Fawlty Towers

Fawlty Towers

Series title card. The "Fawlty Towers" sign varied between episodes – only one version appeared in two episodes, and one episode did not feature this sign at all.
Genre Sitcom
Created by John Cleese
Connie Booth
Written by John Cleese
Connie Booth
Directed by John Howard Davies
Bob Spiers
Starring John Cleese
Prunella Scales
Andrew Sachs
Connie Booth
Theme music composer Dennis Wilson
Opening theme Fawlty Towers
Ending theme Fawlty Towers
Country of origin United Kingdom
Original language(s) English
No. of series 2
No. of episodes 12 (list of episodes)
Production
Location(s) BBC Television Centre
Running time 28–36 minutes
Production company(s) BBC
Distributor BBC Worldwide
Release
Original network BBC2
Original release 19 September 1975 – 25 October 1979

Fawlty Towers is a BBC television sitcom that was first broadcast on BBC2 in 1975 and 1979. Only 12 episodes were made (two series, each of six episodes). The show was written by John Cleese and Connie Booth, who both also starred in the show; they were married at the time of series 1 but divorced before recording series 2.

The series is set in Fawlty Towers, a fictional hotel in the seaside town of Torquay, on the "English Riviera". The plots centre on tense, rude and put-upon owner Basil Fawlty (Cleese), his bossy wife Sybil (Prunella Scales), comparatively normal chambermaid Polly (Booth), and hapless Spanish waiter Manuel (Andrew Sachs), showing their attempts to run the hotel amidst farcical situations and an array of demanding and eccentric guests.

In a list drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000, voted by industry professionals, Fawlty Towers was named the best British television series of all time.[1][2]

Origins

The Gleneagles Hotel, Torquay, in 2009

In May 1970 the Monty Python team stayed at the Gleneagles Hotel (which is referred to in "The Builders" episode) in Torquay whilst filming on location.[3] John Cleese became fascinated with the behaviour of the owner, Donald Sinclair, whom Cleese later described as "the rudest man I've ever come across in my life." [4] This behaviour included Sinclair throwing a timetable at a guest who asked when the next bus to town would arrive; and placing Eric Idle's briefcase (put to one side by Idle while waiting for a car with Cleese) behind a wall in the garden on the suspicion that it contained a bomb (Sinclair explained his actions by claiming the hotel had 'staff problems').[5] He also criticised the American-born Terry Gilliam's table manners for not being "British" (that is, he switched hands with his fork whilst eating). Cleese and Booth stayed on at the hotel after filming, furthering their research of the hotel owner. Cleese later played a hotel owner called Donald Sinclair in the 2001 movie Rat Race.

At the time, Cleese was a writer on the 1970s British TV sitcom Doctor in the House for London Weekend Television. An early prototype of the character that became known as Basil Fawlty was developed in an episode ("No Ill Feeling") of the third Doctor series (titled Doctor at Large). In this edition, the main character checks into a small town hotel, his very presence seemingly winding up the aggressive and incompetent manager (played by Timothy Bateson) with a domineering wife. The show was broadcast on 30 May 1971.[6] Cleese parodied the contrast between organisational dogma and sensitive customer service in many personnel training videotapes issued with a serious purpose by his company, Video Arts.

Cleese said in 2008 that the first Fawlty Towers script, written with then-wife Connie Booth, was rejected by the BBC. At a 30th-anniversary event honouring the show, Cleese said,

"Connie and I wrote that first episode and we sent it in to Jimmy Gilbert," the executive "whose job it was to assess the quality of the writing said, and I can quote [his note to me] fairly accurately, 'This is full of clichéd situations and stereotypical characters and I cannot see it as being anything other than a disaster.' And Jimmy himself said, 'You're going to have to get them out of the hotel, John, you can't do the whole thing in the hotel.' Whereas, of course, it's in the hotel that the whole pressure cooker builds up."[7]

Cleese was paid £6,000 for 43 weeks' work and supplemented his income by appearing in television advertisements.[7][8]

Bill Cotton, the BBC's Head of Light Entertainment in the mid-1970s, said after the first series was produced that the show was a prime example of the BBC's relaxed attitude to trying new entertainment formats and encouraging new ideas. He said that when he read the first scripts he could see nothing funny in them but trusting that Cleese knew what he was doing, he gave the go-ahead. He said that the commercial channels, with their emphasis on audience ratings, would never have let the programme get to the production stage on the basis of the scripts.

Production

Although the series is set in Torquay in Devon, no part of it was shot in south west England. For the exterior filming, the Wooburn Grange Country Club in Buckinghamshire was used instead of a hotel.[9][10] In several episodes of the series (notably "The Kipper and the Corpse", "The Anniversary" and "Basil the Rat") the entrance gate at the bottom of the drive states the real name of the location. This listed building later served as a nightclub named "Basil's" for a short time after the series ended before being destroyed by a fire in March 1991.[11][12] The remnants of the building were demolished and a housing estate was built on the site.[13] Other location filming was done mostly around Harrow, notably the 'damn good thrashing' scene in "Gourmet Night" where Basil loses his temper and attacks his car with a tree branch which was filmed at the T-junction of Lapstone Gardens and Mentmore Close (51°34′52″N 0°18′33″W / 51.581103°N 0.309072°W / 51.581103; -0.309072).

In the episode "The Germans", the opening shot is of Northwick Park Hospital. In the episode "Gourmet Night", the exterior of Andre's restaurant was filmed on Preston Road in the Harrow area (51°34′24″N 0°17′40″W / 51.573393°N 0.294411°W / 51.573393; -0.294411). The launderette next door to the restaurant still exists today and Andre's is now a Chinese and Indian restaurant called "Wings".

Cleese and Booth were husband and wife at the time of the first series. By the second, they had been divorced for almost a year, having ended their ten-year marriage in 1978.[14]

Both Cleese and Booth were keen on every script being perfect, and some episodes took four months and required ten drafts until they were satisfied.[15]

The first series was produced and directed by John Howard Davies; the second was produced by Douglas Argent and directed by Bob Spiers.

The series theme music was written by Dennis Wilson and was inspired by Ludwig van Beethoven's Minuet in G major.

Plot directions and examples

The series focuses on the exploits and misadventures of short-fused hotelier Basil Fawlty and his wife Sybil, as well as their employees, porter and waiter Manuel, maid Polly, and (in the second series) chef Terry. The episodes typically revolve around Basil's efforts to succeed in 'raising the tone' of his hotel and his increasing frustration at the numerous complications and mistakes, both his own and those of others, which prevent him from doing so. Much of the humour comes from Basil's overly aggressive manner, engaging in angry but witty arguments with guests, staff and in particular his formidable wife, whom he addresses (in a faux-romantic way) with insults such as "that golfing puff adder", "my little piranha fish" and "my little nest of vipers". Despite this, he frequently feels intimidated, she being able to stop him in his tracks at any time, usually with a short, sharp cry of "Basil!" At the end of some episodes, Basil succeeds in annoying (or at least bemusing) the guests and frequently gets his comeuppance.

The plots are occasionally intricate and always farcical, involving coincidences, misunderstandings, cross-purposes and meetings both missed and accidental. The innuendo of the bedroom farce is sometimes present (often to the disgust of the socially conservative Basil) but it is his eccentricity, not his lust, that drives the plots. The events test what little patience Basil has to the breaking point, sometimes causing him to have a near total breakdown by the end of the episode.

The guests at the hotel are typically comic foils to Basil's anger and outbursts. Each episode's one-shot guest characters provide a different characteristic that he cannot stand (including promiscuity, or being working class or foreign). Requests both reasonable and impossible test his temper. Even the afflicted seem to annoy him, with the episode "Communication Problems" revolving around the havoc caused by the frequent misunderstandings between the staff and the hard-of-hearing Mrs Richards. By the end, Basil faints just at the mention of her name. This episode is typical of the show's careful weaving of humorous situations through comedy cross-talk. The show also uses mild black humour at times, notably when Basil is forced to hide a dead body and in Basil's comments about Sybil ("Did you ever see that film, How to Murder Your Wife? ... Awfully good. I saw it six times.") and to the guests ("May I suggest that you consider moving to a hotel closer to the sea? Or preferably in it.").

Basil's physical outbursts are primarily directed at the waiter Manuel, an emotional but largely innocent Spaniard whose confused English vocabulary causes him to make elementary mistakes. At times, Basil beats Manuel with a frying pan and smacks his forehead with a spoon. (The violence towards Manuel caused rare negative criticism of the show.) Sybil, on the other hand, is always condescending towards Manuel, excusing his behaviour to guests with "He's from Barcelona."

Basil often displays blatant snobbishness in order to climb the social ladder, frequently expressing disdain for the "riff-raff", "cretins" and "yobbos" that he believes to regularly populate his hotel. His desperation is readily apparent, as he makes increasingly hopeless manoeuvres and painful faux pas in trying to curry favour with those he perceives having superior social status. Yet, he finds himself forced to serve those individuals that are "beneath" him. As such, Basil's efforts tend to be counter-productive, with guests leaving the hotel in disgust and his marriage (and sanity) stretching to breaking point.

Characters

Cast of Fawlty Towers, left to right: (front) Prunella Scales, Connie Booth, and Andrew Sachs; (back) John Cleese

Basil Fawlty

Main article: Basil Fawlty

Basil Fawlty, played by John Cleese, is a snobbish and cynical misanthrope who is desperate to belong to a higher social class. He sees a successful hotel as a means of achieving this ("turn it into an establishment of class...") yet his job forces him to be pleasant to people he despises.

He is intimidated by his wife Sybil Fawlty. He yearns to stand up to her, but his plans frequently conflict with her demands. She is often verbally abusive (memorably describing him as "an ageing, brilliantined stick insect") but although he towers over her, he often finds himself on the receiving end of her temper, verbally and physically (as in "The Builders").

Basil usually turns to Manuel or Polly to help him with his schemes, while trying his best to keep Sybil from discovering them. However, Basil occasionally laments the time when there was passion in their relationship, now seemingly lost. Also, it appears that he still does care for her, and actively resists the flirtations of a French guest in one episode. The penultimate episode, "The Anniversary", is about his efforts to put together a surprise anniversary party, involving their closest friends. Things go wrong as Basil pretends the anniversary date doesn't remind him of anything though he pretends to have a stab at it by reeling off a list of random anniversaries, starting with the battle of Agincourt, for which he receives a slap from Sybil, who becomes increasingly frustrated and angry. He continues guessing even after Sybil is out of ear shot, and mentions other anniversaries (none of which happened on 17 April), including the battle of Trafalgar and Yom Kippur, just to enhance the surprise. Sybil believes he really has forgotten, and leaves in a huff. In an interview in the DVD box set, Cleese claims that this episode deliberately takes a slightly different tone from the others, fleshing out their otherwise inexplicable status as a couple (as well as saying that, if a third series had been made, there would have been similar episodes).

In keeping with the lack of explanation about the marriage, not much is revealed of the characters' back-stories. It is known that Basil served in the British Army and saw action in the Korean War, possibly as part of his National Service. (John Cleese was only 13 when the Korean War ended.) Basil exaggerates this period of his life, proclaiming to strangers: "I killed four men." To this Sybil jokes that "He was in the Catering Corps. He used to poison them." Basil is often seen wearing a military tie, and his moustache seems to betray an Army background. He also claims to have sustained a shrapnel injury to his leg; it tends to flare up at suspiciously convenient times. The only person Basil consistently exhibits patience and decent manners towards is old and senile Major Gowen, a veteran officer of one of the World Wars (which one is never specified) who permanently resides at the hotel. When interacting with Manuel, Basil displays a rudimentary ability with Spanish (Basil states that he "learned classical Spanish, not the strange dialect he [Manuel] seems to have picked up"); this ability is also ridiculed, as in the first episode where a guest, whom Basil has immediately dismissed as working-class, communicates fluently with Manuel in Spanish after Basil is unable to do so.

Cleese described Basil as thinking that "he could run a first-rate hotel if he didn't have all the guests getting in the way", and as being "an absolutely awful human being", but says that in comedy, if an awful person makes people laugh, people unaccountably feel affectionate toward him.[16] Indeed, he is not entirely unsympathetic. The "Hotel Inspectors" and "Gourmet Night" episodes feature guests who are shown to be deeply annoying with constant, and unreasonable demands. In "Gourmet Night", the chef gets drunk and is unable to cook dinner, leaving Basil to scramble in an attempt to salvage the evening. Much of the time, Basil is an unfortunate victim of circumstance.

Sybil Fawlty

Main article: Sybil Fawlty

Sybil Fawlty, played by Prunella Scales, is Basil's wife. Energetic and petite, she prefers a working wardrobe of tight skirt suits in shiny fabrics and sports a tower of permed hair augmented with hairpieces and wigs and necessitating the use of overnight curlers. She is often a more effective manager of the hotel, making sure Basil gets certain jobs done or stays out of the way when she is handling difficult guests. Despite this, she rarely participates directly in the running of the hotel; during busy check-in sessions or meal-times, while everyone else is busy working, she is frequently talking on the phone to one of her friends with her phrase "Oohhh, I knoooooooow", or chatting to customers. She has a distinctive conversational tone and braying laugh, which her husband compares to "someone machine-gunning a seal". Being his wife, she is the only regular character who refers to Basil by his first name. When she barks his name at him, he flinchingly freezes in his tracks.

Basil refers to her by a number of epithets, occasionally to her face, including "that golfing puff-adder", "the dragon", "toxic midget", "the sabre-toothed tart", "my little kommandant", "my little piranha fish", "my little nest of vipers", and "you rancorous, coiffured old sow". Despite these less than complimentary nicknames, Basil is terrified of her. There is only one time that he loses patience and snaps at her (Basil: "Shut up, I'm fed up." Sybil: "Oh you've done it now.").

Sybil and Basil Fawlty married on 17 April 1962 and opened their hotel in 1964. Prunella Scales speculated in an interview for The Complete Fawlty Towers DVD box set that Sybil married Basil because his origins were of a higher social class than hers.

Polly Sherman

Main article: Polly Sherman

Polly Sherman, played by Connie Booth, is a waitress and general helper at the hotel. She is the most competent of the hotel's staff and the voice of sanity during chaotic moments, but is frequently embroiled in ridiculous masquerades as she loyally attempts to aid Basil in trying to cover a mistake or keep something from Sybil.

In "The Anniversary" she snaps and refuses to help Basil out when he wants her to impersonate Sybil in semi-darkness in front of the Fawltys' friends, Basil having dug himself into a hole by claiming Sybil was ill instead of admitting that she had stormed out earlier. Polly only finally agrees on condition that he lends her money to purchase a car, which he has previously refused to do.

Polly is generally good-natured but sometimes shows her frustration, and has odd moments of malice. In "The Kipper and the Corpse", the pampered shih-tzu dog of an elderly guest bites Polly and Manuel. As revenge Polly laces the dog's sausages with black pepper and Tabasco sauce ("bangers a la bang"), making it ill.

Despite her part-time employment (during meal times), Polly is frequently saddled with many other duties, including manager in "The Germans" when Sybil and Basil are both incapacitated. In the first series Polly is said to be an art student who, according to Basil, has spent three years at university. In "Gourmet Night", she is seen to draw a sketch (presumably an impressionistic caricature) of Manuel, which everyone but Basil immediately recognises. Polly is not referred to as a student in the second series, although in both series she is shown to have a flair for languages, displaying ability in both Spanish and German. In "The Germans" Basil alludes to Polly's polyglot inclination by saying that she does her work "while learning two oriental languages". Like Manuel, she has a room of her own at the hotel.

Manuel

Manuel, a waiter played by Andrew Sachs, is a well-meaning but disorganised and confused Spaniard from Barcelona with a poor grasp of the English language and customs. He is verbally and physically abused by his boss. When told what to do, he often answers, "¿Qué?" ("What?"). Manuel's character is used to demonstrate Basil's instinctive lack of sensitivity and tolerance. Every episode involves Basil becoming enraged at Manuel's confusion at his boss's bizarre demands and even basic requests. Manuel is afraid of Fawlty's quick temper and violent assaults, yet often expresses his appreciation for being given employment. He is relentlessly enthusiastic and is proud of what little English he knows.

During the series, Sachs was twice seriously injured while playing Manuel. Cleese describes using a real metal pan to knock him unconscious in "The Wedding Party", although he would have preferred to use a rubber one. The original producer/director, John Howard Davies, explains that he made Basil use a metal one and that he was responsible for most of the violence on the show, which he felt was essential to the type of comical farce that they were creating. Later, when his clothes were treated to give off smoke after he escapes the burning kitchen in "The Germans", the corrosive chemicals ate through them and gave Sachs severe burns.[17]

Manuel's exaggerated Spanish accent is part of the humour of the show. The actor Andrew Sachs's original language is German; he emigrated to Britain as a child.[18]

The character's nationality was switched to Italian (and the name to Paolo) for the Spanish dub of the show, while in Catalonia Manuel is a Mexican.[19]

Other regular characters and themes

Guest characters

For more details on guest characters, see List of guest characters in Fawlty Towers.

Episodes

Series Episodes Originally aired DVD release date
Series premiere Series finale Region 1 Region 2
1 6 19 September 1975 24 October 1975 16 October 2001[28] 8 October 2001[29][30]
2 6 19 February 1979 25 October 1979

The first edition of Fawlty Towers was originally broadcast on 19 September 1975. The 12th and final show was first shown on 25 October 1979. The first series was directed by John Howard Davies, the second by Bob Spiers. Both series had their premieres on BBC2.

When originally transmitted, the individual episodes had no on-screen titles. The ones in common currency were first used for the VHS release of the series in the 1980s. There were working titles, such as "USA" for "Waldorf Salad", "Death" for "The Kipper and the Corpse", and "Rat" for "Basil the Rat", which have been printed in some programme guides. In addition, some of the early BBC audio releases of episodes on vinyl and cassette included other variations, such as "Mrs. Richards" and "The Rat" for "Communication Problems" and "Basil the Rat" respectively.

It has long been rumoured that a thirteenth episode of the series was written and filmed, but never progressed further than a rough cut.[31] Lars Holger Holm, author of the book Fawlty Towers: A Worshipper's Companion, has made detailed claims about the episode's content, but he provides no evidence of its existence and it is most likely a hoax or fan fiction.

On the subject of whether more episodes would be produced, Cleese revealed (in an interview for the complete DVD box set, which was republished in the book, Fawlty Towers Fully Booked) that he once had the genesis of a feature-length special – possibly sometime during the mid-1990s. The plot (which was never fleshed out beyond his initial idea) would have revolved around the chaos that a now-retired Basil typically caused as he and Sybil flew to Barcelona to visit their former employee Manuel and his family. Of the idea, Cleese said:

We had an idea for a plot which I loved. Basil was finally invited to Spain to meet Manuel's family. He gets to Heathrow and then spends about 14 frustrating hours waiting for the flight. Finally, on the plane, a terrorist pulls a gun and tries to hijack the thing. Basil is so angry he overcomes the terrorist and when the pilot says, "We have to fly back to Heathrow", Basil says, "No, fly us to Spain or I'll shoot you". He arrives in Spain, immediately arrested and spends the entire holiday in a Spanish jail. He is released just in time to go back on the plane with Sybil. It was very funny, but I couldn't do it at the time. Making Fawlty Towers work at 90 minutes was a very difficult proposition. You can build up the comedy for 30 minutes, but at that length there has to be a trough and another peak. It doesn't interest me. I don't want to do it.

Cleese may also have relented because of the lack of Connie Booth's involvement. She had practically retreated from public life after the show finished (and had been initially unwilling to collaborate on a second series, which explains the four-year gap between productions).

The decision by Cleese and Booth to quit before a third series has often been lauded, as it ensured the show's successful status wouldn't be weakened with later, lower-quality work. Subsequently, it has inspired the makers of other shows to do likewise. Most notably, Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant refused to make a third series of either The Office or Extras, citing Fawlty Towers' short lifespan. Rik Mayall, Ben Elton and Lise Mayer, the writers behind The Young Ones, which also ran for only two series (each with six episodes), used this explanation too. Victoria Wood also indicated this influenced her decision to limit Dinnerladies to just 16 episodes over two series.

The origins, background and eventual cancellation of the series would later be humorously referenced in The Secret Policeman's Third Ball in 1987, in a sketch where Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry present Cleese (who they comically misname "Jim Cleese") with a Dick Emery Lifetime Achievement Award ("Silver Dick") for his contributions to comedy, but then launch into a comical series of questions regarding the show, including Cleese's marriage and divorce from Booth, innocently ridiculing Cleese and reducing him to tears, to the point that he gets on his knees and crawls off the stage while crying.

Series 1 (1975)

Series No. Episode No. Title Sign reads Original air date
11"A Touch of Class"FAWLTY TOWERS (Crooked S)19 September 1975 (1975-09-19)

As Basil tries to raise the tone of the hotel, the aristocratic Lord Melbury comes to stay at the hotel. Basil fawns over him at every opportunity, causing himself to neglect or annoy other guests, until Polly discovers Melbury is actually a confidence trickster. Meanwhile, Sybil orders Basil to hang a picture.

Featuring: Michael Gwynn as Lord Melbury and Robin Ellis as Danny Brown.
12"The Builders"FAWLTY TOWER (Crooked L)26 September 1975 (1975-09-26)

Maintenance is made on the lobby while the Fawltys are out, but when a misreading causes the incompetent builders to mess it up spectacularly, Basil must try to remedy the situation before Sybil finds out.

Featuring: David Kelly as O'Reilly, Michael Cronin as Lurphy and James Appleby as Stubbs.
13"The Wedding Party"FAW TY TOWER (Crooked W)3 October 1975 (1975-10-03)

Basil gets annoyed when a young, flirtatious couple start "hanky-pankying" under his nose and tries to avoid the advances of a wealthy French antique dealer. Meanwhile, misfortune conspires to put him in compromising situations whenever the couple are around.

Featuring: Trevor Adams as Alan and Yvonne Gilan as Mrs. Peignoir.
14"The Hotel Inspectors"FAW TY TO ER10 October 1975 (1975-10-10)

When Basil hears of hotel inspectors roaming Torquay incognito, he realises with horror that guests he has been abusing could easily be among them. Basil becomes increasingly obsessed with trying to determine which guests are hotel inspectors, but his suspects turn out not to be, to his frustration.

Featuring: Bernard Cribbins and James Cossins play men who Basil thinks at first are hotel inspectors but turn out not to be; respectively, they are Mr. Hutchinson, a cutlery salesman who specializes in spoons, and Mr. Walt, an outboard motor salesman on business with two other outboard motor salesmen.
15"Gourmet Night"WA RTY TOWELS17 October 1975 (1975-10-17)

In an effort to climb another rung in the social ladder, Basil arranges a gourmet night. Unfortunately, thanks to the chef's alcoholism, Basil must try to get hold of a duck from his friend, André. This, combined with the Fawltys' faulty car and his social awkwardness leads Basil ever closer to a nervous breakdown.

Featuring: André Maranne as André, Allan Cuthbertson as Colonel Hall and Ann Way as Mrs. Hall.
16"The Germans"None[note 1]24 October 1975 (1975-10-24)

With Sybil in the hospital with an ingrowing toenail, a moose's head to hang up and some German guests arriving the next day, Basil has his work cut out for him. After an attempted fire drill goes wrong and Basil lands up in the hospital with concussion, he succeeds causing much offense to the German guests after finally escaping back to the hotel. This episode is the origin of the quote "Don't mention the war."

Featuring: Brenda Cowling as Sister.

Series 2 (1979)

The second series was transmitted three and a half years later, with the first episode being broadcast on 19 February 1979. In the second series the anagrams were created by Ian McClane, Bob Spier's assistant floor manager.

Series No. Episode No. Title Sign reads Original air date
21"Communication Problems"FAWLTY TOWER (Crooked L)[note 2]19 February 1979 (1979-02-19)

The arrival of the "guest from hell" — Mrs. Richards, a rather deaf, dotty and bad-tempered woman — interferes with Basil's attempts to prevent the money he won on a racehorse from being discovered by Sybil, who disapproves of gambling.

Featuring: Joan Sanderson as Mrs Richards.
22"The Psychiatrist"WATERY FOWLS26 February 1979 (1979-02-26)

A psychiatrist and his wife — also a doctor — come to the hotel for a weekend break, and cannot help but notice the eccentricities of their host, who is perturbed when he discovers their professions. A very attractive Australian girl (Luan Peters) also visits. She goes on to have certain awkward interactions with Fawlty as he seeks to catch Mr Johnson (Nicky Henson) with a non-paying guest that Johnson has in his bedroom.

Featuring: Basil Henson and Elspet Gray as Mr and Mrs Abbott, Nicky Henson as Mr Johnson and Luan Peters as Raylene Miles.
23"Waldorf Salad"FLAY OTTERS5 March 1979 (1979-03-05)

Basil is not altogether keen on a loud and demanding American guest who demands a higher class of service — and food — than Fawlty Towers is accustomed to providing. Basil soon learns that the American guest will not tolerate any shenanigans.

Featuring: Bruce Boa and Claire Nielson as Mr and Mrs Hamilton and Norman Bird as Mr Arrad.
24"The Kipper and the Corpse"FATTY OWLS12 March 1979 (1979-03-12)

A guest dies at the hotel and Basil and the staff are left with the unpleasant task of removing the body discreetly, while the doctor staying at the hotel, Dr. Price, waits for his sausages. Also, Polly and Manuel feed an elderly woman's pampered pet dog some extra spicy sausages after it bites them both.

Featuring: Geoffrey Palmer as Dr Price, Derek Royle as Mr Leeman, Mavis Pugh as Mrs. Chase and Richard Davies as Mr White.
25"The Anniversary"FLOWERY TWATS26 March 1979 (1979-03-26)

Basil invites some friends for a surprise wedding anniversary party, but Sybil assumes he has forgotten their anniversary and storms off, leaving her husband and Polly, in disguise, desperately telling the others she is 'ill', while Manuel and Terry constantly quarrel over who will make the seafood paella which Basil had permitted Manuel to cook for the occasion.

Featuring: Ken Campbell as Roger and Una Stubbs as Alice.
26"Basil the Rat"FARTY TOWELS25 October 1979 (1979-10-25)

The local health inspector issues a long list of hygienic aberrations which the staff must immediately sort out, or else face closure. After Manuel's pet rat escapes from his cage and runs loose in the hotel, the staff must catch it before the inspector finds it first. At the same time, they must try and discern which veal cutlets are safe to eat after one covered in rat poison gets mixed up with the others and almost every subsequent guest orders veal.

Featuring: John Quarmby as the Health Inspector.

Reception

Critical reaction

The series was not held in as high esteem on its original broadcast as it later was. The Daily Mirror review of the show in 1975 had the headline "Long John Short On Jokes".[32] Eventually though, as the series began to gain popularity, critical acclaim soon followed. Clive James writing in The Observer said the second episode had him "retching with laughter".[33] By the time the series had ended, it was an overwhelming critical success.

One critic of the show was Richard Ingrams, then television reviewer for The Spectator. Cleese got his revenge by naming one of the guests in the second series 'Mr Ingrams', who is caught in his room with a blow-up doll.[34]

In an interview for the "TV Characters" edition of Channel 4's 'talking heads' strand 100 Greatest (in which Basil placed second, between Homer Simpson and Edmund Blackadder), TV critic A. A. Gill theorised that the initially muted response may have been caused by Cleese seemingly ditching his label as a comic revolutionary – earned through his years with Monty Python – to do something more traditional.

In a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000, voted for by industry professionals, Fawlty Towers was placed first. It was also voted fifth in the "Britain's Best Sitcom" poll in 2004,[35] and second only to Frasier in The Ultimate Sitcom poll of comedy writers in January 2006. Basil Fawlty came top of the Britain's Funniest Comedy Character poll, held by Five on 14 May 2006. In 1997, "The Germans" was ranked No. 12 on TV Guide's 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time.[36]

Awards

Three BAFTAs were awarded to people for their involvement with the series. Both of the series were awarded the BAFTA in the category "Best Situation Comedy", the first being won by John Howard Davies in 1976, and the second by Douglas Argent and Bob Spiers in 1980. John Cleese won the BAFTA for "Best Light Entertainment Performance" in 1976.[37]

Remakes and reunions

Four attempted remakes of Fawlty Towers were started for the American market, with three making it into production. The first, Chateau Snavely starring Harvey Korman and Betty White, was produced by ABC for a pilot in 1978, but the transfer from coastal hotel to highway motel proved too much and the series was never produced. The second, also by ABC, was Amanda's starring Bea Arthur, notable for switching the sexes of its 'Basil' and 'Sybil' equivalents. It also failed to pick up a major audience and was dropped.[38] A third remake called Payne (produced by and starring John Larroquette) was also produced, but was cancelled shortly after. A fourth remake titled Over the Top was made in 1997 starring Tim Curry and Annie Potts (with Steve Carell in an early-career role as the Manuel character).[39] Twelve episodes were produced, but only three ever aired on American television (though the complete run was broadcast overseas). A German pilot based on the sitcom was made in 2001, named Zum letzten Kliff, but further episodes were not made.

The popular sitcoms 3rd Rock from the Sun and Cheers (in both of which Cleese has appeared) have cited Fawlty Towers as an inspiration, especially regarding its depiction of a dysfunctional "family" in the workplace. Arthur Mathews and Graham Linehan have cited Fawlty Towers as a major influence on their sitcom Father Ted. Guest House on Pakistan's PTV also resembled the series.

Several of the characters have made other appearances, as spin-offs or in small cameo roles. In 1981, in character as Manuel, Andrew Sachs recorded his own version of the Joe Dolce cod-Italian song "Shaddap You Face" (with the B-side "Waiter, There's a Spanish Flea in My Soup"). However, the record was not released after Joe Dolce took out an injunction; he was about to issue his version in Britain.[40] Sachs also portrayed Manuel (or a Manuel-like character) in a series of British TV advertisements for life insurance. Gilly Flower and Renee Roberts, who played Miss Tibbs and Miss Gatsby in the series, reprised the roles in a 1983 episode of Only Fools and Horses.[41] In 2006, Cleese played Basil Fawlty for the first time in 27 years, for an unofficial England 2006 World Cup song, "Don't Mention the World Cup", taking its name from the phrase, "Don't mention the war", which Basil famously used in "The Germans".[42][43] In 2007, Cleese and Sachs reprised their roles for a six-episode corporate video for Norwegian oil company Statoil. In the video, Fawlty is running a restaurant called "Basil's Brasserie", while Manuel owns a Michelin Starred restaurant in London.[44] In the 2008 gala performance We Are Most Amused, Cleese breaks into character as Basil for a cameo appearance by Sachs as an elderly Manuel.

In November 2007, Prunella Scales returned to the role of Sybil Fawlty in a series of sketches for the BBC's annual Children in Need charity telethon. The character was seen taking over the management of the eponymous hotel from the BBC drama series Hotel Babylon, interacting with characters from that programme as well as other 1970s sitcom characters. The character of Sybil was used by permission of John Cleese.[45]

In 2007, the Los Angeles Film School produced seven episodes of Fawlty Tower Oxnard, starring Robert Romanus as Basil Fawlty.[46]

In 2016 Cleese reprised his role as Basil Fawlty in a series of TV adverts for High Street optician chain Specsavers.[47]

Fawlty Towers: Re-Opened

In 2009, Tiger Aspect Productions produced a two-part documentary for digital comedy channel Gold, called Fawlty Towers: Re-Opened. The documentary features interviews with all four main cast members, including Connie Booth, who had refused to talk about the series for 30 years.[48][49] John Cleese confirmed at the 30-year reunion in May 2009 that they will never make another episode of the comedy because they are "too old and tired", and expectations would be too high.[50] In a television interview (shown in Australia on Seven Network and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation) on 7 May 2009, Cleese also commented that he and Connie Booth took six weeks to write each episode.[51][52]

Overseas

In 1977 and 1978 alone, it was sold to 45 stations in 17 countries and was the BBC's best selling overseas programme for that year. Fawlty Towers became a huge success in almost all countries where it was aired. Although it was initially a flop in Spain, because of the portrayal of the Spanish waiter Manuel, it was successfully resold, with Manuel's nationality changed to Italian.[15] In the Catalan region of Spain, however, Manuel was Mexican.[40] To show how badly it translated, Clive James picked up a clip containing Manuel's "¿Qué?" phrase to show on Clive James on Television in 1982. The series was also briefly broadcast in Italy in the 90s on the satellite channel Canal Jimmy, in the original English with Italian subtitles.

In Australia the show was originally broadcast on ABC Television. The first series in 1977 and the second series in 1980. The show was then sold to the Seven Network where it has been repeated numerous times. Today the show is repeated on Seven's digital channel 7TWO.

The series is still shown in the United States on at least two PBS member stations. Maryland Public Television, which covers the state of the same name and the surrounding area, airs all episodes in order on Tuesday afternoons (4:00 pm ET) and Saturday nights (11:00 pm ET), along with other BBC sitcoms, and East Tennessee PBS channels WETP and WKOP show one episode a week on Saturday nights (9:30 pm ET).[53]

Home video releases

Fawlty Towers was originally released by BBC Video in 1984, with 3 episodes on each of 4 tapes. Each tape was edited with the credits from all three episodes put at the end of the tape.

A Laserdisc containing all episodes spliced together as a continuous episode was released in the US on 23 June 1993.

It was re-released in 1995 unedited and digitally remastered. It was re-released in 1998 with a special interview with John Cleese. Fawlty Towers – The complete series was released on DVD on 16 October 2001, available in regions 1, 2 and 4. A "Collector's Edition" is available in region 2.

Series one of the show was released on UMD Video for PSP.

In July 2009, BBC America announced a DVD re-release of the Fawlty Towers series. The DVD set was released on 20 October 2009. The reissue, titled Fawlty Towers Remastered: Special Edition, contains commentary by John Cleese on every episode as well as remastered video and audio.

All episodes were also available as streamed video-on-demand via Netflix and Amazon Instant Videos. Both series are also available for download on iTunes.

Australian releases

Notes

  1. ↑ This is the only episode of the twelve that does not feature the hotel as the backdrop for the titles. Footage of the Northwick Park Hospital in Brent was used instead, hence the sign is not shown.
  2. ↑ This is the same opening shot as in episode 2, "The Builders", from Series 1.

References

  1. ↑ "Fawlty Towers". British Film Institute. The BFI TV 100. c. 2000. Archived from the original on 5 December 2003. Number 1 in the TV 100
  2. ↑ "The best British TV ever". The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group Limited. 10 March 2010. Retrieved 21 January 2016. And at number one is, of course, Fawlty Towers.
  3. ↑ Palin, Michael; Diaries 1969–1979: The Python Years; p24; 2007, Weidenfeld & Nicholson
  4. ↑ In an interview in Parkinson (chat show), BBC 1 (2001).
  5. ↑ Cleese Interview; 'Fawlty Towers: Reopened'; 2009
  6. ↑ BBC Comedy Guide Doctor At Large. Retrieved 24 February 2007. Archived 24 June 2006 at the Wayback Machine.
  7. 1 2 "John Cleese: BBC rejected first episode of Fawlty Towers" The Times / TimesOnline, 6 May 2009
  8. ↑ "John Cleese recalls golden age of 'Fawlty Towers'" Newsvine / Newsvine, 6 May 2009
  9. ↑ Gubler, Fritz (2008). Waldorf hysteria: hotel manners, misbehaviour & minibars. Great, Grand & Famous Hotels. ISBN 0-9804667-1-7.
  10. ↑ McCann, Graham (2007). Fawlty Towers: the story of the sitcom. Hodder & Stoughton. p. 84. ISBN 0-340-89811-9.
  11. ↑ "Sybil to return to Fawlty Towers". BBC News. 9 August 2006.
  12. ↑ "Fawlty star's red carpet welcome". BBC News. 18 September 2006.
  13. ↑ Photographs of fire at Fawltysite.net. Retrieved 14 June 2006. Archived 19 May 2006 at the Wayback Machine.
  14. ↑ Britain's Best Sitcom – The case for Fawlty Towers, BBC Documentary presented by Jack Dee, broadcast 24 January 2004
  15. 1 2 Goddard, Peter. "FAWLTY TOWERS: British Situation Comedy". Museum of Broadcast Communications. Retrieved 8 August 2009.
  16. ↑ An Interview with John Cleese, DVD Special Programs, 2001
  17. ↑ John Cleese, VHS or DVD cast interview, 1998
  18. ↑ "Variety Club – Jewish Chronicle colour supplement "350 years"". The Jewish Chronicle. 15 December 2006. pp. 28–29.
  19. ↑ Reviewed by David Gómez Tato, 9 01 2005. Retrieved 19 June 2008.
  20. ↑ McCann (2007) p.204
  21. 1 2 Slide, Anthony (1996). Some Joe you don't know: an American biographical guide to 100 British television personalities. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 21. ISBN 0-313-29550-6.
  22. 1 2 Terrace, Vincent (1985). Encyclopedia of Television Series, Pilots and Specials: 1974–1984. VNR AG. p. 141. ISBN 0-918432-61-8.
  23. ↑ Bayha, Marlies (2009). Extras und Co- Die Faszination der Groteske: Eine Untersuchung der komödiantischen Sch(m)erzgrenze in der britischen Fernsehserie. GRIN Verlag. p. 20. ISBN 3-640-43074-3.
  24. ↑ Foster, Paul (19 September 1975). "The war of the channel chuckles". Evening Times. p. 8.
  25. ↑ Ross, Robert (1999). Monty Python encyclopedia. TV Books. pp. 63, 70. ISBN 1-57500-036-9.
  26. ↑ Grewe, Alexander. "I'm sick to death with you..." or External Character Conflicts in Fawlty Towers. grin.com. doi:10.3239/9783638428859. ISBN 978-3-638-42885-9.
  27. ↑ This is revealed at the beginning of "The Psychiatrist" episode in the second series.
  28. ↑ "Fawlty Towers – The Complete Series (1975)". Amazon.com. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
  29. ↑ "Fawlty Towers – Series 1 (1975) (DVD)". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
  30. ↑ "Fawlty Towers – Series 2 (1979) (DVD) (1975)". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
  31. ↑ "fawltysite.net – Thirteenth Episode". 2004. Archived from the original on 3 April 2007.
  32. ↑ "Awards and audiences for Fawlty Towers". Fawltysite.net. Archived from the original on 11 February 2008. Retrieved 29 February 2008.
  33. ↑ James, Clive (1981) [12 October 1975]. "Very Peter Hall". Visions Before Midnight (11 September 1981 ed.). Picador (published 1977). ISBN 978-0-330-26464-8.
  34. ↑ Sinclair, McKay (10 November 2007). "How they built Fawlty Towers". London: Fawltysite.net. Retrieved 29 February 2008.
  35. ↑ Britain's Best Sitcom Top 10. Retrieved 4 June 2009.
  36. ↑ "Special Collector's Issue: 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time". TV Guide (28 June – 4 July). 1997.
  37. ↑ List of awards at IMDb. Retrieved 14 June 2006.
  38. ↑ Fawlty Towers at the BBC Guide to comedy. Retrieved 14 June 2006.
  39. ↑ "Steve Carell Biography". Tribute.ca. Tribute Entertainment Media Group. Retrieved 18 July 2014.
  40. 1 2 |url=http://www.fawltysite.net/manuel.htm |date=20061210143957 |df=y Fawltysite.net Archive copy at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 13 December 2006. Archived 10 December 2006 at the Wayback Machine.
  41. ↑ "Homesick" (1983) cast list at IMDb. Retrieved 1 September 2006.
  42. ↑ Article about the song by Adam Sherwin in The Times, 15 May 2006
  43. ↑ Don't Mention The World Cup. 31 May 2006. Retrieved 5 April 2016 – via YouTube.
  44. ↑ Basil's back, Chortle.co.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2007.
  45. ↑ "The Inside Story". Radio Times. Vol. 335 no. 4361. 10–13 November 2007. p. 126.
  46. ↑ "Fawlty Tower Oxnard (TV Series 2007–2008)". IMDb. Retrieved 5 April 2016.
  47. ↑ "John Cleese returns as Basil Fawlty in Specsavers ad". The Guardian. 6 January 2016. Retrieved 12 January 2016.
  48. ↑ Parker, Robin (23 March 2009). "Gold to reopen Fawlty Towers". Broadcastnow. Retrieved 23 March 2009.
  49. ↑ "Fawlty Towers was originally rejected by the BBC for being clichéd, reveals John Cleese at 30th anniversary reunion". Daily Mail. 6 May 2009. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
  50. ↑ "Cleese rules out return of Fawlty". BBC News. 6 May 2009. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
  51. ↑ "John Cleese ('Fawlty Towers: Re-Opened'". Digital Spy. 8 May 2009. Retrieved 9 May 2009.
  52. ↑ Deacon, Michael (6 May 2009). "Fawlty Towers: the classic sitcom the BBC didn’t want". The Telegraph (London). Retrieved 9 May 2009.
  53. ↑ "Fawlty Towers". MPT. Archived from the original on 6 November 2009. Retrieved 30 April 2010.

Further reading

External links

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