The first episode of The Office (UK) aired in 2001. It premiered on BBC Two in the United Kingdom on 9 July 2001, introducing viewers to David Brent and the employees of Wernham Hogg’s Slough branch.
The opening episode, “Downsize,” establishes the mockumentary’s central workplace and its awkward social comedy. David Brent is the branch manager, while Tim Canterbury works as a salesman, Gareth Keenan acts as the self-important team leader, and Dawn Tinsley is the receptionist. The episode also introduces the threat of downsizing, which drives much of the early story.
The programme was created and written by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. Its first series consisted of six episodes broadcast from July to August 2001. A second six-episode series followed in 2002, and the story concluded with a two-part Christmas special broadcast in 2003.
The year can be confused with 2002 because that was when the second series aired, or with 2003 because the Christmas special brought the programme to its conclusion. The original British series therefore began in 2001, several years before the American adaptation premiered in 2005.