The Brittas Empire (1991)
The Brittas Empire is a British sitcom created and originally written by Andrew Norriss and Richard Fegen. Chris Barrie plays Gordon Brittas, the well-meaning but incompetent manager of Whitbury New Town Leisure Centre. The show ran for seven series and 53 episodes — including two Christmas specials — from 1991 to 1997 on BBC1. Norriss and Fegen wrote the first five series, after which they left the show. The Brittas Empire enjoyed a long and successful run throughout the 1990s, and gained itself large mainstream audiences. In 2004 the show came 47th on the BBC's Britain's Best Sitcom poll, and all series have been released on DVD. The creators Andrew Norriss and Richard Fegen often combine farce with either surreal or dramatic elements in episodes. For example in the first series, the leisure centre prepares for a royal visit, only for the doors to seal, the boiler room to flood and a visitor to become electrocuted. Unlike the traditional sitcom, deaths were quite common in The Brittas Empire.
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Episode 1 - Back from the Dead
Release Date: 1992-01-02Gordon is away at a conference in Bulgaria. Meanwhile the Leisure Centre is low on visitors, then news spreads that Gordon is dead. Everyone is happy and the centre is pouring with visitors. All goes well until Gordon comes back which gives everyone a shock especially Carole who thinks that Gordon is back from the dead.
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Episode 2 - Temple of the Body
Release Date: 1992-01-09Gordon explains to the staff about worshipping other peoples temples which he prefers to be another word for the human body. He then finds that a flat cupboard is being used when he finds a red bed duvet cover sticking out, then Gavin's hat turns up. Gordon tells Tim what he has found and gets very cross when he thinks that Gavin is sleeping in the centre with someone. Gordon decides to find out what Gavin is up to and lays a bug in Linda's top so he can hear what she is saying. Then Gordon gets a shock at who is using the cupboard.
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Episode 3 - An Inspector Calls
Release Date: 1992-01-16An inspector is coming over and Gordon wants everything to be as good as gold for when he gets to the Leisure Centre. However Gordon then has to deal with a problem when a pigeon gets into the gymnasium. It gets worser and worser when their idea's go wrong. Later it's Helen's birthday and Gordon has brought her a moped and she is very upset. When the inspector arrives what will happen when he makes his inspection?
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Episode 4 - Set in Concrete
Release Date: 1992-01-23Gordon is having a visitor coming round, a Graham Hansom who is going to see what makes people angry. Meanwhile Laura realises that Gordon has got his feet stuck in solid concrete in a cardboard box. The reason for this was when Gordon upset someone at a party the night before. The problem is that Gordon doesn't listen. The visit however goes wrong when Graham's things get wrecked and add to that Gordon upsets him a lot which causes the alarm to sound. Laura gives Gordon a telling off because Gordon just doesn't understand.
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Episode 5 - Mums and Dads
Release Date: 1992-01-30A concert is going to be held at Whitbury Leisure Centre. Also Gordon's dad Jim has come to the centre with a piano. But Gordon is expecting a different piano and it going to be a lot of trouble getting through to the Gymnasium. Petrov who is going to be playing the piano then encounters a problems when Jim drops his piano from the stairs. Who will play the piano now?
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Episode 6 - Safety First
Release Date: 1992-02-13Gordon is practicing a fire drill and makes it more complicating then ever. Meanwhile Helen is planning a picnic in Gordon's office and wants Gordon to be at the picnic. But Gordon seems to be very busy which makes Helen very upset. Mrs Dapping has come and Gordon tells her about the faulty fire exit. Mrs Dapping takes no notice until a fire erupts from the Lost Property cupboard which causes disaster.
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Episode 7 - New Generations
Release Date: 1992-02-20Gordon tells Carole about a very sensible diet and discovers a bunch of leaves which Colin says are very healthy. Later Gordon has to deal with a crisis when a cow is on the loose and is about to give birth to a baby calf. Then Laura realises that the leaves can causes a pregnant woman or animal to give birth earlier than expected. This gets out of hand when Carole appears to have eaten some of the leaves. Then Helen has some surprising news for Gordon.