Here are four episodes of classic comedy from the days when the Civil Service had a sense of humour. The Men from the Ministry were the hilarious radio forerunners of TV's Yes Minister — bungling bureaucrats who bungled for 15 glorious years from 1962 to 1977. Muddling through were Wilfrid Hyde White, as the first head of the ubiquitous General Assistance Department, and the imperturbable Deryck Guyler, who followed him in 1966. Richard Murdoch was their faithfully incompetent Number Two. Together they created absolute chaos — and an enduring and influential Whitehall spoof. Here, with the help of guests like Warren Mitchell and Roy Dotrice, they mismanage a new road scheme, upset Britain's space programme, confuse the export drive, and attempt to rescue a forgotten army unit.
Their potty exploits remain (in the inimitable words of the BBC announcer) "a tribute to the men of our Government service, those men who are sometimes compared to tea bags: they always stick together when they get into hot water".
