"Fawlty Towers" (1975)TV series 1975-1979

Seasons:

1 | 2

Release Date:

19 September 1975 (UK)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Hotel owner Basil Fawlty's incompetence, short fuse, and arrogance form a combination that ensures accidents and trouble are never far away.

Plot Keywords:

English | Waiter | Hotel | Torquay | South West England

Awards:

4 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

John Cleese	...	Basil Fawlty (12 episodes, 1975-1979)
Prunella Scales	...	Sybil Fawlty (12 episodes, 1975-1979)
Andrew Sachs	...	Manuel (12 episodes, 1975-1979)
Connie Booth	...	Polly Shearman (12 episodes, 1975-1979)
Ballard Berkeley	...	Major Gowen (12 episodes, 1975-1979)
Gilly Flower	...	Miss Abitha Tibbs (12 episodes, 1975-1979)
Renee Roberts	...	Miss Ursula Gatsby (12 episodes, 1975-1979)
Brian Hall	...	Terry (6 episodes, 1979)

Runtime:

30 min (12 episodes)

Country:

UK

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:PG | Norway:5 (video rating) | Argentina:Atp | Finland:K-3 (2003) | Australia:PG (DVD rating) | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

294 Preston Road, Harrow, Middlesex, England, UK

Company:

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Trivia:

Basil Fawlty was based on a Mr Sinclair, a genuine, Torquay-based hotelier John Cleese met whilst filming on location with the Monty Python team. Mr. Sinclair's irascible antics included: berating Terry Gilliam for eating his meals in "too American" a way; throwing Eric Idle's briefcase over a wall because of a "bomb scare" (the scare was that Idle left the briefcase in the reception area); after Graham Chapman requested an omelet made with three eggs, Sinclair brought him an omelet with three fried eggs perched on top. When asked by Cleese to call for a taxi, he argued with Cleese and took his time calling for the cab.

Goofs:

Continuity: The room numbers in the hotel frequently changed from episode to episode.

Quotes:

Mr. Arrad: Excuse me.
Basil Fawlty: Yes?
Mr. Arrad: Look, we've been waiting here for about half an hour now, I mean I gave the waiter our order...
Basil Fawlty: Oh, *him*. He's hopeless, isn't he?
Mr. Arrad: Yes, well I don't wish to complain, but when he does bring something he's got it wrong.
Basil Fawlty: You think I don't know? I mean, you only have to eat here. We have to live with it. I had to pay his fare all the way from Barcelona, but you can't get the staff you see. It's a nightmare.
Mrs. Arrad: You were supposed to be complaining to *him*.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Zomergasten: (#5.1)" (1992)

Soundtrack:

Fawlty Towers

This is what comedy is all about!

This is pure comedy. It is genius. It is hilarity that transcends the boundary of comedy. Fawlty Towers is the kind of comedy that has you on the floor gasping for air in a puddle of your own tears. John Cleese has created one of the defining characters of comedy in Basil Fawlty. Manuel Sachs is superb as Manuel, the confused waiter from Barcelona. Prunella Scales is brilliant as the tyrannical wife. Connie Booth is very good as Polly, the hassled waitress. Put it all together inside a small hotel in Torquay and you get one of the greatest, most alluring comedies ever to grace the screen. The only bad thing about Fawlty Towers is that they didn't make more.

Fawlty Towers will always be tearfully, heart stoppingly, deadly, and disasterously funny.