Mr. Brittas: Now as you can see, there are many, many things we need to talk about, but, in view of today's events, I'd like to... depart if I may from my agenda, and share with you an idea - a Dream. We live in a divided world. A world where race is set against race, the young against the old, the rich against the poor, the north against the south, and everyone against the Irish!
— Gordon Brittas giving his new staff a speech.
- Date First Aired: 03/01/1991
- Alternative Name: "The New Manager"
One Gordon Wellesley Brittas is preparing for his first day at his new job as the leisure centre manager for Whitbury New Town Leisure Centre. We soon see exactly what he's like as a person when he tries to teach his children how to play cricket, only to get a good whacking in the knee by his new neighbour's kid. It's enough to make anyone close to him, like his wife Helen Brittas, to head for the nearest addictive substance.
The problems do not stop there, however. At the leisure centre, he notes a dumped cigarette packet on the ground, causing the builders to strike. This does not include what happens in the centre, where he gets the new receptionist, Carole Parkinson (currently suffering from postnatal depression, a departed husband, and an unpaid mortgage on her apartment) to try to keep a brave face and bans beverage outside the staff restroom, much to her dismay.
Brittas is introduced to his Deputy Manager Wet, Laura Lancing, his Deputy Manager Dry, Colin Weatherby, and Councillor Dapping. During this, Brittas finds out about the strike and confiscates their tools. Meanwhile, Brittas tries to point out the coffee problem in reception, leading to Angie, his new secretary to pour the drink onto the floor.
Brittas is introduced to the rest of the staff; Tim Whistler and Gavin Featherly, two pool attendants who do everything together, the bright-eyed Linda Perkin, and Neil, who's fond of table tennis and is disappointed when Brittas doesn't allow him to do said activity. The day gets worse when he annoys the cleaning lady, Mrs. Delgado, into quitting her job, taking the heating engineer, who was her husband, along with her as well.
As Brittas tries to sort out the mayhem, Dapping begins to regret her council's decision. Brittas sets up a meeting, but he is distracted by Neil, who tries to kill Brittas with specially sharpened table tennis rackets and a table tennis table. This is before the builders gang up on Brittas and fill his car with cement.
All in all, one major mess of a first day.
Tropes featured in this episode:
- Accidental Misnaming: Brittas calls Albert Einstein "Alfred Einstein".
- Alliterative Name: This episode introduces us to Laura Lancing.
- Amazingly Embarrassing Parents: Judging by their agitated calling out to him when he barges in on their game of cricket, Brittas' stepchildren seem to find their stepfather annoying like everyone else. One of them even claps when they see Brittas get hit in the knee by Pam's son.
- AM/FM Characterization: Brittas listens to marching band music in the car, matching his officious and by-the-rules personality.
- Batter Up!: The opening minutes of the show has Brittas, in an Establishing Character Moment, confiscate a cricket bat that his stepsons and Pam's son were using and start trying to show them how to use it properly. Pam's son isn't having it however and whacks him in the leg in response.
- Book Ends: The episode both opens and ends with Brittas and Helen in their family kitchen.
- Bratty Half-Pint:
- Pam's son, a young boy who hits Brittas in the knee with a cricket bat. His actions are understandable considering the fact that Brittas was trying to teach him cricket in a condescending way, but Brittas doesn't see it like that.
Mr. Brittas: Thoroughly unpleasant child. I think he got in through that hole in the fence. Remind me to nail something across it, will you?- Jonathan, Brittas' young stepson, reacts to Brittas during his bedtime in a way which causes Brittas to confiscate his stuffed toy.
Mr. Brittas: I told Jonathan that he can have it back when he's prepared to behave in an adult, responsible manner. - Characterisation Marches On: Brittas’ discussion involving Colin having been possibly Kicked Upstairs suggests that he’s aware that he wasn’t good enough in his earlier jobs. Later episodes have him so confident that he would probably not realise this.
- Cue the Falling Object: Brittas' disastrous speech is punctuated by a board falling right into him.
- The Confidant: Angie is this to Carole, being the one who listens to her issues and tries to comfort her.
- Death from Above: Neil tries to kill Brittas by dropping a table tennis table right on top of him. Brittas gets out of the way before it works, however.
- Disproportionate Retribution: A number of examples include a workforce of builders going on strike just because Brittas asked one of them to put his empty cigarette box in the bin, Mrs. Delgado quitting because of a petty squabble over a spilt coffee, and Neil trying to kill him because he wasn't going to put in any table tennis facilities.
- Dude, Not Funny!: Brittas' jab against the Irish causes a man to leave in disgust.
- Early-Installment Weirdness:
- The "Excellent" that Brittas gives Neil lacks the trademark inflection that it would gain in later series.
- Helen is seen to cope with her husband by drinking. Whilst it shows up in a couple of episodes after, the show would go on to focus more on her addiction to anti-depressants instead.
- Two of Brittas' stepchildren actually physically show up in this episode, albeit from afar and without a clear view of their faces. Later episodes would have them as The Ghost.
- Brittas' has a staff meeting in the gymnasium, which later episodes would confine exclusively to the staff changing room.
- Establishing Character Moment:
- Gordon Brittas' first scene in has him attempt to show his stepsons how to play cricket, annoy the hell out of them and then confiscate the cricket bat when they don't listen. This displays how he is a person who tries to help, but is too annoying to be truly helpful.
- Helen's first scene has her wearily agreeing with everything Brittas says, then hitting the bottle once he leaves the room. This shows how she is a wife who is so broken down by her husband, that she has become an Addled Addict.
- Colin's first scene has him rattle off all his various infections and treatments much to the displeasure of Laura. This shows how he is basically a physically disgusting character who has a tendency to give off Too Much Information about his afflictions.
- Carole's first scene has her having a meltdown in reception, showing off how she is not the happiest person and that she’s perpetually struggling (especially when it’s revealed that it’s because her husband has left her and she’s suffering from postnatal depression).
- Laura's first scene involving her, Brittas, and Colin features her showing off a timetable she made for her department by asking around to see what people wanted, instantly indicating her as the empathetic Hypercompetent Sidekick. Brittas shooting it down because she didn't use a specific method also showcases the contrast between their approaches, also indicating that she's The Lancer to Brittas.
- Everyone Meets Everyone: With the exception of already established couples Tim/Gavin and Helen/Brittas, this is the first time that the staff have even seen each other.
- The Faceless: Brittas' stepchildren and Pam's son are only seen from afar without any clear views of their faces.
- Fictional Document: Not shown on screen, but Colin is mentioned to have created a document titled How to Achieve Peak Fitness in Three Weeks.
- Fiery Redhead: Pam is a red-haired woman who snaps at Brittas for confiscating her son's cricket bat.
- Handshake Refusal: Neither Laura nor Brittas are willing to shake the bandaged hand of Colin when they first meet him.
- Improbable Weapon User: Neil tries to kill Brittas using specially sharpened table tennis rackets.
- I Need a Freaking Drink:
- Helen does not wait too long after Brittas' departure before she reaches for the bottle, despite the fact that it's fairly early in the morning.
- A variant with Angie, whose response to seeing first-hand how much of an annoying git Brittas can be is to take to Carole's aspirin.
- Innocently Insensitive: Brittas' speech to his staff (seen in the page quote) attempts to break the ice with a joke, but instead causes a man to leave on the spot.
- Kicked Upstairs: Brittas only got the job at Whitbury because of how awful his time at Aldershot was. Ironically he believes this is how Colin got his position in the centre.
- Lethal Chef: Helen admits to Pam that she's been freezing and re-freezing the same food for years.
- Mama Bear: Pam immediately goes off at Brittas when he insults her son.
- Mistaken for Disease: Thanks to a mix-up, Brittas thinks that Damien has a sexually transmitted disease.
- Mundane Made Awesome: Neil tries to kill Brittas with table tennis equipment.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Councillor Dapping goes though this after meeting Brittas for the first time, realising how incompetent this man is, and that he now runs the leisure centre that her council owns.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: The only reason Neil goes insane is because of Brittas' critical thoughts of table tennis.
- Parking Problems: Brittas is not pleased to see that his car door is facing a skip at his designated parking spot and is forced to go out the other side of the car.
- One-Shot Character: Neil, Damien and Mrs. Delgado.
- Queer Establishing Moment: Tim and Gavin's first moments on the show have Tim go on about how he and Gavin are very much alike, including getting on really well and having the same hobbies. He's clearly about to say that they even have sex together, but Gavin tugs at his clothes to make him stop, establishing them as a gay couple who are hesitant to reveal their sexuality to their boss.
- Sanity Slippage: Neil starts off as a regular member of staff, then Brittas cuts table tennis from the roster and he completely snaps.
- Sassy Secretary: Angie is Brittas' new secretary. She also spends her time this episode arguing with Brittas, even dumping several cups of coffee on the floor of reception in defiance.
- Servile Snarker: Most of the staff, although special mention goes to Angie.
- Serious Business: Neil doesn't take anything table tennis-related lightly. Brittas' disregard of the sport drives him to murder-fueled insanity.
- Sex for Services: It's implied that Mr. Wilson will allow Carole to stay at her apartment if she could have sex with him. She is not amused.
- Shout-Out: Brittas admits he's no Alfred Einstein.
- Shovel Strike: Colin gets whacked with a shovel by one of the builders off-screen.
- Significant Wardrobe Shift: When Neil is first seen, he's draped in white clothing. After Brittas denies him the opportunity to do table tennis, he changes into black clothing, symbolising how he has gone mad and turned malicious thanks to Brittas.
- Visible Boom Mic: A boom mic briefly dips into view in Brittas' office.
- The Watson: Much like the audience at this point, Pam has no idea who Brittas is, allowing Helen the opportunity to explain his personality and his history both to her and the audience.
- Two-Timing with the Bestie: Carole is left destitute after her husband cheated on her and ran off to Spain with her friend.
- Welcome Episode: Brittas meets his staff, and quickly annoys the hell out of them.
