If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Will someone tell Ciao!
If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Will someone tell Ciao!
Member since:29.07.2007
Reviews:207
Members who trust:103
Whenever there is a poll carried out to judge the best television comedy show since TV was invented you can always rely on Fawlty Towers to either be voted the best or at least the second best comedy of all time.
It is a remarkable achievement for a show that only ever had 12 episodes & which was slated by a senior BBC executive for being dull & uninspiring before it went on air. The first episode in 1975 had just over one million viewers at a time when we only had three TV channels to choose from. By the third episode the viewing figures had crept up past the three million mark & by the time the second series ran in 1979 viewing figures peaked to over 13 million. So what makes it so great? What makes this comedy show such a classic?
THE BASIC IDEA / STORY
Fawlty Towers was written by the ex Monty Python creator John Cleese & his then wife & actress Connie Booth. The whole idea was based on a visit to the Hotel Gleneagles in Torquay in May 1971 when John Cleese & the other members of the Month Python team were staying.
The owner of the hotel was Donald Sinclair who had a dislike to the hotel guests & was often very rude to them. He complained when he saw Terry Gilliam using a knife & fork to cut his food & then switch his fork to his right hand to eat, as an American it was regarded as quite normal but for the hotel owner it wasn’t. He remarked to Terry “we don’t eat like that in this country!”
On another occasion Eric Idle had left his brief case
in the reception area of the hotel, when he arrived back later that day he asked Sinclair if he had seen it. Sinclair told him it was sitting at the other side of the garden wall. When asked by Eric why it sitting over the wall, Sinclair informed him he thought there was a bomb in it, apparently he was having problems with the staff at the time.
The members of the Monty Python cast left the hotel for another local one but Cleese stayed on fascinated by Sinclair’s antics, he even invited his wife Connie to join him so that she could see how bad Sinclair really was.
After Cleese left Monty Python in 1974 he was asked to do another show for the BBC & the idea he got was based on Donald Sinclair & the Torquay hotel. The first episodes were all written by Cleese & his wife, Cleese would write the male parts & Connie the female parts, although in the end they shared the writing of the parts.
The main characters would be John Cleese as Basil Fawlty the hotel owner with Prunella Scales as his long suffering wife Sybil. Connie Booth would play Polly the waitress & Andrew Sachs would be Manuel the Spanish waiter from Barcelona who could hardly speak English. If he didn’t understand what you said to him, he would reply with a vacant look on his face & say “Keh!” Added to that was the Major, he was a little eccentric & a permanent guest along with two old ladies.
It was meant to be set in Torquay just like the original hotel but in actual fact some of the outside filming was carried out at Wooburn Country Club in Bourne End Buckinghamshire. Sadly after filming had been completed the building was damaged by fire & has since been demolished.
THE FIRST SERIES
The first series went out on BBC2 on Friday 19th September 1975 at 9pm & the press reviews at the time were rather mediocre. In fact none of the first episodes made into the top 10 programs at the time but by the time the last one was broadcast it had become very popular encouraging the BBC to repeat the whole series not long after.
The program won the British Academy Award for the Best Comedy Series in 1975 & in 1976 John Cleese won the Royal Television Society Award. By 1978 the series had been sold to 45 different TV companies in 17 different countries & there was a demand for another series.
However, John & Connie’s marriage had declined and they divorced in 1976 although they continued to write together to make the next six episodes which were broadcast in 1979.
During the making of the second series industrial disputes (common in the 1970s) prevented the last episode from being made with the other five. The first five were broadcast from 19th February 1979 with last one not going out until October 25th 1979.
THE SHOWS
Listed below are the basic details of the twelve shows all of which are featured in the complete boxed set now available.
DISCS ONE / FIRST SERIES
1: A TOUCH OF CLASS The very first episode features Lord Melbury arriving at the hotel & requiring a cheque cashed, Basil Fawlty is more than happy to help a Lord but that is when his problems just start.
2: THE BUILDERS The lobby of the hotel needs a facelift, Sybil wants a professional builder to do the work, Basil wants it done on the cheap which leads to a conflict of interest.
3: THE WEDDING PARTY Basil is outraged by an outbreak of promiscuity at the hotel when a wedding party arrive.
4: THE HOTEL INSPECTORS A classic episode when Basil hears that hotel inspectors are in town, just after he has been extremely rude to a guest who he then thinks is the hotel inspector!
5: GOURMET NIGHT Another classic episode best remembered for the old red Austin car getting a thrashing with a tree branch in the street by Basil. The episode features the local dignitaries attending a gourmet night at the hotel but the chef is unable to carry out his duties after getting plastered.
6: THE GERMANS One of the most famous episodes when Basil has German guests at the hotel & is determined to give them some ‘truths’ about their country.
DISC TWO / SECOND SERIES
7: COMMUNICATION PROBLEM A hilarious episode featuring Mrs Richards who is a little deaf & constantly complaining about the standards of the hotel. All this is leading Basil closer to a nervous breakdown.
8: THE PSYCHIATRIST A visiting psychiatrist & his wife find Basil’s antics fascinating.
9: WALDORF SALAD An American guest demands a meal after the chef has gone home & Basil is left to prepare the food, but it’s not exactly what the guest expected.
10: THE KIPPER & THE CORPSE One of the guests dies in the hotel room & Basil tries to hide the body from the other guests until it gets collected, not without problems.
11: THE ANNIVERSARY Basil pretends to forget about their 15th anniversary & has close friends coming round for a get together, unfortunately Sybil walks out leaving Basil in an award position.
12: BASIL THE RAT Manuel has what he thinks is a pet Siberian hamster but it’s actually a rat, Basil finds it the day a health & safety inspector is inspecting the hotel, a hilarious episode.
DISC THREE / EXTRAS
Disc three has exclusive interviews with John Cleese, Prunella Scales & Andrew Sachs along with some out takes & information on the Hotel Gleneagles in Torquay.
CONCLUSIONS
This is an excellent complete collection of the classic Fawlty Towers series & a must for any fan & it comes highly recommended. No matter how many times you watch it you are guaranteed to be laughing.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Comedy - Original Language: English - Classification: 12 years and over - Starring: Tessa Peake-Jones, Buster Merryfield, David Jason, Nicholas Lyndhurst
Comedy - Director: Richard Boden, Mandie Fletcher, Martin Shardlow - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Hugh Laurie, Miranda Richardson, Stephen Fry, Brian Blessed, Tim McInnerny, Tony Robinson, Rowan Atkinson
Often hailed as the greatest ever British sitcom,Fawlty Towersis closer to the more ... more
elaborate tradition of farce. Comprising two series made in 1975 and 1979, the total of just 12 episodes were painstakingly constructed by writers John Cleese and Conni...
Postage & Packaging: £1.24 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Often hailed as the greatest ever British sitcom,Fawlty Towersis closer to the more ... more
elaborate tradition of farce. Comprising two series made in 1975 and 1979, the total of just 12 episodes were painstakingly constructed by writers John Cleese and Conni...
Postage & Packaging: free Super Saver Delivery Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
Fawlty Towers remains a timeless example of comic writing acting and characterisation at ... more
its very best. This fantastic complete collection set features all 12 episodes from this classic series. Episodes titles: 1. A Touch of Class 2. The Builders 3...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
![The Complete Fawlty Towers [1975] [DVD]](http://picnica.ciao.com/uk/78514788.jpg "The Complete Fawlty Towers [1975] [DVD]")
exceptional by (3%):
very helpful by (97%):
