The Office

by Ben Walters

Created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, The Office is arguably the first British TV masterpiece of the new century. Gervais stars as David Brent, branch manager of a paper merchants located on... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1844570916
• ISBN13: 9781844570911
• Release Date: January 2006
• Publisher: British Film Institute
• Length: 144 Pages
• Weight: 0.79 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.5" x 7.4"

Customer Reviews

A godsend for fans

Walters's tome offers both background history on the making of and critical analysis on the BBC2/BBC1 series The Office. Pitched perfectly to appeal to everyone from casual TV fans to more academically-minded folks, his insights are not a mere "trifling matter." The input from Gervais and Merchant, as well as from others involved in the production of the series, illustrates the steep learning curve involved in making the series, given the relative inexperience of the writing/directing/acting team. While only a brief blurb is offered at the end regarding the current NBC remake series, given the quality of that new incarnation, I hope for an expanded edition in the near future that might do some of the same analysis with Greg Daniels and his cast and crew. Highly recommended to any Office fan.

If you are a fan of "The Office"...

...you will LOVE this book!!! Ben Walters has written an extensive analysis of the show (Series 1 & 2 and the Christmas Specials.) There's also interviews with Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant (writers/directors/comic geniuses) and a history of how they met and how the show came about. This book is a "must-have" for fans who want to know EVERYTHING about the show and who (like me) miss it and want to visit Slough again for a bit. Another great aspect of the book (which I wasn't expecting) is the pictures!! Along with images of memorable scenes, there's a 2-page spread illustrating David Brent's "Comic Relief" dance. At the end of the book, there's a section devoted to the NBC remake of "The Office" starring Steve Carell. Since I'm such a fan of the BBC version, I dreaded the US version. Even though it will never be as great as the original, the NBC version does capture a bit of the magic that made "The Office" so great ... and I'm forced to admit that I'm now a fan of both. All in all, Ben Walters' book is packed with valuable info and insights and ... if you're still planning to relocate to Slough ... or you think Tim and Dawn are Romeo and Juliet (but with a happy ending) ... or you just think "The Office" is a great show that will be referenced and quoted for years to come... buy the book. You won't regret it!! Cheers!