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His Life & Career - Reginald Perrin - Rising Damp

Reggie Online: The Official Reginald Perrin web site

Scene-by-Scene Guide, including DVD Captures Gallery

Series Two, Episode Two
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Episode Two:
Caption: "Reggie’s true identity revealed. Sacked by Sunshine Desserts. Working at pig farm.
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Scene 1: Reggie is working at Pelham's Piggery. He is wearing his goofy false teeth again, and is talking in a broad Cockney accent. However, he has had enough of swilling out and mucking out pigs and gives in his notice, claiming his back has gone.
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Link: Mr. Pelham shakes Reggie's hand as he leaves the piggery, and Reggie walks to the bus stop, feigning a crooked back. He straightens up when Mr. Pelham is out of sight. He tries to make conversation with a pretty girl at the bus stop, but she moves away when she smells him.
Scene 2: Reggie is at home looking through the 'situations vacant' pages of a number of newspapers. He tells Elizabeth he seems to be unsuitable for any of the jobs, as he has no previous experience in drilling boreholes, the ability to speak nine languages, a deep commitment to man-made fibres or five years experience of practical midwifery. Elizabeth reminds him that their meals will be less extravagant than they used to be with no money coming in, and Reggie tells her not to worry. Elizabeth says she will have to find a job, but Reggie tries to talk her out of it, as he doesn't like the idea of being supported by his wife. The postman delivers five letters. Four of them are job application rejections, and the fifth is an advertisement for a local carpet sale. Elizabeth orders him to get a job by the end of the week, or she will.
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Scene 3: Reggie visits the labour exchange to give his details and search for a job. The more questions the clerk asks, the more Reggie realises he is unlikely to get a job anywhere. He decides to return to a job he has experience in.
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Scene 4: Back at Pelham's Piggery, Reggie and Mr. Pelham are leaning on the gate of a pig sty, where Mr. Pelham is telling Reggie he can have a great career in pigs. Reggie stares at one of the porkers and suddenly imagines C.J.'s face between the floppy pink ears.
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Scene 5: Elizabeth has arrived for an appointment with C.J. at Sunshine Desserts. He asks her about earnings now that Reggie has been sacked, and offers her a job as secretary to Tony and David. She tells C.J. that Reggie has mentioned the two men before, and their phrases of 'great' and 'super'. C.J. says that's nonsense. They enter the office and C.J. introduces Elizabeth to them. Tony says "great" and David says "super". C.J. says nothing, but scowls in astonishment.
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Scene 6: Reggie and Mr. Pelham are again extolling the virtues of pork when Reggie's foot slips off on of the bars of the gate of a sty, and puts his back out for real. He has to hand his notice in for genuine reasons this time.
Scene 7: At the bus stop, Reggie is in serious pain. The pretty girl makes an advance towards him, but Reggie is annoyed at not being in the mood to respond, and turns away.
Scene 8: Reggie arrives home from the piggery, smelly and still in pain. Elizabeth gets home from her interview a minute later, and Reggie tells her about his terrible day. She is not listening, preoccupied with her own news. Reggie is not very happy at being 'a kept man' but asks the name of her new employers, as he has likely heard of them before. Knowing she wouldn't like it if Reggie knew she was working at Sunshine Desserts, she tells him she is working for the British Basket Company. Reggie has never heard of them.
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Scene 9: It is Elizabeth's first day at work. Reggie, wearing a flowered apron, like the housewife he now is, sees his wife off to work by handing her her umbrella and handbag, like she used to hand him his umbrella and briefcase. She kisses her goodbye and he goes off to do some dusting.
Scene 10: Elizabeth returns home from work to find Reggie vacuuming the carpet. He asks her how her first day went and what the place and people are like. She has to make up the details on the spot. He tells her there is risotto for supper.
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Scene 11: Twenty-four hours later, and Elizabeth returns home again. Reggie is vacuuming again and has prepared risotto again. He has done some homework into the British Basket Company, but cannot find them in the phone book or the Yellow Pages. Elizabeth says they got it mixed up with the other BBC. Reggie suspects she is lying.
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Scene 12: Next night, Reggie is watching The Magic Roundabout until he hears Elizabeth return, at which point he runs to the Hoover and pretends he has just finished. He tells her that the Climthorpe Basket Boutique have never heard of her employers, and Elizabeth uses the BBC mix-up excuse again. Tom and Linda have been invited for supper, and Tom has bought a bottle of turnip wine. Despite that, they drink it, with a one pound fine for every negative thing anyone says about it. Reggie loses all of his housekeeping money. Tom offers Reggie a job with his estate agents, and Reggie readily accepts.
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Scene 13: Next day, Reggie accompanies Tom as she shows a client around a large country house. Reggie feels like making a new start and outbids Tom's customer, who walks off in disgust. Tom sacks his father-in-law.
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Scene 14: Reggie is back at the piggery for a third time, but Mr. Pelham tells him it must be for keeps this time. Reggie says it will be.
Scene 15: C.J. is having dinner with Elizabeth at a restaurant which he mistakenly thinks is unknown to anyone but him. David and his girlfriend are sitting at one table, while Tony and Joan are at another. C.J. invites Elizabeth to his country home on Saturday, to 'sort papers', a ruse to have an affair with her.
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Scene 16: Saturday, and Elizabeth sets off to work, much to Reggie's disapproval. He realises the names of her superiors she has been giving him are the names of the Liberal Party leaders, and is now convinced she is having an affair.
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Scene 17: In C.J.'s country retreat in Godalming, he is plying Elizabeth with champagne in order to make advances towards her. He tells her that Mrs. C.J. is in Luxembourg for six weeks, and to call him 'Bunny'. He leans over to kiss her, but is shocked by his own actions, and instead reaches for a pile of papers from the table.
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Scene 18: Monday morning, and Reggie sees Elizabeth off to work as usual, then rings the piggery to have the day off, claiming that his auntie is ill, so that he can follow Elizabeth to see where she is working.
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Scene 14: Elizabeth walks towards the station, and Reggie follows at a distance, dressed in a hat and raincoat. He catches the same train, and watches her as she climbs the steps to Sunshine Desserts.
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