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'Parliament is no Fawlty Towers'Western Morning NewsMPs who employ family members are treating Parliament like Fawlty Towers, independent campaigner Martin Bell warns today. In The Saturday Interview, ... |
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Set in a 1970s Torquay hotel, Fawlty Towers is one of the finest farcical situation comedies British television has ever seen.
The first series, comprising of six episodes, was originally broadcast on BBC2 between 19th September and 24th October 1975.
The second series was broadcast four years later with the first five episodes shown between 19th February and 26th March 1979. The twelfth and final episode was broadcast later that year on the 25th October.
The concept for Fawlty Towers was born in the Gleneagles Hotel on Tuesday 12th May 1971. The Monty Python's Flying Circus team were staying at the Torbay hotel, whilst filming. The hotelier at that time was a man of infinite rudeness, called Donald Sinclair. |
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The team's encounters with their rude host were to become infamous - Sinclair's complaints regarding Terry Gilliam's table manners (using a knife and fork to cut his food then switching the fork into his right hand to eat it). He allegedly told Gilliam that "we don't eat like that in this country". There was also a case of mistaken identity with Eric Idle's bag. Idle left his bag by the front door of the hotel.
When he returned later that day he could not find it. Idle asked Sinclair if he had seen the missing bag, Sinclairresponded that it was over the other side of the garden wall. When questioned why it had been put over the wall, Sinclair explained that they thought it might have been a bomb as they had "had some problems with the staff recently".
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With the exception of John Cleese, the Python team decided to move to the friendlier Imperial Hotel. Cleese chose to stay on at the Gleneagles, fascinated by Sinclair and his rabid dislike of guests. Cleese even invited his wife, the actress Connie Booth to stay with him, where the pair of them observed Sinclair's erratic behaviour.
When Cleese decided to leave Monty Python after three years, the BBC were eager to sign him up for his own series. Cleese approached Jimmy Gilbert, the Head of Light Entertainment at the BBC, with the notion of writing something with Connie to which Gilbert agreed. Cleese and Booth decided to draw upon their experiences at the Gleneagles, and Fawlty Towers was created.
In the beginning the dialogue for Basil and Manuel was written by Cleese, whilst Booth wrote the female characters. As time went on they gradually began to combine their work, eventually ending up writing all the dialogue together.
Whilst the majority of the scenes were filmed in the BBC studios, the building used for the exterior of 'Fawlty Towers' was the Wooburn Grange Country Club in Bourne End, Buckinghamshire. Sadly, the original building was later destroyed by fire, and the Country Club has subsequently been demolished. |
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The first episode of Fawlty Towers entitled "Touch of Class' was broadcast on BBC2 at 9pm on Friday 19th September 1975. Although Fawlty Towers is now considered one of the greatest sitcoms of all time, the initial reactions received from the press and public were mediocre. In fact none of the episodes made it into the top ten viewing figures.
Fawlty Towers remains as popular today as it has ever been
with the series still enjoying endless repeats on television,
which is quite a feat
considering there were
only ever 12 episodes
made. Its magic formula is
a winning combination of
fantastic writing, comedy
timing and flamboyant
characterisation. |
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