torments his colleagues with lecherousness and boorishness. Brent's most loyal staff member is Gareth Keenan, an ex-army fanatic. Their Dilbertian exchanges are vicious:
"Today I?m doing the staff appraisals, and some people get a little bit nervous about that ?cos they think they?re walking the long mile to put their head on the block. But they?re wrong, it?s a chance for them to tell me where we?re going wrong. It?s very much an opportunity?? ?To separate the wheat from the chaff.? ?Well, no, that sounds bad. It?s not a witch-hunt, we?re not trying to find out who the worst people are.? ?Well, we know who they are already.? ?Well, no.? ?I?ve written them down on my form.? ?You shouldn?t have written them on your form.? ?I?ve underlined the worst ones.? ?You?re missing the point.? [David looks at Gareth?s form] ?Yep.?
The Office is set in a drab industrial estate in Slough, a dormitory town situated between Reading and London that the show does its best to rubbish. Poet John Betjeman immortalised the dullness of the place 60 years ago when he wrote: "Come friendly bombs and fall on Slough/It isn't fit for humans now." The Germans spared Slough, though, and thanks to The Office pub quiz I've learned that it went on to become home to an ice skating arena where Torvill and Dean once trained. Oh, and Mars Bars are made there. Here's David contemplating Slough and his future:
"Slough?s a big place. And when I?ve finished with Slough, there?s Reading, Aldershot, Bracknall, you know I?ve got to-Didcott, Yately. You know. My-Winersh, Taplow.Because I am my own boss, I can wake up one morning and go ?Ooh, I don?t feel like working today, can I just stay in bed?? ?Ooh, don?t know, better ask the boss.? ?David can I stay in bed all day?? ?Yes you can David.? And, by the way, that?s not me in bed with another bloke called David.?
The second series of The Office ended its run with record DVD sales and figures of 4.4 million viewers for each Monday night episode. Fans, and I'm one now, hope that Gervais will commit to a third series. Let's leave the last word to David:
?You?ve seen me entertain, and raise money, but maybe I?d like to do that in the future for a living you know. Use my humour and my profile to both help and amuse people, you know. And if it?s ideas for TV shows, game shows or whatever you want, I?m your man. I?m already exploring the entertainment avenue with my management training, but I?d like to do that on a global scale really.And that?s not going ?Ooh, look at me today, I?m entertaining whilst saving lives aren?t I brilliant??, it?s going ?If you think I?m brilliant, then give generously and help save these guys who are starving, but are also brilliant?-not as entertainers, a lot of them can?t even speak English, but you know don?t give them their own game show, but save them from dying at least. And then maybe they could do something in their own country, on television or whatever they have, the wireless or I don?t know, give them a job on the world service or something.?
