David Brent is a character in the
BBC television
mockumentary The Office, portrayed by the show's co-creator, co-writer, and co-director
Ricky Gervais. Brent is a
white-collar office middle-manager and the principal character of the series; he is the general manager of the
Slough branch of the Wernham-Hogg paper merchants and the
boss to most other characters in the series. Much of the comedy of the series centres on Brent's many idiosyncrasies, hypocrisies, self-delusions, and self-promotion.