After having watched The IT Crowd the other night on Channel 4, I now get how really well done it is. Written by Graham Linehan, who wrote the great Father Ted and the even greater, Black Books, I had only seen a couple of episodes of season one and, to be honest, couldn’t see what the OMG factor was from its devoted fan base.

Reynholm Industries may not become the corporate giant that is Wernham Hogg or Dunder Mifflin, but Chris O’Dowd, Richard Ayoade and Katherine Parkinson do their best as the below-ground IT department to avoid any sort of actual work or social interaction early on from their basement hideaway.

Had Channel 4 treated this series like other series in today’s day and age of immediate comedy gratification and success, there would not have been a second or third series that would have given it a chance to grow. Currently in its fourth season, the series has already been commissioned for a season 5 next year.

Now that I have a new found understanding for the series, I went on a search for how a real IT department would feel about the series. Found this in the Guardian. All things considered, I think they’re ok.

For those that find you’re in an office where it’s difficult to get to the IT department or when you feel like you have difficulty in communicating with them once you do track them down, always remember rule one. When your IT folks ask if you have “given it a service reboot”, they are actually just telling you to turn the machine off and then back on again.

Up tomorrow, I’ll report back on our interview with Karl Howman and preview the final interview of the trip with Dame Judi Dench.