With the 6 May 2010 UK general election just around the corner, it seemed more than appropriate to re-visit one of the greats from the British comedy archive of all time. We’ve always talked about how The Good Life (Good Neighbors in the U.S.) could translate to today, but the #1 series that could still be relevant today, 30 years after its’ 1980 premiere, would be Yes Minister. This has to be one of the primary examples of the greatness of British comedy. While there is greatness in the talents of Paul Eddington, Sir Nigel Hawthorne and Derek Fowlds, it’s all in the writing of Sir Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn.

While no parties were ever mentioned, the series follows a general election in which the incumbent party in defeated by the party that Jim Hacker (Paul Eddington) MP belongs. The Prime Minister then appoints Hacker as the new Minister of Administrative Affairs. His first day on the job, Hacker meets his Permanent Secretary, Sir Humphrey Appleby (Sir Nigel Hawthorne) and his Principal Private Secretary, Bernard Woolley (Derek Fowlds).

Top-10 funniest moments

As compiled by Michael Hogan from the Telegraph, click here for the top-10 funniest moments from Yes Minister. Personally, I would be hard pressed to be able to pick only ten.

KERA programming alert #2: So you can play along at home during the real UK election this May, North Texas viewers can see the return of Yes Minister, Saturdays at 10:00pm beginning May 1 on KERA. If outside North Texas, here’s a brief reminder of the greatness that was Yes Minister from some 30 years ago that hits close to home in 2010.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcaMroLelCM&feature=player_embedded

In: Comedy