The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin
Fantastically funny
PG1976•30m•8.0/10
Comedy
Ratings
🎬TMDb
8.0/10(29)
Disillusioned after a long career at Sunshine Desserts, Reginald Iolanthe Perrin endures a midlife crisis and fakes his own death. Returning in disguise after various attempts at finding a 'new life', Perrin gets his old job back and finds nothing has changed. He is eventually found out, and later finds success with a chain of junk shops. However, it becomes so successful that he feels he has created a monster and decides to destroy it.
Production
BBC
Language
EN
Status
Ended
First Aired
September 8, 1976
Last Aired
November 3, 1996
Networks
BBC One
Created By
David Nobbs
Where to Watch
Region US · Lang EN
US
No providers available for this region.
Seasons & Episodes
Select a season to view episodes. Reddit links may contain spoilers.
Season
E1
Hippopotamus
Air date: 1976-09-08
46-year-old Sunshine Desserts sales executive Reginald Iolanthe Perrin is clearly suffering a midlife crisis. Though not unhappily married to Elizabeth, he calls her mother a hippopotamus and is finding no enthusiasm for marketing his boss C.J.'s latest line: exotic ices. He wants something better for his life, but is unsure what.
E2
Nightmare in the Park
Air date: 1976-09-15
Life is beginning to get on top of Reggie as he begins dictating abusive letters. Perhaps he needs a nice peaceful holiday. Unfortunately, his daughter Linda asks him to take her and her family to a safari park, as her husband Tom has crashed their car. Being cooped up in a hot car in a safari park is too much for Reggie, who gets out for a walk and has to be rescued from the lions.
E3
The Sunday Extraordinary Business Meeting
Air date: 1976-09-22
Elizabeth has gone to stay with her sick mother so Reggie seizes the opportunity for some afternoon delight with his glamourous secretary Joan, who proves to be up for it. Sadly, just as they're about to unleash their passions, Reggie is visited, first by his layabout son, resting actor Mark, and then by Elizabeth's right-wing, scrounging brother Jimmy, seeking food.
E4
The Bizarre Dinner Party
Air date: 1976-09-29
Still at her mother's, Elizabeth rings Reggie to remind him that she planned a dinner party but Reggie doesn't cancel. Instead he asks C.J. and his wife, young colleague David who toadies to C.J., the well-endowed Davina from the custards department and his rude uncle Percy, who makes sexist comments about Davina.
E5
The Speech to the British Fruit Association
Air date: 1976-10-06
A nervous Reggie is to address the British Fruit Association and mixes Dutch courage with sedatives, resulting in a disaster and he has to be dragged off. Now at his breaking point, Reggie tells C.J. that blood will flow.
E6
Trying a Frenchman, Welshman, Scotsman and an Italian
Air date: 1976-10-13
Reggie tries out various new identities, including Lord Amherst (which attracts the attention of the comely Jean) and Donald Potts (which attracts the less comely Miss Pershore). However, he misses Elizabeth and is upset to find that, since she assumes that Reggie is dead, she's seeing an old flame.
E7
The Memorial Service
Air date: 1976-10-20
Under the alias Martin Wellbourne, an alleged friend of the deceased newly arrived from Brazil, and sporting a curly beard, Reggie gate-crashes his own memorial service where a vague vicar plugs Mark's new play and people seem to miss Reggie less than he'd hoped.
Cast
Pauline Yates
Elizabeth Perrin
John Barron
Charles Jefferson / 'C.J.'
John Horsley
Doc Morrissey
Bruce Bould
David Harris-Jones
Geoffrey Palmer
Jimmy Anderson
Patricia Hodge
Geraldine Hackstraw
Tim Preece
Tom Patterson
Sally-Jane Spencer
Linda Perrin
Theresa Watson
Prue Harris-Jones
