Yes Minister (1980)

The original civil service comedy, and still the best explanation of why nothing in government changes. Jim Hacker arrives at the fictional Department of Administrative Affairs full of plans, and his permanent secretary, Sir Humphrey Appleby, smothers each one in perfectly polite, endlessly subordinate clauses. Nigel Hawthorne's Sir Humphrey is a master of obfuscation, and his monologues are the reason to watch. It is gentler and wordier than modern satire, with plenty of slow-burn plotting. It was Margaret Thatcher's favorite TV show while she was prime minister, and she even performed a sketch with the two leads in 1984. Three series aired on BBC2 from 1980 to 1984.