Is Sir Humphrey a Soviet Spy? | Yes, Prime Minister | BBC Comedy Greats

After the former head of MI5 is revealed to have been a Soviet double-agent, suspicion falls upon the person who carried out his security enquiry, Sir Humphrey Appleby.
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#Comedy #YesPrimeMinister

[@benjaminodonnell258]

An "Oxford" gentleman - such a beautifully subtle reference ro the Cambridge spies...

[@billgiles3261]

I do so enjoy these documentaries on how our government functions.

[@bazza945]

Yours as well?

[@elgamerico]

😂😂

[@demos113]

Our current one is not so competent. ;-)

[@MasteringJohn]

Would we say "functions"?

[@danielharvison7510]

@@MasteringJohn Well its main function may be to NOT function. In which case, I'd say it's doing a splendid job!

[@JUANKERR2000]

"You can't check up on everything, you don't know what you might find" as true now as it ever was.

[@ravenwilder4099]

One of the funniest moments in the series is seeing the verbose Sir Humphrey reduced to simply exclaiming, "Crikey."

[@brianj959]

There’s a similar moment in The Key, when he’s so rattled he exclaims, “Open this bloody door!” What a television show it was.

[@killianoshaughnessy1174]

Anyone else felt the discussion turned darker when the PM mentioned about the 5 agents behind the curtain that were rounded-up and were never heard from again? That was a nice little sobering touch to make us realize that their shenanigans do have grave consequences.

[@jesusislukeskywalker4294]

"would it be easier if i wasn't here" lmaf

[@007dalal]

Jim's tone was also sort of angry while saying this

[@laxeystu8096]

@John Ashtone It's what Kim Philby did. Amongst his crimes was supplying the names of East German Democrats who were killed by the Russians, and blowing an operation in Albania also resulting in deaths. He was a mass murderer.

[@MyLateralThawts]

@@laxeystu8096 very true. Among the countless people Philby was directly responsible for getting killed was war hero, Lieutenant Commander Lionel Crabb. His last mission was to take photographs of a Soviet warship that visited Britain. Some time after his disappearance, a headless corpse matching his description was recovered from the ocean. It’s clear the Soviets were waiting for him.

[@hedgehog3180]

The entire sketch was literally premised on that, like the central joke here is that these upper class people in government aren't taking the consequences of their actions seriously. I'm not sure why I need to explain that unless you think that the rest was just fun and games?

[@3irikur]

Shame they left out the scene with sir Arnold. His opinion that a civil servant of such an exalted position as sir Humphrey being exposed as a spy would be worse than allowing that hypothetical civil servant remain as a spy is just hilariously explained. Still, great episode, one of my definite favorites.

[@jem8919]

Sir Humphrey: "So what do you think I should do Arnold?" Sir Arnold (nonchalantly): "Hmmmm, it all depends on whether you were actually spying or not." Amazing

[@tlangdon12]

@@jem8919 Sir Arnold was one of my favourite characters - so droll.

[@Lorgar64]

@@tlangdon12 His actor's still alive, too.

[@the_Giovanni_Jian]

@@Lorgar64 oh yeah, never expected that. Good on him. Sir Arnold taking Humpy to task is always exquisite to watch.

[@PrashanthSadashivan]

Humphrey: (agitated) But that's what you asked me to do! Arnold: (bristling) Do you have proof of this? Humphrey: (chagrined) Of course not! Arnold: (smugly) So, now, we return to the question of your incompetence... Absolute master class in acting!!

[@meusha846]

"You can't check up on everything, you never know what you might find." The rather incredible, and I mean literally incredible i.e. difficult to believe brilliance of Yes Minister is that such lines come in the frequency of a downpour in the series, non-stop, one by one.

[@warnpassion]

This is Yes Prime Minister.

[@frasierfreak92]

It’s also completely true, it’s the whole point of plausible deniability. You don’t officially tell your PM/President what you’re doing because then they’d have to admit they knew. Now they can officially say they didn’t, even if there’s no way they wouldn’t have not known. Same with internal enquiries, the purpose is to say there’s been an enquiry, not to find what actually happened.

[@richardouvrier3078]

it's pure Shakespeare the character arc of Jim Hacker as he matures and learns to outwit Sir Humphrey's malevolent ways. Sir Humphrey is so unaccountable, he and his Oxford buddies.

[@gebys4559]

There's like 2-3 episodes that he truly outwits him. Mostly it's just Humphry tripping up when out of his depth like with giving an interview.

[@sir_humpy]

Jonathan Lynn and Antony Jay are pure geniuses.

[@Ned67]

'An Oxford gentleman', that's what makes all the difference 🤣

The them, it does. "He was one of us"… this "us" of course didn't include the other person present.

[@wkcia]

Because Halstead was from Cambridge

[@HALLish-jl5mo]

For anyone who doesn't get it, this is a reference to the Cambridge 5

[@kaycey7361]

These Oxford and Cambridge brigade thinks too much of themselves. Always has been. For the rest of the England are illiterate peasants.

[@whzpoor]

Universities are important after all...both of them.

[@MariaMMCardoso]

Yes Prime minister is by far the best comic series of all time. Strangly enough doesn't get old, does it?

[@timbushell7369]

so true but next it needs to address the lobbyists , or a good writer needs to do it. Enter Mr Elton, Lord J Loyd and Sir M Steel from stage left please persuing a bear.

[@robin231176]

Like a mature red, it gets better and better.

[@BillSmith-ed4jg]

And yet I imagine that no wokers have the brains to watch it

[@mikethecabbie8476]

Great comedy doesn't age; that it's still funny after 40 odd years shows JUST how good it was. (And also how little Government has changed)

[@MrOzzification]

That was intended on part of the writers. They wanted to create something that would be timeless. They mention this proved very difficult and there were an abundance of tempting current affairs they had to leave out from the show because it may have been too specific to Britain or would have lost relevance with time.

[@Saraseeksthompson0211]

I love every time sir Humphrey panics. It’s the best part of the episodes. The bbc radio episode is still my favourite

[@nathanwilliams2152]

“You can’t check up on everything! You never know what you might find!” 😂😂

[@steveash656]

Wonderful to see Sir Humphrey on the ropes. That's what makes this episode so refreshingly delicious.

[@magnusm4]

He looks like he's on the brink of tearing up.

[@danieldickson8591]

The depth of shock that could prompt Sir Humphrey Appleby to exclaim, "Crikey!" can't be overstated. ;-)

[@arthurbriand2175]

Is it the episode where he says "I can't be a russian spy ! I didn't even go to Cambridge !" ?

[@llukas58]

Yes, i believe so

[@weswheel4834]

Wasn't that implied by the last line as well? (He wasn't claiming that Oxford made him immune, just that he went to Oxford and so not to Cambridge).

[@weswheel4834]

I went to Oxford. It was a lovely day.

[@eddievhfan1984]

@@weswheel4834 It's a reference to the Cambridge Five, a notorious spy ring that was revealed in the 1960s, which had been passing intelligence to the Soviets as far back as during WWII.

[@weswheel4834]

@@eddievhfan1984 Yeah, I got that the premise for the episode was related to how a bunch of Russian spies went to Cambridge. Sorry if that wasn't obvious from my comment. But Humphrey's last comment also implied that he was pretty smug about having been to Oxford, and how everyone who works there has either been to Oxford or to Cambridge.

[@theKobus]

I'm going to use that opening. "There's something I want to talk to you about" "Would it be easier if I wasn't here?"

[@mikeykeyes]

This is one way Australia keeps a squeaky clean record - corruption wise. Every enquiry is followed up meticulously like Sir Humphrey said and all enquiries find absolutely no wrong doing.

[@imagrumpyoldman4809]

Your being ironic, right? Forgot the sarc tag.

[@iatsd]

It's the same way they conduct their defence projects: meticulous public plans that are then ignored as they buy the wrong thing, at too high a price, that they then fail to manufacture properly, causing delays, cost overruns, and massive extra expense to fix, all followed by a detailed enquiry that lays it all out and everyone agrees they'll never do it again. Which they promptly ignore and do again anyway.

[@danielharvison7510]

@@iatsd It's the regular ritual though, isn't it? Tradition MUST be upheld!

[@andyrob3259]

Just ask Dan Andrews. When he called an Inquiry last year and the judge didn’t question certain obvious people, left out obvious questions and Dan had amnesia I was thinking of Yes Minister all the time. ‘You don’t influence the Inquiring judge but you lay down certain guidelines and rules so it can only go in one direction, oh and appoint someone retired that needs the money and potential future gigs’

[@baronburch6702]

'And lessons have been learnt' blah blah blah

[@harishnunkoo509]

Love it when Jim has the upper hand on Sir Humphrey. Absolutely enjoy it when Sir Humphrey is cornered.

[@RobDavisAkaMonk]

There's a lot of bits of this that make a very strong nod towards the enquiry into Kim Philby before he was eventually exposed. Especially the whole idea of 'being one of us' putting him above suspicion.

[@baardkopperud]

In the episode, I believe Sir Humphry exclaims: "I never even went to Cambridge!" - ie. where Philby and his friends went.

[@IskenderAl]

@@baardkopperud Yes, it's a direct reference to the Cambridge spy network. The Soviets were specifically recruiting Cambridge students. What's also interesting about Kim Philby is that his father, St John Philby, also shared confidential information with foreign powers, in his case - the House of Saud.

[@thiagodeandrade7081]

Yes. Besides the Cambridge bit, there is also the fact that Philby was involved in the betrayal of British attempts to create an anti-Communist resistence in Albania, The agents sent there were swifitly localized and captured by the Albaniqn government.

[@K9TheFirst1]

I think that there might be some influence from John Stonehouse. Citation Needed had an episode about it in Series 7.

[@stuartjobson9527]

Now we know why Johnson has ordered the Cabinet Secretary to investigate the Christmas Parties and not the MET

[@elliotcastroooo]

I loved every minute of this show - when you realise it was written by people very experienced in the inner workings of government, it paints a very funny, yet tragically accurate depiction of how politics really works.

[@johnking5174]

Sir Anthony Jay and Jonathan Lynn who had sources from inside Number 10 during the Wilson and Callaghan years of power.

[@jbtv7955]

A great Monday teatime with a classic clip of Yes,Prime Minster watching classic shows makes the day better in my opinion.

[@AlifNurfakhri]

He admitted to no collusion, yet gave no comment on incompetence😂

[@duncandrake2580]

Never mind competence. He is one of us.

[@Voron_Aggrav]

look, they are not in the business to be competent, just to appear like they are

[@TomFynn]

"practically everything that happens in government is suspicious" Sums it up, really.

[@nebeskisrb7765]

"most Yugoslav interpreters are Russian agents, those who don't work for CIA that is" Ah, no matter how much things change, everything remains the same

[@Ozzy_2014]

"There was so much wool in that prize goof Humphrey that it was child's play to pull it over his eyes." 😅

[@sunjamm222]

Theres more to that conversation when the PM asks about the garden, as gardening leave is a death sentence to any civil servant in Whitehall.

[@markh9749]

When first shown on the BBC "Yes Minister" and "Yes Prime Minister" were billed as comedies. They now feel like insightful documentaries into the UK's continuing post Empire decline !

[@markneedham8726]

Sadly, True.

[@FrontSideBus]

Well Mrs T did say that it was pretty much how the civil service works lol.

[@DCdabest]

I can definitely see that getting a dressing down from Paul Eddington would be quite intimidating. The man has quite and expressive face. The anger to disappointment to suspicion is a quick trasition but its brilliant.

[@MonkeyspankO]

Whoa, whoa...hold on there. This is coming dangerously close to government accountability!

[@0ceanicify]

So, Humphrey, about this Christmas party...

[@MrTroves]

I think it says a lot about Hacker and Humphrey's relationship that out of Incompetence and Humphrey being a spy, Hacker was more inclined to believe the latter first and foremost.

[@georgekaplan4884]

The word of an Oxford gentleman...indeed!

[@davidloughlin2238]

Brilliant, just brilliant. Great script and fabulous acting.

[@TWest-pi7js]

"How's the garden?"

[@weemadangus1834]

Ouch, I remember that one!

[@sugarnads]

'an OXFORD' GENTLEMAN' Bite in the tail there - not for nothing was it called 'the cambridge ring'

[@kimphilby7999]

Yes,the old one " Tinker, Tailor, Soldier,Spy".....

[@sugarnads]

@@kimphilby7999 all your mates were from cambridge ya damned traitor.

[@JonatasAdoM]

"You can't check up on everything.. You can't know *what* you might find" Great reasoning

[@Div3r]

3:50 "Sir John went to Cambridge"

[@NuisanceMan]

The word of an Oxford gentleman: "I am IMCOMPETENT! And don't you ever forget it!"

[@johndoyle4723]

Still fresh and relevant today. I love seeing Sir Humphrey being on the defensive,normally he wins.

[@beertruk2429]

Love it when Sir Humphrey has to do some 'public service tap dancing.' Lol.

[@williamdrijver4141]

Brilliant episode. Hopefully the BBC will upload more clips with Sir Arnold. He's the greatest amongst greats :-)

[@michaelgibson4705]

Recently watching reruns of this marvellous programme,you realise how true to life it was,and how little things have changed to the present day

[@yvonnetomenga5726]

This is one of my favorite scenes. I rewatch it frequently to see Hacker put Sir Humphrey on the spot. For once, Sir Humphrey is flustered.

[@fredrikcarlstedt393]

ONE OF US ! ONE OF US ! ONE OF US ! ONE OF US !

[@GoldSilverShop]

The best series every written and executed. Fantastic actors and writers. And so true too lol

[@jwenting]

So Humphrey admitted to being incompetent, his word as a gentleman :)

[@jeremy1860]

This probably gave Jim more reason to keep Humphrey out of the loop than anything else in the show 😏

[@jennifersman7990]

“Would it be easier if I wasn’t here?” LOL

[@petesmith9472]

The more I watch this program the more I think it is brilliant in writing, execution and acting. The subject matter … brilliant

[@alcohol-freebeer3642]

That "Crikey" from Humphrey is brilliantly delivered.

[@mikestubbs1708]

Sir Humphrey was truly superb!!

[@martinrobo123]

When British comedy was at It's finest. It's a shame that we don't see it anymore.

[@RahulKumar-ng2gh]

Still there are some like Gervais who can speak their mind

[@martinrobo123]

@@RahulKumar-ng2gh his comedy is probably one of the few left, worth watching regards to sitcoms like his Afterlife etc

[@meej33]

@@martinrobo123 After Life is mediocre at best, very far below Extras or The Office.

[@martinrobo123]

@@meej33 it definitely isn't mediocre but whatever rocks your boat

[@martinrobo123]

@@meej33 The Office wasn't that good and it put me off RG for several years. It was Derek that me round to him as a writer

[@EdEditz]

Shades of Kim Philby LOL. He was 'one of us' so he can't be a spy. That attitude allowed Philby to get away with it for so many years, costing countless lives.

[@AC-ne8md]

Sir Humphrey couldn’t have been a Soviet spy. He didn’t go to Cambridge.

[@harleythesalami6956]

We live in the perfect time for a remake of this.

[@no288]

- " You can't check up on everything you never know what you might find" ; )

[@johnralston889]

so on the money, the general public may think the writer had poetic licence but it's so true to life, thew writer did his research so well, I salute!

[@richardhewitt1648]

First time I've seen Humphrey on the back foot and feeling very uncomfortable. Great acting. Ric from Oz.🇦🇺

[@troystaunton254]

He even dropped a “crickey.”

[@richardhewitt1648]

@@troystaunton254 i didn't notice that. Must be used to it. 🤣🎅👍

[@sandgroper4044]

Absolutely brilliant .so needed a good laugh

[@Bajirkus]

Humphrey's clarification that he is an "Oxford gentleman" is, for those too young to remember, not just typical Humphrey trotting out his background - there was a famous Soviet spy ring known as the Cambridge Five, which is widely considered the greatest intelligence failure in modern British history. The members managed to evade detection for decades, and Kim Philby even managed to escape arrest and flee to Moscow. Not only were they undetected for many years, they were even protected by other elements within the British government - mostly to avoid embarrassment. Indeed, even Prime Minister Alec Douglas-Home wasn't informed about Anthony Blunt's actions, even though MI5 and MI6 knew about him and arranged a deal where he'd tell everything he knew in exchange for immunity, since by then he no longer had access to classified information anyway. The first PM to know about Blunt was Margaret Thatcher, who of course wasn't PM until 1979. The Cambridge Five saga last many decades, and the last member wasn't made public knowledge until *1990* - shortly before the dissolution of the USSR itself. Perhaps the most damaging part was that it drastically reduced American confidence in British intelligence. To this day, not everything about what was known about them, by whom, has been revealed, and a lot of time, effort, and money in Whitehall goes into keeping the records sealed. So, for Humphrey, saying that he is specifically an Oxford Gentleman means he wants to draw a line between his alma mater/himself and Cambridge/the Cambridge Five.

[@duxnihilo]

This is one of my favourite scenes.

"Is Sir Humphrey a Soviet Spy?" "Yes, Prime Minister." :D

[@xr6lad]

Left out the best bit. Where it was suggested that Sir Humphrey might be sent off on ‘gardening leave’

[@Vance1961Ringo]

Love these clips

[@r0bw00d]

It's great to see that the title of this clip both asks and answers the question.

[@johnhamilton1204]

1:36, the look in Hacker’s eyes 1:36 when he knows he has Sir Humphrey is priceless fantastic acting from Paul Eddington.

[@Wha2les]

If only our actual politicians were this competent.

[@occamraiser]

'I can't be a spy, I'm married', surprisingly valid in that era.

[@AnthonyMute]

Ooh goodness this always makes Monday blues just disappear 😌

[@peterboshoff6376]

the sole purpose of an inquiry is to dismiss allegations.

[@judsonbaker8128]

This exact same conversation and dialogue but without the laugh track and it becomes totally serious

[@silenusut]

Brilliant dialogue and acting. Thanks. Subbed.

[@johnking5174]

From the pens of the late Sir Anthony Jay and the still alive Jonathan Lynn.

[@sdaiwepm]

This is the first time I recall seeing Sir Humphrey so firmly on the back foot.

[@michaelmontagu3979]

There was another, over the sale of a piece of land where the contract was faulty. Humphrey was the civil servant responsible when he was a young man.

[@steview4654]

Way ahead of its time .. whoever wrote this plz give me next wks lottery numbers .. absolutely priceless

[@CodaMission]

Humphrey was so grossly incompetent as to exceed the capacity of termination and enter the realm of a prison sentence

[@chrispnw2547]

If this were not fiction and one of the best Britcoms ever, it explains a lot about the reality of British politics and governance.

[@bloodvue]

Is not some of the best humour hold seeds of truth. Who says that it is all fiction though

[@leecharles8981]

It never ceases to amaze me how good this is!

[@norwoodboy6048]

All three main actors have now left us may they all RIP.

[@anglosearcher8341]

Short, sweet, to the point.

[@AsbestosMuffins]

love how this is one of the times applebee's interpritation of his role shot him in the foot

[@Delightfully_Bitchy]

It's hilarious how guilty he looks, knowing damn well he's innocent. ... Well, of espionage anyway. ...well, espionage for foreign countries. ... probably.

[@bluepeter3470]

Two great actors. Rip

[@Bikewithlove]

When the word of an Oxford gentleman actually meant something.

[@kevinkuang2292]

youtube headstamp title: "Is Sir Humphrey a Soviet Spy? | Yes,"

[@hermanthetosser4219]

Always seen him as Doctor Cocteau in Demolition Man... going to give this yes minister and yes prime minister series ago

[@yossarianmnichols9641]

One of the greatest British comedies ever. Should have done a US spin off on the same lines. God knows we need a few chuckles about the last 5 years.

[@steztoyz]

No. If they'd have tried a US version, they'd have screwed it up. As an example, American Red Dwarf..Yeah, good luck with that. 🤣

[@hedonismunderstands2469]

@@steztoyz or an american 'the office', ghastly...

[@bloodvue]

Nobody will believe the things that happened in the last few presidencies

[@derekmills1080]

Well said Mr. Speaker. May I remind those south of Watford, he is MP for Chorley. I'm actually going there on the bus from Bolton for a delicious fish and chip lunch! Nobody I speak to ever has as bad word to say about Lindsay Hoyle - he's a local lad anyway.

[@shorelineboy]

How topical 😂 so funny

[@GorgeGeorg]

You forgot the bit at the end where the prime minister says "Incompetence it is then"

[@ms.antithesis]

brilliant time to uplaod this

[@PtolemyJones]

Someone should make a mash-up of Sir Humphreys meeting Mr. Humphries... are you free?

[@nigelapps3122]

Watched this several times now

[@g2macs]

The fact that it was based on the 'Cambridge Five' sends shivers.. ...

[@aceventura5398]

" you never know what you might find "

[@MrGranfield]

Sir Nigel at his brilliant best. A consummate actor.

[@FortuneZer0]

He was one of the boys.

[@brianbridle951]

LOve the Oxford gentlemans word! That's the very last to belive.

[@philltolkien5082]

He's one of us.

[@edwardtodd6939]

You missed the funniest line when Jim asks Humphrey.."Anyway, how is the garden?"