The Best Episodes of Yes Minister
Every episode of Yes Minister ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of Yes Minister!
Satirical sitcom set in the office of a UK Cabinet minister, Jim Hacker MP, who struggles with Civil Service bureaucracy and political machinations as he tries to get on with government business.
Top Episode Highlight
The best episode of "Yes Minister" is "The Skeleton in the Cupboard", rated 9/10 from 360 user votes. It was directed by Peter Whitmore and written by Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay. "The Skeleton in the Cupboard" aired on 11/25/1982 and is rated 0.2 point(s) higher than the second highest rated, "Big Brother".
9.0/10 360 votes#1 - The Skeleton in the Cupboard
Season 3 Episode 3 - Aired 1982-11-25
Jim uses a costly mistake from Sir Humphrey’s past to escape chastising an efficient local council for being late with their paperwork.
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.8/10 436 votes#2 - Big Brother
Season 1 Episode 4 - Aired 1980-03-17
When the Government is planning to introduce a national database, Jim wants to bring in safe guards, but Sir Humphrey stalls until with some help from the opposition, Jim gets his way.
Director: Sydney Lotterby
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.8/10 346 votes#3 - The Moral Dimension
Season 3 Episode 4 - Aired 1982-12-02
Jim is forced to back down about exposing bribery used to obtain a lucrative foreign contract when Bernard allows a valuable vase from a foreign government to be undervalued so that Mrs Hacker can keep it.
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.7/10 326 votes#4 - A Question of Loyalty
Season 2 Episode 7 - Aired 1981-04-06
Jim and Sir Humphrey pass the buck to protect each other when they appear before a select committee investigating charges of waste in Hacker’s ministry, until Jim’s higher loyalties are called upon.
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.5/10 345 votes#5 - Equal Opportunities
Season 3 Episode 1 - Aired 1982-11-11
Jim decides to promote more women to high civil service positions despite Sir Humphrey’s opposition.
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.4/10 365 votes#6 - The Compassionate Society
Season 2 Episode 1 - Aired 1981-02-23
When Jim learns that a brand new hospital still has no medical staff, but hundreds of civil servants working there, he proposes that half of the civil servants be sacked and use the money saved to open wards with medical staff.
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.3/10 377 votes#7 - The Writing on the Wall
Season 1 Episode 5 - Aired 1980-03-24
A rumour starts that Jim’s department is about to be axed. So with help from Sir Humphrey, they try and defeat the Prime Minister’s plans.
Director: Sydney Lotterby
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.3/10 298 votes#8 - The Bed of Nails
Season 3 Episode 5 - Aired 1982-12-09
Jim accepts an unpopular position pushing a transportation bill desired by Number 10, but opposed by everyone else.
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.2/10 368 votes#9 - The Right to Know
Season 1 Episode 6 - Aired 1980-03-31
Jim faces rebellion at home and in the office over the removal of protected status from a badger habitat, while he tries to circumvent Sir Humphrey’s efforts to keep him ignorant of things.
Director: Sydney Lotterby
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.2/10 331 votes#10 - Doing the Honours
Season 2 Episode 2 - Aired 1981-03-02
When Jim learns that he can block civil servant’s honours, he blackmails them into cutting their budgets, but when he hears that he might be in line for an honorary degree, he has to back down.
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.2/10 314 votes#11 - The Greasy Pole
Season 2 Episode 4 - Aired 1981-03-16
Jim has the chance of creating jobs, and saving a chemical company, when they are offered the chance to manufacture a highly dangerous chemical, but when the news gets out that it might be too dangerous, he has to back down.
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.2/10 315 votes#12 - The Devil You Know
Season 2 Episode 5 - Aired 1981-03-23
When Jim is betrayed by a Cabinet colleague over his plans to bring in jobs for British workers, he thinks about leaving Westminster and becoming a European Commissioner, But when Sir Humphrey learns who his replacement will be, he tries to change Jim’s mind.
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.2/10 305 votes#13 - The Challenge
Season 3 Episode 2 - Aired 1982-11-18
When Jim tackles local council administration and civil defence, he runs afoul of a B.B.C. interviewer.
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.2/10 303 votes#14 - The Whisky Priest
Season 3 Episode 6 - Aired 1982-12-16
Jim faces opposition from all sides when he learns that British munitions have been sold to terrorist groups and he decides to start an inquiry into how it happened.
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.1/10 435 votes#15 - The Official Visit
Season 1 Episode 2 - Aired 1980-03-03
When the leader of an African country is killed in a coup, his successor, who is an old friend of Jim’s, comes in his place. They negotiate a £50 million deal to help buy oil exploration equipment.
Director: Sydney Lotterby
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.1/10 284 votes#16 - The Middle-Class Rip-off
Season 3 Episode 7 - Aired 1982-12-23
Jim and Sir Humphrey collide when Jim acts as an M.P. to sell an art gallery and museum in his district to support a popular local soccer club.
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.0/10 464 votes#17 - Open Government
Season 1 Episode 1 - Aired 1980-02-25
Jim Hacker retains his seat in the election and is given a cabinet post in the new government He meets the permanent secretary for his department Sir Humphrey Appleby but Jim decides to change the way things are done in the civil service so Sir Humphrey sets out to stop him
Director: Stuart Allen
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.0/10 400 votes#18 - The Economy Drive
Season 1 Episode 3 - Aired 1980-03-10
Jim Hacker is determined to reduce the Civil Service, but he is frustrated by Sir Humphrey, and the only numbers he can alter are the numbers of tea ladies.
Director: Sydney Lotterby
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.0/10 353 votes#19 - Jobs for the Boys
Season 1 Episode 7 - Aired 1980-04-07
Jim goes on radio to support the Solihull project a Government, union and private enterprise building scheme, that he has inherited from the last administration, but unknown to him the project is close to bankruptcy, Sir Humphrey hopes to save the deal by offering a quango to the director of the bank involved
Director: Sydney Lotterby
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.0/10 324 votes#20 - The Death List
Season 2 Episode 3 - Aired 1981-03-09
When Jim learns that when in opposition he was bugged by the secret service, he decides to bring in legislation to kerb the bugging, only to find out that he is on the death list of a group of terrorist’s, and the best way to find them, is by bugging phone lines
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay
8.0/10 313 votes#21 - The Quality of Life
Season 2 Episode 6 - Aired 1981-03-30
Sir Humphrey uses Jim’s promise to keep a popular city farm project open to get special permission for an additional nine floors on a proposed skyscraper.
Director: Peter Whitmore
Writer: Jonathan Lynn, Antony Jay