This is how I imagine David Mitchell is in general.

Love it. Really hits the whole middle class combination of snobbery and guilt on the head.

This is exactly how I felt as a child and in my early teens.

This guy is working 3 jobs, no wonder he doesn't have money problems!

Whilst basic manners are always necessary in social situations, the point of this sketch is that trying to make the client-servant relationship friendly and informal usually ends up having the opposite effect. Forced interaction is much worse than polite acknowledgement.

I actually do feel that way (not as intensely obviously...) when I'm at posh places. I _hate_ being waited on and fawned over.

I was getting tailored for a suit once and that was bad enough. Then when he brought some shoes he unlaced them and knelt down to do the laces up for me. I had never been so uncomfortable in my life.

I have never seen a more amusing portrayal of snobbish yet well-meaning upper middle class guilt. Really good stuff, lol.

"A person who is nice to you, but not nice to the Waiter, is not a nice person at all."

To me this is actually one of Mitchell and Webb's darkest sketches.

That awkward moment when you feel oddly attracted to Robert Webb as a spectacle-wearing, gum-chewing, vaguely-cockney taxi driver....

This is actually a very nuanced skit. Mitchell's character feels so uncomfortable asking these people to perform the jobs they were given to perform because he fears he is coming off as an entitled ass. However by acting so uncormfortable about it all especially in regards to 'are you in college, are you an actor, do you have money problems' he'd implying there is something wrong with those jobs and coming off as an entitled ass. In other words he's terrified of forcing someone else to perform a demeaning task for him, but his actions in response to that implies that he thinks that the task is demeaning, which makes the situation worse than it actually is for him and for the servor where all would have been fine if he just respected the professional relationship.

thats how i feel all the time

I have worked in public service including some just 'serivce' jobs my whole Life. Being overly or insistingly friendly with people who are just trying to do their job creates a great deal of tension when the worker is busy-the 'polite' customer takes it very personally.The middle class guilt also comes out in trying to make conversation where none is needed- especially when you don't feel the need to leave a tip.You are not kind, just needy and it takes more energy to adjust to your personality.

It's weird how Mr Jeffries seems both selfish and selfless in this. He wants to treat these people well, but at the same time he looks down on them for being working class. He even pretends to be interested in their lives so he asks questions (because of societal pressure?). He's desperate not to be a snob, but at the same time thinking that they need his help is somewhat snobbish. In the end I think he just wants to clear his conscience for joining the system' as he put it, & eat his cake too.

2:49 "Yes, I'm looking for a gift for my aunt."

That's the beauty of Mitchell and Webb... they're experts at voicing the inner thoughts that many of us have, often at the subconcious level. Btw I'm the 159th person to let you know that you're not alone :)

1:34 Love Rob's "Well I wasn't planning to........but......" look as he walks away

That's what it's like to have social anxiety! You think you can clearly read other peoples' thoughts and in circumstances where you happen to cause even the slightest trouble or discomfort to another person it is CLEAR to you that they must hate you for doing so. That constant feeling of being judged for everything you do or do not, is what causes you to be extremly conscious about everything in social situations which at the end of the day causes anxiety by not wanting to make a mistake while keeping up this whole charade. It's really tiresome...

I love how they understand all these little anxious moments of life

that guy changed job roles from a waiter to a taxi driver pretty quickly

I like to think that Robert Webb's character is intentionally chaning jobs to ensure consecutive encounters with Mr. Jefferies, in some sort of attempt at gaslighting.

Am I the only one attracted to Robert's gentle voice as a waiter? Esp. that 'I beg your pardon' when David started speaking in the first sketch.

This is my favorite video of all time. It combines comedy and tragedy while teaching a very, very valuable lifelesson. Brilliant.

I think it's about him looking down at people working these jobs.

I feel this way internally all the time in these kinds of situations. It’s awful. I wish I could just do things myself and then I wouldn’t feel like I’m pretending to be better than someone else.

this is basically an inner monologue of my day, suspecting that everybody working around me actually hates me

A little light reading before bed was just what I needed XD

This is so good. Exactly how 'working class' people would feel about the elite condescension implicit every time they they talk about.. the working class.

This is perfect

Brilliant alone, brilliant as a duo... 😎

That poor man having to work three jobs

"How's your fami- ... I'm trying to show I'm interested: How's your family?" Brilliant lol

As a former service worker, I used to like getting BIG tips out of guilt. It really works!

Thank you and let me return the compliment straight away, yours is an interesting perspective too. :) Indeed there may be some truth to the idea that clients are 'simply' (although it isn't a simple process) projecting... Also, the whole idea of a paid job being exploitation seems to rest on the misunderstanding that if you're getting paid for something, you don't have the choice of not doing it. Yet very seldom IRL is anyone in so much money trouble that they can't afford to say no.

This is actually how I have always felt about waiters...when it's not fine dining or super busy I usually take my used dishes to the counter...

That is completely absurd, but so adorable.

whether or not you sit in the front or back of a taxi when your on your own is a question that confounds me every time..

When you’re a well off person then you spend an hour watching Breadtube videos.

Once I bought a suit in a shop and the vendor insisted on kneeling down and tie my - or the shops - shoes for me. It was so embarrasing and degrading for both of us, but only in my perception. "I don't need you wiping my ass for me, I'm a grown man!"

I feel a bit that way also, especially when I stay in 5 star hotels in the US with work. I hate the fawning attention and constant unease over tipping

This is the true David, I suspect. So sweet.

this is how i feel on daily basis :(

This isn't how I feel about people providing a service for me but it's exactly how I feel when its my birthday. The whole idea of "I'm not that special, why go through the discomfort of treating me special for this one day."

Brilliant.

“An Inspector Calls” isn’t a reference you hear very often 😂

How have I never seen this video before!

He could be working at Burger King spittin' on your onion rings 1:36 (The Real Slim Shaddy)

I have never seen a better expression of middle class guilt.

This is my inner monologue in restaurants nowadays

As a service worker (cashier), the best social interactions while doing a service job are the ones that happen to feel personal *even though neither side is really trying* to make it personal. Whether because something unexpected happens and you happen to have an honest emotional reaction to that and open up, or because you just happen to feel like opening up because you like the person As a customer, feel free to unintrudingly *offer* to the worker to make your relationship more personal, but don't force them into a situation where they're made to feel like a dick if they "leave you hanging"

Well, said. I get the impression that here in the US the situation is diverse but the conditions on average is much worse.

Brilliant

This is what happens when everyone you've ever met in your life looks like slightly-altered versions of Robert Webb, excluding the fact that dating would be a nightmare, you'd still inevitably go mental.

1:49 Note how he tosses Robb's belonging on the ground in an effort to sit there to show him how much he respects him

This is exactly my thought process on acid, social anxiety that you make the other person feel bad

Idk why but that last has me crying 😂

Well, then good news! Your reported unawareness of this consensus of awkwardness shows how excellent everybody is at disguising it!

It's both amusing and sad to see so many comments that don't understand what is actually happening. While some is middle class guilt, it's mostly seeing those professions as beneath them and beneath anyone with any intelligence and look upon them with pity as they aren't capable of directing their own lives. They often look at different classes of people in the same manner.

I'm often pretty oblivious to these unspoken rules, so half the time I forget and sit in the front. It's never been a problem for me either.

I'm not on about me, I'm on about the people who serve you.

I feel exactly like this when I hop on the human pulled/cycled rickshaw.

This is how I feel in restaurants and taxis.

I can now admit that I want to clear my own table at a restaurant…and volunteer to help with the dishes.

I usually sit in the front of taxis and chat with the driver. They're usually very friendly people and it's never been a problem. Though if - and it's never happened before - the front seat was full of litter or anything else, I'd take that as a sign and sit in the back.

All the people saying "this is how I feel in those situations", do you not realise that this sketch is mocking you?

Now flip to the bad waiter sketch to glimpse a world where Mitchell is the waiter and Webb the customer.

giving people something for nothing goes beyond being nice

This is just basically peep show if Mark Corrigan spewed out all his internal monologues to let other people hear him

People actually think this way now, absolutely spot on

lmao excellent finale

@Dancingwithotters Yes, in Denmark where I live it is. It's legal in several other countries too, but I don't have a comprehensive list handy. :)

haha the people in restrooms OMG! I feel like this EVERY TIME

I think the point of the sketch is the opposite of this; people hung up about service relationships are imaginging an injustice that isn't really there. It's not the relationship between a serf and a suzerain, it's a professional relationship that would be enjoyable if people nowadays would only relax and let themselves be served. Someone eating an expensive meal pretending he and the waiter are 'mates' is condescending, since one is paying the other for a job he should be able to take pride in.

Wait, you're not meant to sit in the front of a Taxi? But that's what you do in Australia.

they still don't deserve it and it's pain in the ass to remember

Sometimes I feel just like this, although I react less neurotically

These guys are genius.

That's exactly how I feel when I'm in restaurants, I'm not even joking. I thought I was the only one!!!

At least in Germany around where I live, people actually do often sit in the fromt seat in taxis, and chat with the driver

mitchell reminds me of moss from IT crowd in this one

Hlarious!

Is there a word to describe seemingly selfish altruism? Let me explain: I don't want to be served, because it feels uncomfortable. There are different levels to this, of course, with some more extreme than others. Bellhops carrying my luggage, as an example. Yet, I know that this is their job, and if nobody wishes to be served in such a way, then they won't have a job anymore. So, despite my actual aversion to having someone carry my bags, I allow it. Which means someone does a task I should be perfectly capable of doing myself, and I get to be that much more lazy. A seemingly selfish action, but not done for a selfish reason. If I were truly selfish, I would carry the bag myself, because that would make me feel better about myself (selfish goal), and the detriment is that this person would have less of a reason to work there. I think it would be selfish to have someone fired merely so I can feel good about myself.

This is what social anxiety feels like.

This is straight from bruiser. I kept expecting david to suddenly shout "I'M NOT A PEDO!"

This should be a surrealist movie!

@mitchellele I get it when people sing happy birthday.

I believe this is what it's like for Guardian readers to interact with the world.

If you had someone change your diapers as a baby then you should be able to accept a waiter pouring your wine. We all serve each other.

Eh? "Please", "Thank you" and common decency are free, take less than a second in most cases and you'll probably actually get better service. You don't need to give them a limb or do their job.

I just ignore their presence, is that so hard to cope with?

I think they where pointing out the lunacy of feeling this way not saying they actually feel this way them selves

it costs time and does require effort if you're not naturally polite

The laugh track definitely adds a different quality to it. Or maybe I should say "takes something away from it", since you seem to agree with me on the issue. As far as the actual material, I think they're just about on par with each other.

How prescient. Strange times, indeed.

I wonder if the music playing in the restaurant is a "smooth jazz" version of the theme from "Monty Python and the Holy Grail". And I wonder if it's intentional.

I am Mr. Jeffries

This is so me XD

Thanking people for everything they do shouldn’t be considered politeness

being nice to someone because you expect gratitude is not being nice