|
|
~ |
|
~ |
|
Reggie Online: The Official Reginald Perrin web site
Character Studies: Reggie's Colleagues
Charles 'C. J.' Jefferson - Tony Webster - David Harris-Jones - Joan Greengross - Dr. Gerald 'Doc' Morrissey
|
|

ttt
| Related
Links: C
J's catchphrases - John
Barron biography
Introduction: Series One
Series Two
|
Series
Three At the start of Series 3, C.J. has not returned to society but has remained a tramp, or 'street entertainer' as he prefers to call it, earning a living by busking, badly,
on the streets of London. Reggie has set out to recruit all the old mob
again for his Perrins Community and finds C.J. playing his banjo
outside
a tube station. He treats C.J. to a pint and offers him a job, although
he'd have to live in a tent. With all staff recruited, the first
meeting
is soon held to allocate everyone's jobs in the community. Reggie
elects
C.J. the Work Therapist, as "no-one understands the problems of
work..."
more than C.J., adding "having caused most of them yourself, C.J.". But
C.J.'s first task is less than satisfying for him. Reggie is in charge
of the household chores, and applies C.J. to babysitting duties three
days
running. Linda's children Adam and Jocasta and baby Reggie Harris-Jones
are fond of thrusting a stuffed Kermit toy down the front of C.J.'s
trousers,
much to his annoyance. Eventually, guests start to arrive, although
half
the staff have to pretend to be guests to assure the first real guest
that
he is not alone. C.J. pretends that he 'can't make friends' but the
guest
sees through the scheme and flees in panic. When the community is fluorishing, we see C.J. in a role-playing session with two guests, Thruxton Appleby the textiles tycoon and Arthur Noblett. an arc welder. Reggie looks in to hold a 'watching brief', and suggests that the worker should be the boss and the tycoon should be the labourer to demonstrate the 'them and us syndrome'. C.J. reluctantly agrees and decides to be the boss's secretary Cynthia Jones. The two guests fail to become each other and so C.J. and Reggie decide to show them how it's done, but get carried away and end up in a slanging match. Guests are now pouring into Perrins as a result of TV and newspaper promotions and Reggie tells staff members they will have to share. He bets Elizabeth five pounds that he can get C.J. to share with Doc Morrissey, and does so, but only by first telling him he must share with sweaty, germ-ridden Scottish chef McBlane then 'compromising' by saying the Doc instead. But when
the Doc hears of his order to share with C.J., he faints. In
Anti-Self-Consciousness
Week, C.J. has an idea to go out in public and having conversations
ending
with '-ergle'. They try it on a train and it is a great success. A
femme
fatale called Deborah Swaffham leads C.J. astray, even to the point of
them both being undressed. But the Community is threatened by thugs and
despite their best efforts, they cannot save it and it closes down. All
staff go their separate ways, and Reggie faces the prospect of never
seeing
C.J. again. A few weeks later, however, a letter arrives inviting
Reggie
to an interview at Amalgamated Aerosols where C.J.'s brother F.J. is
managing
director. Reggie soon discovers he is to be C.J.'s 'think tank' and
orders
Reggie to attend a 'smelling' to determine the three most popular
fragrances
which will launch the new range of aerosols. C.J. is horrified to read
that one person has listed rude answers to what each smell reminded
people
of, and he knows it's Reggie. He orders Reggie to conduct an
investigation,
but Reggie decides to come clean and dictates a memo to be distributed
to all departments. The Legacy
of Reginald
Perrin Character
Analysis |

ttt
| Related
Links: Tony's
catchphrases - Trevor
Adams biography
Introduction:
Series One
Series Two
|
Sunshine
Desserts goes bankrupt and all the staff eventually end up at Reggie's
firm Grot. Tony is pleased to be offered a job, but is horrified to
learn
he will be working under David Harris-Jones. Personally, Tony is
separated
from Joan after getting married then chatting up a Swedish woman on
their
honeymoon. With Joan now back as Reggie's secretary, he hoped working
under
the same roof would have brought them back together. Eventually, after
a number of liaisons between Joan and Reggie, Tony goes back to her.
Series Three
The Legacy
of Reginald
Perrin Character
Analysis |

ttt
| Related
Links: Bruce
Bould biography
Introduction
Series One Series Two |
Series
Three When Reggie has his idea for the Community, he sets out to recruit all his old friends. He finds David and his wife Prue at their home in West Wales, along with a new addition, baby Reggie, named after Reggie himself. They agree to move to Botchley and become part of the project. Much to David's horror, the quiet,
prudish David is given the job of sex therapist, talking through the
guests'
sexual problems frankly. He fails miserably, becoming tongue-tied even
at the mention of the word 'sex'. At the Mr. Babbacombe charade, David
pretends to be a drug-addicted roadie for a rock group, but the sole
guest
recognises him as the warden who greeted him at the door the previous
day.
His confidence grows and is even found to be conducting a game of
sexual
Just A Minute with a number of guests. Deborah Swaffham's femme fatale
charms come off the worst with David, as he is spotted leaving her
bedroom
by his wife Prue. She leaves the Community, and her husband, returning
to Wales. At the news of the impending violent activity, however, she
returns
to help fight, but it is to no avail. They return to Haverfordwest with
little Reggie Harris-jones.
The Legacy
of Reginald
Perrin Character
Analysis |
|
|

ttt
| Related
Links: Sue
Nicholls biography
Introduction:
Series One
Series Two
|
Reggie
hoped that with Tony also working at Perrin Products (Grot) Ltd. it
would
bring him and Joan together again. Joan thinks it would be a good idea
to make Tony jealous in an effort to rekindle their relationship and
cajoles
Reggie into being 'the other man'. This time, Tony does indeed call on
Joan at her flat while Reggie is there, and it is Reggie who has to
climb
down the drainpipe. Eventually sick of Grot, Reggie confides in Joan
that
the only way to destroy it is to start behaving oddly again.
Series Three The Legacy
of Reginald
Perrin Character
Analysis |

ttt
| Related
Links: John
Horsley biography
Introduction
Series One
Series Two
|
Series
Three Reggie catches up with Doc Morrissey in Southall, where he is sitting on a park bench, feeding popadums to pigeons. Reggie entices the Doc into joining the community as the psychologist. He becomes one of the tent brigade in the back garden, although it keeps falling down on top of him in the middle of the night. He is also one of the members of staff who have to pretend to be guests for scared Mr. Babbacombe. He pretends he is prey to the delusion that he is a doctor,
although his standing up every time Reggie mentions the Doc is not
accidental,
although Jimmy is pretending to be the real Doc at the time. With
several
guests now at the Community, Reggie visits each staff hut to hold a
'watching
brief'. This completely unsettles the Doc who is trying a session of
word
association with Bernard Trilling, head of Anaemia Television, who has
lost his sense of humour. It is Reggie who eventually cures the man,
but
Doc Morrissey gets the credit. With sleeping space soon at a premium,
Reggie
tries to get C.J. to share a room with the Doc, but Doc Morrissey
faints
at the suggestion. Even Doc Morrissey becomes a victim of Deborah
Swaffham's
charms, suggesting that a patient-patient situation - ie. on the couch
with her - would be much more efficacious. He falls off the couch,
however,
and hurts the parts he was hoping to use. With staff morale at a low
ebb,
Doc surprises everyone by inventing an odourless, colourless liquid
that
restores the body's balance and provide all the goodness by chemical
means
that the Community is trying to achieve by physical means. All are
sceptical
but agree to try a glass of the liquid. All are soon violently ill with
dysentery, and Doc Morrissey is blamed. The Doc denies this, however,
as
the liquid was in fact only water. It is the staff's conviction that
the
Doc has concocted a poison that has made them all ill. After the end of
the Community, Doc Morrissey tells Reggie he will go back to teaching
English
to ethnic minorities at the local college. He says he can call himself
'Professor' as it pays more.
The Legacy
of Reginald
Perrin Character
Analysis |
|
|