Talk:Humphrey Appleby

Article for "Sir Humphrey"
The term Sir Humphrey seems to have acquired a generic usage, in a similar fashion to Pointy-Haired Boss. Perhaps an article on the generic concept should be considered. Flagboy 22:06, 20 December 2005 (UTC)

Birth/death dates
I've put these dates back in -- even though they're not mentioned on the show itself they are in the Politico's Book of the Dead 'obituary', which was written by the show's creators so I think counts as canon. See also the discussion in Talk:James_Hacker. Maybe there should be a clearer solution, but I don't think it should involve removing the dates. --Zeborah 20:18, 14 February 2006 (UTC)

Humphrey's honours
The actual page on Yes, Minister gives Humphrey a few more honours than listed here. Which version is correct? --LancasterII


 * I'm not sure that GCB is correct. In The Official Visit, Haker bribes Humphrey with a GCB, but we never here anymore about it until the introduction to the Quality of Life in YM book, when it is stated that Humphrey has not yet recieved his "G". That doesn't answer your question, does it? I think that, as they were both writen by the same people, that we should consider them both canon. Lets hope they don't contridicte each other!!:) Anyone else have a view?The One00 18:28, 6 September 2006 (UTC)


 * At the time, Cabinet Secretaries were pretty much automatically promoted to Knight Grand Cross (and generally still are, though it's now much less automatic), so it's safe to assume he became GCB shortly after the start of YPM. Proteus (Talk) 18:36, 6 September 2006 (UTC)


 * Entirely agree r.e. GCB. Is there a policy on WP regarding which format of an series is to be considered canon?The One00 15:45, 7 September 2006 (UTC)


 * Hacker actually bribes Humphrey with a KBE in "The Official Visit". As I'm not too familiar with honours, is this actually the same as a GCB? Chris 42 15:53, 7 September 2006 (UTC)


 * No, they're not the same. A GCB is a Knight Grand Cross of the order of the bath. The next level down is the KCB- Knight Commander of the order of the bath. A KBE is on the same level as a KCB- just for a differant honour. In the book, Hacker bribes Humphrey with a GCB, and in the episode a KBE! Which do we accept as canon here then?!?The One00 15:41, 8 September 2006 (UTC)


 * I would be inclined to go with the broadcast version, since that came first. Chris 42 15:45, 8 September 2006 (UTC)


 * At a later point in the book (the adaptation of the one where they're going to build a tower block on a city farm), an editor's note says he doesn't have his G.


 * Of note, he is referred to as Sir Humphrey when his character is first introduced in the Pilot Episode. Since the KBE and GCB (assuming he did get a GCB) are awarded later, the implication is that he had previously been created a Knight Bachelor prior to Hacker becoming Minister. Theoretically, he could have been a KCB however, since the KBE is junior to the KCB, it is unlikely that he would have been put up for a KBE after having been awarded a KCB. AusTerrapin (talk) 14:55, 24 October 2010 (UTC)

Surely it's GCMG, not GCB? —Tamfang (talk) 05:33, 3 December 2010 (UTC)


 * Or is the scene where Hacker hints at a GCMG to change Appleby's mind only in the book, not the show? —Tamfang (talk) 02:19, 21 April 2023 (UTC)

Humphrey's verbosity
Humphrey is not, by nature, "loquacious and verbose", which is itself a verbose way of saying "talkative". He is a master of rhetoric who is perfectly capable of saying things laconically if and when he wants to, and in fact he normally talks very economically - he only blinds Hacker with excessive words when he wants to be confusing. He is also neither a classic "snob" nor an "English gentleman"; these seem to me to be American perceptions of his character. He is too much of a technocrat to be either of these things; Humphrey's ultimate master is not the English class system, but the Civil Service. Lexo (talk) 00:14, 2 September 2008 (UTC)

possible source of name
I found this in "Parkinson's Second Law":
 * In 1957 Mr John Applebey remarked that those responsible for the [British] public accounts seem to confuse themselves as well as everyone else.

—Tamfang (talk) 05:26, 3 December 2010 (UTC)

Balliol College vs Baillie College
In the List of fictional Oxford colleges, this comment appears:

Baillie College - Yes Minister and Yes, Prime Minister, attended by successive Cabinet Secretaries, Sir Arnold Robinson and Sir Humphrey Appleby; a very thinly veiled reference to Balliol; indeed in several episodes Sir Humphrey Appleby is seen wearing a Balliol tie, and in the 2011 stage play version, the fictionalisation has been dropped entirely and Balliol College is overtly mentioned as the alma mater of the character.

This seems rather thin grounds for claiming Baillie to be Balliol, particularly as the former is headed by a Dean rather than a Master (and anyone can buy a Balliol tie).

However, as the Dean of Baillie college describes Appleby - apparently critically - as "too clever by half" and "smug", it's unlikely that his alma mater could really be Balliol.Thomas Peardew (talk) 13:29, 18 December 2014 (UTC)


 * Sir Humphrey would never wear the tie of a school he hadn't attended, if there were any risk of being caught out. —Tamfang (talk) 23:46, 18 December 2014 (UTC)

Otttawa Citizen
I have linked this and I have no doubt it is true (and very funny, and would have made Hawthorne laugh in his grave he would have loved it) but can someone WP:RS this? I can't.It has echoes of course of Mark Twain's "reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated" but it is beautifully done parody (or metaparody since appleby was himself of course a parody), very nicely done. Si Trew (talk) 13:54, 20 May 2016 (UTC)

Department name
The article states Sir Humphrey joined the department in 1964, but we know that from 1962 until 1977 it was known as the Ministry for General Assistance, presumably renamed by the other side in the interim. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.153.41.7 (talk) 09:37, 18 March 2021 (UTC)

not only

 * He genuinely believes that the Civil Service knows what the average person needs and is the most qualified body to run the country. The joke being, however, that not only is Sir Humphrey, as an elite White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, University of Oxford-educated career Civil Servant, is actually quite out of touch with the average Briton.

This last sentence was ungrammatical even before the recent deletion of the bold part (which one might think is its whole point). I'm not up to improving it right now. —Tamfang (talk) 23:40, 3 October 2023 (UTC)