The Office is a British mockumentary television sitcom first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 9 July 2001. Created, written and directed by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, it follows the day-to-day lives of office employees in the Slough branch of the fictional Wernham Hogg paper company. Gervais also starred in the series as the central character, David Brent.
When it was first shown on BBC Two, ratings were relatively low, but it has since become one of the most successful of all British comedy exports. As well as being shown internationally on BBC Worldwide and channels such as BBC Prime, BBC America, and BBC Canada, it has been sold to broadcasters in over 80 countries, including ABC1 in Australia, The Comedy Network in Canada, TVNZ in New Zealand, and the pan-Asian satellite channel Star World, based in Hong Kong. It was shown in the United States on BBC America from 2001 to 2016, and later on Cartoon Network's late night programming block Adult Swim from 2009 to 2011.
Two six-episode series were made, followed by a two-part Christmas special. The show centres on themes of social clumsiness, the trivialities of human behaviour, self-importance and conceit, frustration, desperation and fame. The Office is considered to be one of the best shows of the 21st century and of all time.
The show is a mockumentary based in a branch of fictional British paper company Wernham Hogg (where "life is stationery") located in the Slough Trading Estate. The branch is headed by general manager David Brent (Ricky Gervais), aided by his team leader and Assistant to the Regional Manager Gareth Keenan (Mackenzie Crook). Much of the series's comedic success stems from Brent, who frequently makes attempts to win favour with his employees and peers with embarrassing or disastrous results. Brent's character flaws are used to comic effect, including numerous verbal gaffes, inadvertent racism and sexism, and other social faux pas. The other main plot line of the series concerns the unassuming Tim Canterbury (Martin Freeman) and his relationship with bored receptionist Dawn Tinsley (Lucy Davis). Their flirtation soon builds to a mutual romantic attraction, despite her engagement to dour and controlling warehouse worker Lee (Joel Beckett).
In June 1998 Merchant and Gervais made Seedy Boss, a 20-minute film starring Gervais, as part of Merchant's TV producer training for the BBC. The pair met when Merchant was hired as Gervais' assistant at radio station Xfm; neither had any previous TV experience. Gervais's character was based on one he performed to amuse staff at the radio station.
Ash Atalla showed the tape to BBC Two head Jane Root, who commissioned a series based on it. Filming took place in an office at Teddington Studios.
Unlike most British sitcoms, The Office used a single-camera setup (where multiple-camera setups were traditional) and no laughter track. The style influenced subsequent comedies such as Peep Show, Twenty Twelve, Fleabag, and Motherland.
The show's theme song is "Handbags and Gladrags", performed by Big George, based on the Rod Stewart arrangement, and originally written in the 1960s by Mike d'Abo, former vocalist for the rock group Manfred Mann. Gervais and Merchant also considered "Sitting" by Cat Stevens for the theme.
In Series 1, episode 4, a version of the theme performed by Gervais (in character as Brent) was featured over the end credits. The first series also features Gervais performing "Free Love Freeway", and the Christmas Special includes him performing "If You Don't Know Me By Now".
The show is considered one of the greatest British sitcoms of all time. Series one currently holds a Metacritic score of 98 out of 100, based on 12 reviews. Series two received similar acclaim, holding a Metacritic score of 93 out of 100, based on 16 reviews. The Office Christmas specials were also well received, and hold a Metacritic score of 98 out of 100, based on 19 reviews. The Office, overall, scores 97 out of 100 on Metacritic based on 47 critic reviews and is labelled a "Metacritic-Must Watch".
At the 2001 British Comedy Awards, The Office won for Best New TV Comedy. In 2002, it won the Best TV Comedy Award, and Gervais was named the Best TV Comedy Actor.
In 2003 the series won a Peabody Award. In 2004, the series won the Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series â Musical or Comedy, the first British comedy in 25 years to be nominated for a Golden Globe, and the first ever to win one. Gervais also received the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor â Television Series Musical or Comedy.
The Office<nowiki/>'s success led to a number of localised adaptations (based on its basic story and themes) produced for the television markets of other nations, creating an international Office franchise, including the successful and Primetime Emmy Award-winning American remake on NBC starring Steve Carell as David Brent's counterpart, Michael Scott, and on which Gervais and Merchant acted as executive producers. Several direct follow-ups to the original British series were also released, including the 2016 film '.
The Telegraph names it one of the ten best TV sitcoms of all time. In 2013 the Writers Guild of America ranked The Office as the 51st best written show of all time, 16 slots higher than the American remake. In 2019, The Guardian ranked it #6 on its list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century. In their all-time greatest shows list, The Rolling Stone placed the show at #53. Similarly, in a 2021 poll conducted by BBC Culture, the show was ranked as the 9th greatest of all time.
A Comic Relief charity short was made in 2013 entitled The Return of Brent (also known as The Office Revisited).
In 2013 Gervais developed a series of videos, and released them on his YouTube channel entitled "Learn Guitar with David Brent". Within three months, the series had collected over 2 million views.
The Brent character also featured in the 2016 film ', this time with the contributions of Gervais but not Merchant.
In 2004 Microsoft UK commissioned two 20-minute corporate videos, entitled "The Office Values" and "Realising Potential", featuring David Brent being interviewed by Jeff (played by Stephen Merchant), a Microsoft employee who becomes increasingly exasperated by Brent's antics. Brent is obviously resentful of the company's success. He believes he has what it takes to become the next managing director of Microsoft and continually drops hints to that effect. While not on general release, the videos emerged on the Internet in 2006. The clips also appeared on certain peer-to-peer networks. Microsoft was unhappy with the leak, stating that the videos "were never intended to be viewed by the public". During the first video, Brent plays the guitar, the lyrics advocating his ideas in opposition to Microsoft and technology. David Brent has also appeared in The Office US in the Season 7 episodes The Seminar' and Search Committee. In The Seminar, David meets Michael and asks if he has any open jobs at the moment, and in Search Committee, David sends in an online application as regional manager of Dunder-Mifflin.