Determining 'not to lose touch with reality', Reggie makes sweeping changes, banning ties and introducing the wearing of slippers, a tea-lady and a bouncy castle to bounce ideas around in. He also gives strangers lifts in his company car. When the boss expresses disapproval, Reggie changes the firm's name to Grot and announces that it will make only useless things. Nicola, now sacked, is bored at home,spending her time mending basket chairs, whilst her father tells Reggie he has cold feet about marrying his mother.

Reggie hopes to have solved his commuting nightmare: a bicycle. His haughty claim to leave his fellow passengers forever is dismally retracted after aching all over where he didn't even realising to have muscles. At work, Chris's latest daft idea requires a speaker, and Reggie, the only one on staff showing no interest at all, is designated.

Reggie hoped riding a cool bike would relieve his anger about British Rail and his nonexistent sex life (even now the spousal agendas don't clash, Nicola's period does), and bragged in advance, but that proves painful once more. Meanwhile, Chris needs to learn about the company and delivers daunting promises to the board after a year of (mis)management.

After setting to work on David's house with a nail-gun, Reggie moves in with Anthony in his chaotic flat and exposes Nicola's infidelity in his best man's speech at his mother's wedding. Groomtech is sold but nobody is sacked. However, Reggie is demoted whilst Chris gets his old job back. Nicola returns to the flat where Reggie is enjoying the single life, to tell him that she now has a job and wants him to come home.

Reginald 'Reggie' Perrin hates his cozy, well-paid but boring routine job as in Groomtech's department head of disposable razors. This time, crazy, power-hungry CEO Chris orders Reggie and his over-eager, half-wit sycophant assistants Anthony and Steve to come up with a novel use for pumice. Meanwhile, Reggie's wife Nicola's feminist discussion group crowds him out of his own living room.

Whilst contemplating suicide, Reggie is at a crossroads and resigns from Groomtech, planning to lead a self-sufficient life growing his own vegetables. But money is tight, Nicola is fearful for her job and the best the Job Centre can offer Reggie is shelf-stacking. Mother is planning to marry Nicola's dad, and the therapist is rubbish. With Groomtech facing their largest decrease in disposable razors in years and Chris begging him to return, should Reggie sacrifice his principles and once more chain himself to the capitalist life?

Still dissatisfied with his lot, Reggie considers that perhaps he would make a good teacher and goes to Nicola's school to talk about his work. This is surprisingly well-received and so he invites a school trip to Groomtech. This, however, does not go according to plan.

Reggie's morbid hatred now extends even to his wedding witness, Monty. At work, he seizes Chris's latest obsession, globalization, to organise a business trip to Helsinki with attractive colleague Jasmine. Having just has a bad row with his wife, he plans meaningless adultery, but once that appears a real option gets cold feet.