Yes, Prime Minister *** TNT

Fans of the immensely popular ‘80s sitcom won’t be disappointed by the reincarnations of Cabinet Secretary Sir Humphrey and Prime Minister Jim Hacker.

Henry Goodman’s pocket-lining civil servant is on Machiavellian form, using his superior intelligence to run rings round David Haig’s increasingly apoplectic PM. But, although often very funny, the original 30-minute TV formula yields decreasing rewards when stretched to two hours.

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(Unedited version below)

Stepping into dead men’s shoes isn’t easy, but fans of the immensely popular 80’s sitcom won’t be disappointed by the reincarnations of Cabinet Secretary Sir Humphrey and Prime Minister Jim Hacker, nor by a discomfited Jonathan Slinger as the latter’s Principle Private Secretary uncomfortably caught between them.

Henry Goodman’s pocket-lining civil servant is on Machiavellian form, using his superior intelligence to run rings round David Haig’s increasingly apoplectic PM, who knows there are things he ought to know but has no idea what they are.

But, though brought up to date and often very funny, the original 30 TV minute formula yields decreasing rewards when stretched to 2 hours in an overegged plot involving a $10 trillion loan from Kumranistan and the illegal sexual proclivities of its unseen foreign minister