The Office is actually based on a British television show with the same name. Both shows have the same basic premise, the same documentary filming style, and similar characters and character dynamics. The two versions are definitely not identical, though. For instance, compare Dwight to his British counterpart, Gareth.
Gareth, played by Mackenzie Crook (AKA the one-eyed pirate in Pirates of the Caribbean), appears at first glance to be Dwight's British Equivalent. Gareth and Dwight are both brown-noser, they both try to exercise power that they don't actually have, they're both victims of constant pranks from their coworkers (ie, Gareth is always finding his stapler encased in Jello), and both are indisputably pathetic. However, they handle their patheticness in very different ways. While Gareth is somewhat soft-spoken, whiny, and portrays himself as a victim, Dwight completely over-compensates for how pathetic he is, pompously acting like he's always one step ahead of the people who repeatedly get the best of him. I much prefer watching Dwight get messed with because he's so deluded and because he deserves it a lot more than Gareth.
Mackenzie Crook as:
Gareth The one-eyed pirate Himself???!!!!??
I've only seen a few episodes of each version of The Office, and all in all, I prefer the American version. You just can't beat Steve Carrel. And even though it's a real novelty seeing the one-eyed pirate working in an office, I think I like Dwight better than Gareth.