HARD to believe but it is 23 years since the last televised episode of Yes Prime Minister.

Now, the original writers, Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn have tried (not always successfully) to raise our spirits with a stage version.

Set in a well-designed Chequers, it brings the political satire bang up-to-date.

Jonathan Lynn’s direction ensures immaculate timing and sharp interaction but the positioning of the cast is sometimes too static.

Problems with quangos, immigration, the European Union and the politics of oil, raise their ugly heads, not to mention the economy.

We see the PM, Jim Hacker, and his scheming Cabinet Secretary, Sir Humphrey Appleby struggling unsuccessfully to handle the country’s problems within a coalition Government.

Richard McCabe (Spooks, Wallander) plays the Prime Minister with a constant air of bewilderment and Simon Williams (James Bellamy in Upstairs, Downstairs) becomes Sir Humphrey, the man who has seen it all before.

He receives deserved applause for two marathon performances when he speaks civil service gobbledygook.

The pair make us laugh when negotiating a deal with the oil-rich Kumranistan, a sleazy former Soviet state, to save the economy.

Whether or not you saw the original series starring Paul Eddington and Nigel Hawthorne, you’ll enjoy the snappy one-liners.

However, after a riveting first act the comedy loses impetus and only picks up at the end when the PM uses global warming to save himself from a rollicking by the BBC, cleverly reproduced via an on stage TV screen.

* At the Lowry in Salford until May 14. The box office is on 0843 208 6010.