View source for Confidence and Paranoia

{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2016}}

{{Infobox television episode
| series         = [[Red Dwarf]]
| image          = Confidence and Paranoia (Red Dwarf).jpg
| image_size     = 250px
| caption        = Lister turns on Kochanski's hologramatic disk only to have another Rimmer appear
| series_no      = 1
| episode        = 5
| director       = [[Ed Bye]]
| writer         = [[Rob Grant]] & [[Doug Naylor]]
| airdate        = {{Start date|1988|3|14|df=y}}
| guests         = [[Lee Cornes]] as Paranoia<br>[[Craig Ferguson]] as Confidence
| prev           = [[Waiting for God (Red Dwarf)|Waiting for God]]
| next           = [[Me²]]
| episode_list = List of Red Dwarf episodes
}}
"'''Confidence and Paranoia'''" is the fifth episode from series one of the [[science fiction]] [[sitcom]] ''[[Red Dwarf]]''.<ref name="British Sitcom Guide&nbsp;— Red Dwarf&nbsp;— Series 1">{{cite web | url =http://www.sitcom.co.uk/red_dwarf/series1.shtml | title =British Sitcom Guide&nbsp;— Red Dwarf&nbsp;— Series 1 | publisher =British Comedy Guide |access-date =31 January 2008}}</ref> It was first broadcast on the British television channel [[BBC Two|BBC2]] on 14 March 1988.<ref name="BBC Programme Catalogue RED DWARF&nbsp;— CONFIDENCE AND PARANOIA">{{cite web | url=http://catalogue.bbc.co.uk/catalogue/infax/programme/NMRE758H | title=BBC Programme Catalogue RED DWARF&nbsp;— CONFIDENCE AND PARANOIA | publisher=BBC | access-date=5 December 2007 }}{{Dead link|date=August 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> The plot involves Lister's mutated [[pneumonia]] which manifests solid [[hallucinations]].

Written by [[Rob Grant]] and [[Doug Naylor]], and directed by [[Ed Bye]],<ref name="Red Dwarf Confidence and Paranoia (1988) Full cast and crew">{{cite web | url =https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0684151/fullcredits#cast | title =Red Dwarf Confidence and Paranoia (1988) Full cast and crew | publisher =www.imdb.com |access-date =22 January 2008}}</ref> the episode was originally going to be broadcast as the series cliffhanger but was moved down in the broadcast schedule with a new series finale taking its place.<ref name="Episode Guide: series 1, episode 5: Confidence and Paranoia">Episode Guide: series 1, episode 5: Confidence and Paranoia, Red Dwarf Smegazine, volume 2 issue 5, September 1993, Fleetway Editions Ltd, {{ISSN|0965-5603}}</ref> Considered to be one of the weaker efforts from the first series,<ref name="Red Dwarf Smegazine: Survey Results">Episode Survey Results, Red Dwarf Smegazine, issue 10, December 1992, Fleetway Editions Ltd, {{ISSN|0965-5603}}</ref> the episode was [[remastered|re-mastered]], along with the rest of the first three series, in 1998, to bring the episode up to a standard suitable for international broadcast.<ref name="Sci-Fi-London Film Festival&nbsp;— The Bodysnatcher Collection">{{cite web | url =http://www.sci-fi-london.com/news/article/1195080035/3/red-dwarf-the-bodysnatcher-collection | title =Sci-Fi-London Film Festival&nbsp;— The Bodysnatcher Collection | publisher =www.sci-fi-london.com |access-date =30 January 2008}}</ref>

==Plot==
While snooping through [[Kristine Kochanski]]'s quarters for her hologram disc, despite the fact they were not decontaminated, [[Dave Lister]] ([[Craig Charles]]) contracts a mutated strain of pneumonia. The condition causes Lister to become delirious and experience hallucinations, all of which become physical in presence, including fish raining in his sleeping quarters (which [[Cat (Red Dwarf)|Cat]] ([[Danny John-Jules]]) later eats), and the Mayor of Warsaw from 1546 appearing and then [[Spontaneous human combustion|spontaneously combusting]]. [[Arnold Rimmer]] ([[Chris Barrie]]) later reveals this to Lister, before stating that he also caused two men to appear in the Drive Room. Lister discovers that the men each symbolise a part of his personality: Confidence ([[Craig Ferguson]]), who appears as a tall, tanned, flashily-dressed game show host-type man; and Paranoia ([[Lee Cornes]]), who appears as a stooped, pallid, black suit-clad little man.<ref name="Programme Guide p49">Howarth & Lyons (1993) p. 49.</ref>

Despite Rimmer's warning that they are symptoms of his condition and thus dangerous, Lister spends time with Confidence and quickly figures out through him that Rimmer hid Kochanski's hologram disc in the solar panels outside their sleeping quarters and that a second hologram could be projected if all unnecessary power is switched off. Rimmer soon learns that someone smashed the Medical Unit's computer to prevent Lister receiving treatment, and warns Lister that he is in mortal danger. Rimmer assumes that Paranoia is the culprit, since he has disappeared. While on a [[Extra-vehicular activity|spacewalk]] to recover the hologram disc, Lister questions Paranoia's actions, only to learn that Confidence was the culprit and had murdered the other to spend more time with him. Confidence soon pressures Lister into suicidal acts, and [[explosive decompression|dies]] from the vacuum of space when he removes his helmet. After recovering, Lister prepares to use the disc after retrieving it, but discovers when he uses it that Rimmer planned for this by having it contain a [[Me²|second hologram]] of himself.<ref name="Programme Guide p50">Howarth & Lyons (1993) p. 50.</ref>

==Production==
[[File:confidence and paranoia split screen.jpg|thumb|right|Split-screen technique - shots were done separately and cut together]]The production team were very worried that they might get complaints about cruelty to fish regarding the raining fish hallucination scene.  In fact no fish were actually harmed and none were dropped from any height, but placed on the floor.<ref name="Episode Guide: series 1, episode 5: Confidence and Paranoia"/> The episode used [[split screen (filmmaking)|split-screen]] techniques to show The Mayor of Warsaw approaching Rimmer and spontaneously combusting. The technique was used to minimise any potential threat to the actors. The mayor, Rimmer's reaction and the explosion were all carried out as separate shots  and cut together.<ref name="Series I Effects">{{cite web|url=http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/deck05/series_1/effects.html |title=Series I Effects |publisher=www.reddwarf.co.uk |access-date=11 February 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080119055554/http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/deck05/series_1/effects.html |archive-date=19 January 2008 |url-status=dead |df=dmy }}</ref>

This episode was originally going to be the last of the series, and would have concluded with Kochanski being successfully [[Resurrection|resurrected]] as a "sort-of cliffhanger". The BBC [[electrician]] [[Strike action|strike]] had disrupted the series production, but this gave Grant and Naylor time to re-think about an earlier script titled "Bodysnatcher", which was intended to be the second episode: the pair felt that "Bodysnatcher" was the weakest script of the six, and also suffered because they had not actually written an ending for it. Rob and Doug took the idea from "Bodysnatcher" of two ''Listers'' (i.e. him and his hologram) not getting along, and adapted it into the idea of having two Rimmers together. So the ending of "Confidence and Paranoia" was changed to have a duplicate of Rimmer resurrected instead, and this cliffhanger continued into the series finale "[[Me²]]".<ref name="Episode Guide: series 1, episode 5: Confidence and Paranoia"/>

==Cultural references==
*Film references include ''[[The Wizard of Oz (1939 film)|The Wizard of Oz]]'' whose Munchkins are mentioned.<ref name="Confidence and Paranoia movie connections">{{cite web | url =https://www.imdb.com/rg/title-tease/movieconnections/title/tt0684151/movieconnections | title =Confidence and Paranoia movie connections | publisher =www.imdb.com |access-date =8 January 2008}}</ref>
*The ''[[Alien (film)|Alien]]'' tagline is also parodied "In space, no one can hear you cha-cha-cha".<ref name="Red Dwarf movie connections">{{cite web | url =https://www.imdb.com/rg/title-tease/movieconnections/title/tt0684151/movieconnections | title =Red Dwarf movie connections | publisher =www.imdb.com |access-date =8 January 2008}}</ref>
*To relieve his boredom, Holly has Lister deletes his memory banks of all [[Agatha Christie]]'s writings, and then gets intensely involved with reading [[Hercule Poirot]] novels.

==Reception==
The episode was originally broadcast on the British television channel BBC2 on 14 March 1988 in the 9:00pm evening time slot.<ref name="BBC Programme Catalogue RED DWARF&nbsp;— CONFIDENCE AND PARANOIA"/> Although the pilot episode "[[The End (Red Dwarf)|The End]]" drew in over five million viewers, this figure was now tailing off as the series progressed.<ref name="Programme Guide p8-9">Howarth & Lyons (1993) p. 8-9.</ref> The episode was considered to be one of the weakest from the first series by ''Red Dwarf Smegazine'' readers&nbsp;— it came in 28th place with 0.2% of the votes.<ref name="Red Dwarf Smegazine: Survey Results"/>

==Re-mastered==
{{See also|Red Dwarf remastered}}

The remastering of Series I to III was carried out during the late 1990s.<ref name="Remasters of the Universe">{{cite web|url=http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/deck01/dvd_remasters_of_the_universe_221206.html |title=Remasters of the Universe |publisher=www.reddwarf.co.uk |access-date=28 January 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080104012351/http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/deck01/dvd_remasters_of_the_universe_221206.html |archive-date=4 January 2008 |url-status=dead |df=dmy }}</ref> Changes throughout the series included replacement of the opening credits,<ref name="Red Dwarf Series I Remastering">{{cite web|url=http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/deck05/series_1/remastering.html |title=Red Dwarf Series I Remastering |publisher=www.reddwarf.co.uk |access-date=30 January 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080118140243/http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/deck05/series_1/remastering.html |archive-date=18 January 2008 |url-status=dead |df=dmy }}</ref> giving the picture a colour grade and [[filmising]],<ref name="The End Re-Mastered Commentary">{{cite video | people =Remastering Crew | title =The End Re-Mastered DVD Commentary | medium =DVD | publisher =BBC | at =Bodysnatcher DVD Boxset disc 1 | date =2007 }}</ref> [[Computer-generated imagery|computer generated]] [[special effects]] of ''Red Dwarf''<ref name="Re-Dwarf">{{cite video | people =Remastering Crew | title ='Re-Dwarf' Documentary | medium =DVD | publisher =BBC | at =Bodysnatcher DVD Boxset disc 1 | date =2007 }}</ref> and many more visual and audio enhancements.<ref name="Re-Dwarf"/> Changes specific to "Confidence and Paranoia" include a new recorded Holly joke to replace the opening 'post office worker' gag, dramatic music cue added to Lister's collapse due to the mutated illness and a CGI scene of ''Red Dwarf'' travelling through the dust storm.<ref name="Confidence and Paranoia Re-Mastered text commentary">{{cite video | people =Remastering Crew | title =Confidence and Paranoia Re-Mastered text commentary | medium =DVD | publisher =BBC | at =Bodysnatcher DVD Boxset disc 1 | date =2007 }}</ref>

==Notes==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==References==
* {{cite book |last=Howarth |first=Chris |author2=Steve Lyons |title=Red Dwarf Programme Guide |year=1993 |publisher=Virgin Books |isbn=0-86369-682-1 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/reddwarfprogramm0000howa }}

==External links==
{{Wikiquote|Red_Dwarf#.22Confidence_and_Paranoia.22|Confidence and Paranoia}}
*{{BBC episode|b008m8ks}}
*{{IMDb episode|0684151}}
*[http://www.reddwarf.co.uk/series/1/behind-the-scenes/sources/ Episode Guide - Series 1 at RedDwarf.co.uk]

{{Red Dwarf episodes}}

[[Category:Red Dwarf I episodes]]
[[Category:1988 British television episodes]]