John Howard Davies

The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin is a series of novels which developed into a British sitcom starring Leonard Rossiter in the title role. Both the books and television series were written by David Nobbs, and the screenplay for the first series was adapted by Nobbs from the novel, though subplots in the novel were considered too dark or risqué for television and toned down or omitted, an example being the relationship between Perrin’s daughter and his brother-in-law.

The story concerns a middle-aged middle manager, Reggie Perrin, who is driven to bizarre behaviour by the pointlessness of his job at Sunshine Desserts.

The first novel in the series, The Death of Reginald Perrin, was published in 1975, with later editions retitled to match the title of the television series. Subsequent novels reversed the process, being adapted from the television series, and published as The Return of Reginald Perrin, and The Better World of Reginald Perrin.

The original three television series, all of the same name, were broadcast between 1976 and 1979; a fourth, The Legacy of Reginald Perrin, also written by Nobbs, followed in 1996.