The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin. Truly subversive television.

I won't bother trying to explain this 70's English sitcom to you, so I'll just let you read a classic scene. Suffice to say, the show was about a bored middle-management type who realises the futility of consumerism, fakes his own death, returns as a distant relative and sets up a chain of stores that sell complete rubbish, thus becoming very, very successful.

They wouldn't let that on TV these days. Here's a classic scene that sums up the show's message.

http://www.mgnet.karoo.net/reggieperrin.htm

(Reggie has been asked to give a speech to a sales convention)

"Thank you. Thank you very much indeed. Thank you, Mister... whatever your name is. When my boss said to me "Reginald Iolanthe Perrin, you are a senior sales earwig at Sunshine Desserts, and they are holding a seminar on instant puddings at Bilberry Hall and I want you to talk on 'Are We Getting Our Just Desserts?', my first thought was: 'What a pathetic title for a talk!'. But then I thought again.
My second thought was: 'What a pathetic title for a talk!'. But I come here anyway because I have something very important to say to you all.

We are told that we need more growth: 6% per year. More chemicals to cure more pollution, caused by more chemicals. More car parks for more tourists who want to get away from more car parks. More food, to make us more fat, to make us use more slimming aids, to make us take pills, to make us ill, to make us take more pills, to make more profit. More boring speakers, making more boring speeches, at more boring conferences. Reggie overhears.] More rubbish, that's a very good point, thank you Hump. But what has all this growth done for me? Well, I'll tell you. One day I'll die, and on my grave it will say: "Here lies Reginald Iolanthe Perrin. He didn't know the names of the trees and the flowers, but he knew the rhubarb crumble sales figures for Schleswig Holstein." Look outside at those trees - beautiful. But soon they will all be cut down to make room for more underground car parks. But I have got good news for you, because half the parking meters in London have got Dutch Parking Meter disease.

Ladies and gentlemen. You see, we become what we do. You show me a hero who makes fondue tongues, and I'll show you a happy man who earns his living perforating lavatory paper. "But what do YOU believe in?" I hear you ask. Do I hear you ask? Well I'll tell you anyway: I know that I don't know.
I believe in not believing. You see, for every man who believes something, there's somebody who believes the opposite. What's the point? How many wars would have been fought, how many people
would have been tortured had nobody ever believed in anything? Have you ever heard of 'The Wars of the Apathetic'? Or 'the persecution of the apathetic by the bone idle'? But if we try and complain about it, we're told we're standing in the way of 'progress'.

Progress! There's a word that begs the pardon. I beg your parsnips. I'm sorry, it doesn't beg the parsnips, it begs the question. That's funny, so do I. Morrissey stands up and leaves the room]. Oh, there he goes, Doc Morrissey, 'the wizard of the aspirin'. Off to the bog 'cause he's frightened of CJ's fishing contest. He's gone to practice his flies!
Old 'baldy Hump' here - made a terrible cock-up. Put pesticide on his hair, hair restorer on his plums. Now he's as bald as a coot, got a garden full of hairy plums!

Anybody here from Canada? Anybody here from Australia? Tarporley? Anybody here from Tarporley, stand up and shake hands with the person on your right. I am today shaking hands with the person on my right!"] Oh C.J., I want to help you! What purpose has life if it isn't for the people who have to live it? podium, including Dr. Hump] Oh, here he comes, old 'baldy Hump'. 'Professor of Applied Manure at the University of Steeple Bumstead'!"

Elizabeth drives Reggie home, stopping for him on the way at a public lavatory in the town. Reggie leaves by another exit, catches a taxi to Sunshine Desserts, where he borrows a lorry of loganberry essence and drives it to C.J.'s country estate. After a threatening letter to C.J. promising that 'blood will flow', he releases the loganberry juice into the river from which C.J. and his guests are all fishing. Having completed his last 'snook' at society and the people who have made it hell for him, he drives to the Dorset coast and dons a new disguise, leaving Reggie's old clothes on the beach.

I love it when he thinks about his mother-in-law, and a picture of a warthog flashes up briefly.

Satire like that is exactly what we need today.

One of our PBS stations would play this followed by The Goodies. Later they would show "Good Neighbors" which was great too. Does anyone know if these are available on DVD?

I have one of the sets. I've always had a thing for Felicity Kendal.

Try this.

Amazon lists a video release, but hints it may be out of print.

I was only ten years old at the time, but I thought it was funny as hell. I'm guessing I'd find it even funnier now!

I watched it as a kid (elementary school? Maybe young junior high), so much of the humor was lost on me, but I still loved the show. Our PBS station used to play that with Monty Python on Saturday nights. Reginald Perrin, Monty Python, then over to catch SNL, then Midnight special and perhaps even Don Kirshner's Rock Concert.

But I was thinking the other day that I raelly need to see Reginald Perrin in my adult years and get the whole effect. What a great show.

Or did the title change from season to season perhaps?

Never saw it though.

during the late 70's, i remember the opening of him walking into the ocean (?) with his clothes on the beach.
funny stuff, they really ought to replay them in a marathon weekend.

dp

Reggie Perrin. God, I'd love to see that show again!

And the company that he started in his after life, gifts for people you hate, or some such:

3-sided picture frames

Salt & Pepper shakers w/o holes.

There was a bunch of silly stuff like this but those two I remember. :D

Thank you for that, SLB! :thumbsup:

I forgot about the round dice and the tasteless puddings. LOL LOL LOL!

I wish my PBS station would rerun it here too.

They don't run it here anymore:cry:

What does my PBS station air? Keeping Up Appearances, and that vicar thingy that's such an awful waste of Dawn French. It's been so long since I saw Perrin and I would love to see the whole series again.