Decline and Fall
The series sees Paul Pennyfeather as an inoffensive divinity student at Oxford University in the 1920s, who is wrongly dismissed for indecent exposure having been made the victim of a prank by The Bollinger Club.
- 2017-2017
- 1 season
- Comedy
The series sees Paul Pennyfeather as an inoffensive divinity student at Oxford University in the 1920s, who is wrongly dismissed for indecent exposure having been made the victim of a prank by The Bollinger Club.
Season 1 Episode Guide
3 Episodes 2017
Episode 1
Episode #1.1
58 mins
Unfairly sent down from Oxford for indecent exposure after the loutish Bollinger club have stripped him bare serious theology student Paul Pennyfeather ends up as a junior teacher at Dr Fagan's grim school in Wales. Nervous and under-qualified he finds allies in his colleagues, drunken ex-army Grimes, betrothed to Fagan's daughter Flossie, and wig-wearing Prendergast, along with school factotum Philbrook, a convicted criminal who has his own agenda. On the school's sports day Paul allows his only friend in the mischievous fifth form Peter Beste-Chetwynde to win, earning the respect of Peter's glamorous mother Margot, who arrives with her black musician consort Chokey and offers Paul a job with her.
Episode 2
Episode #1.2
56 mins
Neither Dr Fagan or Grimes are looking forward to the latter's wedding to Flossie but it still goes ahead, despite the diversion caused when Philbrick has to escape from the law. Next day Grimes is presumed drowned when his clothes are found on a local beach but with term ending Paul is invited to stay at her palatial house as Peter's tutor and finds himself falling for her. She also offers him employment in her Latin American entertainment company, recruiting showgirls, where he finds that Grimes is alive and acting as the girls' escort. Four days before his marriage to Margot Paul travels to Marseilles on her behalf and learns the hard way the true nature of her enterprise.
Episode 3
Episode #1.3
59 mins
Now made brutally aware that his intended has been heading an international white slavery racket Paul is sentenced to seven years in prison. Here he re-encounters fellow jail-bird Philbrick, Prendergast - now the prison chaplain - and convicted bigamist Grimes. Paul is shocked when the progressive governor grants a mass killer a lethal request before receiving a visit from Margot, who has a bizarre plan which will allow him, with Dr Fagan's help, to escape prison and resume his theological studies, in the guise of his identical cousin.
