The Great British Sitcom: Fawlty Towers

[Mel O'Drama]

Bowler came to a quiet end yesterday. And just as I was getting into the swing of it. It's a less than dazzling end to the Fenn Street franchise, which began so powerfully.

Yesterday afternoon (and prior to the final two Bowler episodes) I watched the big screen version of Please Sir!, which was a far more fitting send off. I was expecting lots of gags from the series to be rehashed, so it was a little surprising to find almost entirely new material. In fact it played like an extended regular episode, with the usual "...:The Movie" gimmick of sending the characters to an unfamiliar setting.

Very enjoyable indeed, and that Cilla Black song is most certainly an earworm.

Since the film shows Bernard meeting Penny almost a year after the couple had married in the series, I'm curious if the film is non-canon or is set a year or two earlier, between Series Two and Three. I'd like to opt for the latter, though I may need to do a little airbrushing here and there with Penny's career.

These two months or so of Fenn Street goodness have been very absorbing. Undoubtedly the best era for me were the first three Please Sir! series, with the original gang, where the magic and chemistry were most potent.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

have you run across PK and Geoffrey Palmer in Executive Stress? Those two have that same easy chemistry and affection you see with ATGB, though in their characters' cases this comes from having been married for 25+ years and having five kids . It is also noteworthy because they recast Palmer with Peter Bowles half-way through, creating a very different dynamic even when the premise had not changed. It would have been an otherwise head-scratching recast had it not been for Bowles's famous pairing with Keith in To the Manor Born.

Executive Stress - much like The Good Life and Dad's Army - is a series I can remember watching very casually and very occasionally when it first aired. As I remember, I didn't enjoy the Peter Bowles episodes as much, though as you said there was the novelty of seeing Bowles and Keith working together once more.

It's a series I plan to revisit in the not too distant.

Well, it's the not too distant and I am revisiting Executive Stress.

Two episodes in, and there's not much to say other than each of the twenty minutes have felt like less than ten. So that has to be good!

 

[Daniel Avery]

Oh, goody!

The premise of the series (set up in the first two or three episodes) gives it a sort of serialized quality, since The Big Secret is hanging over their heads all the time in the first year or so. GP's Donald played the "constantly nervous/flustered" very well, especially as Anthea was trying to 'move in on him'. PK was her usual likeable self. I couldn't really tolerate Edgar (or the actor playing him, at least), since the fake-y American accent distracted me.

I still remember the scene where Caroline attempted to tell Donald about the (fabulous) job offer she'd received, while he acted dismissive and male-chauvinistic. He didn't value her past work as a book editor, so when he basically patted her on the head over "her new job", she cracked that she was "working the hardware counter at Woolie's"--and he believed her!

 

[Mel O'Drama]

The premise of the series (set up in the first two or three episodes) gives it a sort of serialized quality, since The Big Secret is hanging over their heads all the time in the first year or so.

The continuity between episodes has been a nice surprise. I'm loving the elements of forced deception with journeys to separate railway stations and a second phone line being installed (Caroline imitating a cat was really funny).

GP's Donald played the "constantly nervous/flustered" very well, especially as Anthea was trying to 'move in on him'.

Elizabeth Counsell was on Brush Strokes around this time with similar - albeit far less subtle - designs on the lead character.

I still remember the scene where Caroline attempted to tell Donald about the (fabulous) job offer she'd received, while he acted dismissive and male-chauvinistic. He didn't value her past work as a book editor, so when he basically patted her on the head over "her new job", she cracked that she was "working the hardware counter at Woolie's"--and he believed her!

Leading to her explaining irony and sarcasm. It works well because of the pairing of Penelope Keith's bluntness and Geoffrey Palmer's ability to seem as though his character's mind is constantly somewhere else.





Nice to see some location work, presumably in Buckinghamshire. And the glamour of TV makes the Rover SD1 look very appealing indeed. It sounds so quiet and there's the burr walnut and the sumptuous velour seats. And it was quite a decent car by this time (despite the troubled history). It's the perfect mobile setting for terribly British smalltalk.

 

[Daniel Avery]

One of the over-riding aspects of British sitcoms that I love is how often (and nonchalantly) they do location filming, even for things that could be accomplished in a studio. The Fairchilds' conversations in the car are indeed an important ingredient of the series, and if this were an American show you can guess they would do it in a studio with a projection screen to save a few pennies (and lose a lot of realism and style).

One other thing I forgot to mention before that I found amusing was Anthony, Edgar's glum assistant/henchman. The digs Caroline would make about him (calling him "The Grim Reaper", for instance) and his general inability to speak in sentences with more than three words made him one of those characters I kept an eye on. It looked like a fun part to play, getting under people's skins without saying much of anything---just adopting that resting bitch-face and making them uneasy.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Well, it's been at the back of my mind to drop by this thread and comment on fairly significant changes in the second series. But I've found the episodes just floating on by and last night I was surprised to find myself at series' end. And by that I mean the entire series.

Earlier on in this thread I commented that I struggled with the transition from Geoffrey Palmer to Peter Bowles back in the day. And it's been similar this time round. There's the different characterisation, of course. At risk of doing the actors a disservice, all three of the leads are always recognisable in their best-known roles, with shared traits or energy between all the characters they've played. That's part of the appeal. Penelope Keith's characters have the acidic dry wit, and that no-nonsense, sensible upper middle class thing going on. Geoffrey Palmer's characters are usually aloof, slightly scatty and a little pompous, with a hint of the underdog.

Peter Bowles, in particular, is always that slightly caddish, overly confident, charismatic, moustachioed charmer who is never short of a comeback. Even in, say, Lytton's Diary, which wasn't a sitcom, he was still infallibly Peter Bowles. Neville Lytton was Howard Booth was Archie Glover was Richard DeVere. You know what you're getting with Peter Bowles. And you know what you're getting with Geoffrey Palmer. And these are two different things.

So when Donald Fairchild transformed from a vague, bumbling worrier to someone who was crisp and precise it's a little jarring. I find it difficult to imagine Bowles's Donald worrying about being seen outside the railway station, for instance. If anything, he's now the more confidently laid back spouse.

In Executive Stress terms, I have a fondness for the Keith/Palmer pairing of the first series over and above the Keith/Bowles pairing of the latter series. They worked well together and it created a unique and special tone for the series. I also found the insecurities within the relationship more believable and engaging. There were more subtleties to explore.

That's not to say I didn't enjoy the Peter Bowles episodes. As @Daniel Avery mentioned some pages ago, was an inspired bit of casting in terms of recreating a familiar energy with a new twist. To The Manor Born had been huge, and one episode remains the eighth most-watched TV programme of all time in the UK (excluding sports and news). If Geoffrey Palmer couldn't continue (and I'd love to know more about this), then why not get Peter Bowles. It's a novelty, but there's also a clear element of stunt casting, and that became distracting.

My biggest gripe with Peter Bowles's arrival was that it was at that pivotal time when the true nature of Caroline and Donald's relationship was being found out. It had boiled away for the entire first series, and on paper their Big Secret becoming public knowledge was huge. The problem was that I was still adjusting to the all-new, all-different Donald. And so this most important series of shocking revelations lost all its impact for me.

I also think the series lost a little something special once the secrecy was over. I loved all the cloak and dagger stuff of travelling separately and behaving strictly as co-workers at the office. Exploring the struggle of running a company together was also fun but had less mileage, I think. The two becoming a power-couple running the company together might have made for a better end point rather than happening somewhere in the middle. Although the advantage is that because it changed the dynamics on the series it creates a separation between Palmer and Bowles. For my sanity, I view the two Donalds as different characters anyway, so the series' raison d'être changing could be viewed as complementing the recast.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

I couldn't really tolerate Edgar (or the actor playing him, at least), since the fake-y American accent distracted me.

How about Edgar's twin brother?!

One of the over-riding aspects of British sitcoms that I love is how often (and nonchalantly) they do location filming, even for things that could be accomplished in a studio. The Fairchilds' conversations in the car are indeed an important ingredient of the series, and if this were an American show you can guess they would do it in a studio with a projection screen to save a few pennies (and lose a lot of realism and style).

It definitely adds a special something. Part of that crossing the "t"s and dotting the "i"s of which Caroline would no doubt approve. I often find studio-bound shows charming (Are You Being Served? springs to mind. It wouldn't have been any funnier if they'd thrown in a location shoot every once in a while). But there is a feeling of fakery to them, and a sense of absence. Those scenes in the Rover were very satisfying, even if just unconsciously.

On a kind of related note, I noticed the Fairchilds' Rover changed for each series. The second had an almost identical SD1, though with even more sumptuous-looking red velvet upholstery. The third series featured what must be one of the first 800 Fastbacks which, since it was produced through the late Nineties, makes the car-bound scene feel a little more contemporary to me.

One other thing I forgot to mention before that I found amusing was Anthony, Edgar's glum assistant/henchman. The digs Caroline would make about him (calling him "The Grim Reaper", for instance) and his general inability to speak in sentences with more than three words made him one of those characters I kept an eye on. It looked like a fun part to play, getting under people's skins without saying much of anything---just adopting that resting bitch-face and making them uneasy.

Did he have any dialogue at all? I just remember some a lot of whispered "psssst"s into Edgar's ear. In a later episode I noticed he did a very nice facial contortion to look as though he was speaking out of the side of his mouth, which felt very right for him.

I also enjoyed the very subtle Anglo-American tug of war with the pronunciation of Anthony's name. It was never alluded to in dialogue, but Edgar always used a theta for the "th" sound, while on the rare occasions his name was uttered by Caroline or other Brits, the "th" became a hard "t" , as is usual in the British pronunciation of the name.

 

[Mel O'Drama]

As I've nothing new lined up to watch, I've given myself a little breathing space with a re-watch of something small but perfectly formed...

It's quite some time since I last watched Fawlty Towers. Probably around a decade. It hasn't cropped up in this thread. Nor, as far as I can remember, did it form part of my viewing on the previous British Sitcom thread.

I'm not sure I'll have anything new to say about the series. Someone, somewhere might do so someday. But an awful lot has been written about this series over the years. Rightly so, I think. I was saying in the Golden Globes thread how off-putting it can be when a project or person is so acclaimed, and that I want to rebel against it. Fawlty Towers is different. Perhaps because it's been the sitcom benchmark for as long as I've had an awareness of the genre. And one of those reassuring constants. Looking back at my childhood, it feels like it was repeated on BBC2 every Sunday evening. Even though it probably wasn't.

It's difficult to imagine watching Fawlty Towers without a pre-existing awareness of Basil Fawlty, the lines and the awkward situations. Last night, while watching the first episode, I played a little game: trying to imagine I was one of those watching it during its very first airing. Seeing if I could be critical and objective. It's easier said than done, and within five minutes I was just letting the comforting familiarity wash over me. During those first five minutes a few things struck me.

Firstly, there's a really interesting juggling act going on between the broad and the subtle. The characters are all larger than life, eccentric caricatures. So's the delivery a lot of the time. But there are lots of tiny brush strokes in between the paint roller application. The long scenes, static camera shots and limited sets contrast nicely with the running back and forth and the machine gun delivery of dialogue. There seems to be a lot of dialogue per episode. Many of the setups are around things not happening: alarm calls aren't made; pictures aren't hung; drinks aren't served... This is nicely at odds with so much happening in each scene. My memory of the pattern is that each episode starts slow and builds the frustration and chaos to a frenzied ending. But watching the first two episodes last night, it felt fast paced from the first scene.

The appearances of the characters helps with the timelessness of the series. There's very little in there that says "1975". Yes, there's the Austin Maxi used in the location work, but in the confines of the set there's little to date this. In terms of wardrobe, the most Seventies thing was Mr Brown's gorgeous jacket.

It's a given, really, but I still marvel at just how unpleasant Basil and Sybil are. With each re-watch I seem to underestimate just how awful they are.

Great as the writing is, the delivery is everything. The line that made me laugh hardest of these first two episodes is an extremely innocuous one from Basil, but delivered by John Cleese to show such barely suppressed hatred wrapped in British phlegm. There was no mistaking his darkest hope when he told Sybil to: "Drive carefully, dear."

 

[Mel O'Drama]

Fawlty Towers has been a very pleasant surprise for me. I was expecting to happily while away a number of evenings with a few chortles at a fairly familiar old series.

I'm not a big laugher. I used to be, but seem to have grown into one of these terribly British "laughing on the inside" undemonstrative kind of people. And so it's taken me aback to find that Fawlty Towers has given me the works. Right down to tears streaming down my face.

The two biggest culprits have been The Hotel Inspectors and Gourmet Night in which each scene - each line, in fact - has been a gem.

The political incorrectness is exhilarating. The casual physical abuse is a case in point. And the equal opportunity disparagement. Be it gender, race, sexuality, ability or height. Nobody is left out. My favourite scenes of the entire series so far were those in Gourmet Night, in which Basil repeatedly put his foot in it regarding the diminutive Mrs Hall:

And then had to introduce Colonel Hall - who had an involuntary twitch - to a couple named "Twitchen" while trying to avoid using their actual name:

Allan Cuthbertson is the perfect straight man. Authoritative, uptight and completely humourless. He seems offended about something when he arrives and feels like he's persistently about to explode. Which adds to the delightful awkwardness. It creates Basil's own personal purgatory within his own territory. Joan Sanderson's hard of hearing battleaxe in the first episode of Series Two serves much the same purpose. None of us would want to be on the wrong side of these characters so we feel empathy for his situation while enjoying the schadenfreude that comes of seeing him dig a huge hole for himself.

And then there's the whole of The Germans. From Major Gowen's loud and casual categorisation of racial epithets to the whole association of Germans with Naziism to Basil's goose-step. It revels in its insular, fusty, stiff upper lipped backwardness. It encapsulates everything that's wrong with attitudes of the time. And it's ugly. But that's the entire point.

It saddens me slightly to learn that Major Gowen's racist slurs were removed from a 2013 re-run of the series on BBC. Not just because it messes with a form of art (which it does), but also because this form of censorship rewrites history somewhat. Yes - the script is of its time. It's dated. And the language is not acceptable in 21st Century Britain.

But, think about it. That language wasn't really acceptable in 1975. It just wasn't hidden from view. The whole point of it is that Gowen is an antiquated Blimp. His loud casual racism in the foyer is uncomfortable because it's unacceptable. That's why it's important. Nothing about the scene says that racism is acceptable. Quite the opposite. It reinforces just how ugly it is.

I just can't get on board with the attitude that removing ugliness from sight is helpful. Making something invisible risks empowering the thing you're trying to hide. It means people might look back at an idealised, airbrushed past and wonder what the big deal was. It risks creating a culture where people who didn't experience such a time know next to nothing about past attitudes or atrocities and care even less. I find Freddie Bentley's attitude towards World War II far more concerning and offensive than I do Basil Fawlty or Major Gowen's.

Another damaging element of this censorship is the hierarchy it creates. Who decides that slurs against West Indian people are more offensive than epithets used to describe Spanish people. I find them both offensive and would have something to say if I encountered someone using them in the way that these characters do. But I don't agree that any of them should be removed from a programme which has the context of the era in which it was made and the characters who are using it and and the situation in which it is used. The 1975 audience laughed at the idiocy and foolishness of the person using it. And the same is true 45 years later. So what's the problem?

I'm grateful that the DVDs are uncensored and give the audience credit for being able to understand the context and make up their own minds about it. We know it's not big. We know it's not clever. But we also know it exists. And that's truly empowering.

 

[Swami]

Absolutely, like John Cleese himself was at pains to point out. It is sad to think that Fawlty Towers simply wouldn't get off the ground today mainly due to political correctness, although also due to the fact that there simply isn't the creative talent out there either in terms of performers or writers.

The subtle difference between series 1 and series 2 is that series 1 tends to highlight Basil as being really awful, yet in season 2 Basil is confronted by horrid guests like Mrs Richards ad the audience ends up rooting for him. In the case of his battles with Mrs Richards, Basil aims some wonderfully inventive insults to take advantage of her rather selective hearing problems.

Swami

 

[Barbara Fan]

Saw the heading and had to join in,

The best ever comedy ever made or written and funny to this day

I have watched it so often I know the scripts off by heart and 2 friends and I still quote certain lines of it to this day

Most notably Well, may I ask what you expected to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window? Sydney Opera House, perhaps? The Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically...?

Listen, don’t mention the war! I mentioned it once, but I think I got away with it.


but Mother – well she’s got more of the deathforce really. She’s a worrier. She has these, well, morbid fears they are, really. Vans is one. Rats. Doorknobs. Birds. Heights. Open spaces. Confined spaces. It’s very difficult getting the space right for her really, you know. Footballs. Bicycles. Cows. And she’s always on about men following her, I don’t know what she thinks they’re going to do to her. Vomit on her, Basil says.

and Im going to give you a damn good thrashing (to his clapped out car)


Nearly but not all 12 episodes are classics and the casting and guest stars were spot on and He knew when to stop, when it was still funny and leaving us wanting more

I love john Cleese and Prunella Scales in this show, perfect casting and so was Andrew Sachs

I will still be watching my DVds in 20 years time

 

[Swami]

Saw the heading and had to join in,

The best ever comedy ever made or written and funny to this day

I have watched it so often I know the scripts off by heart and 2 friends and I still quote certain lines of it to this day

Most notably Well, may I ask what you expected to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window? Sydney Opera House, perhaps? The Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically...?

Listen, don’t mention the war! I mentioned it once, but I think I got away with it.


but Mother – well she’s got more of the deathforce really. She’s a worrier. She has these, well, morbid fears they are, really. Vans is one. Rats. Doorknobs. Birds. Heights. Open spaces. Confined spaces. It’s very difficult getting the space right for her really, you know. Footballs. Bicycles. Cows. And she’s always on about men following her, I don’t know what she thinks they’re going to do to her. Vomit on her, Basil says.

and Im going to give you a damn good thrashing (to his clapped out car)


Nearly but not all 12 episodes are classics and the casting and guest stars were spot on and He knew when to stop, when it was still funny and leaving us wanting more

I love john Cleese and Prunella Scales in this show, perfect casting and so was Andrew Sachs

I will still be watching my DVds in 20 years time

Very hard to pick a favourite episode, I can only narrow it down to three "Communication Problems", "The Kipper and The Corpse" and "Basil The Rat" but all 12 episodes brilliant in their own right.

Swami

 

[Mel O'Drama]

The subtle difference between series 1 and series 2 is that series 1 tends to highlight Basil as being really awful, yet in season 2 Basil is confronted by horrid guests like Mrs Richards ad the audience ends up rooting for him.

As I'm only one episode into Series Two I'll look out for the change in dynamic.

Saw the heading and had to join in,

Great to see you drop by, BF.

I know the scripts off by heart and 2 friends and I still quote certain lines of it to this day

Most notably

My goodness. You certainly do know your Fawlty. It is very quotable, and the funny lines come so thick and fast it's easy to see why it holds up to repeated viewings.

Nearly but not all 12 episodes are classics

So far there hasn't been one I haven't thoroughly enjoyed. For me it seemed to spring to life with the third episode, but that could partly be me adjusting to the rhythms of the series.

the casting and guest stars were spot on

Absolutely. All the guests really seem to "get" the tone of the series, and I can imagine there was a lot of trouble taken with choosing the perfect person for each role. Bernard Cribbins in The Hotel Inspectors was a treat.

 

[Swami]

Other favourite Basil lines including as he recovers from concussion in hospital "The Germans", as the nurse says he's getting the doctor, "You need a plastic surgeon, dear, not a doctor!".

One of many to Mrs Richards: "No, the radio works, you don't! I'll see if I can fix it you scabby old bat!" and downstairs in the office "Is this a piece of your brain?"

His waspish comments to Mr Johnson in "The Psychiatrist" were brilliant. When Mr Johnson asks if there is anywhere nearby that serves French food: "Yes, France, I believe, and the swim will certainly sharpen your appetite!"

Epic stuff, you could never tire of watching Fawlty Towers.

But there is an important point to make, for all the debates which rage about which is the best comedy, in my mind it isn't really fair to compare Fawlty Towers and Only Fools and Horses as they are very different forms of comedy. Fawlty Towers is very much farce-based, whilst Only Fools as it developed became a more rounded show, tacking issues that conventional comedies never really dealt with (for instance it dealt with Grandad's death on-screen),

I often think that the most direct shows in comparison to Fawlty Towers would be the like of Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em & Open All Hours (both having elements of farce) because others like Porridge, One Foot In The Grave blended genuine comedy with more serious moments.

In summary the brilliance of Fawlty Towers is best typified by the fact that it still makes millions of people laugh over 40 years later. The truly great comedy stands the test of time.

Swami

 

[Barbara Fan]

I think my top 3 episodes are

A touch of class with Lord Melbury as the confidence trickster

Basil tapping the bricks from the safe, and at the end asking the policeman Just One ! (as hed really like to give him a good kicking) and the man in the bar asking for A gin and orange, a scothc and soda etc just make me chuckle and also very nice to see the lovely Capt Poldark as the undercover policeman

The hotel inspectors also makes the top 3 with the classic ending of Bernard Cribbens *(just wonderful as the obnoxious salesman) getting sent on his merry way with a custard pie and cream in this briefcase and the arrival of What can i do for you 3 gentleman? and then the yell!!

Gourmet night is also an all time fav - Dont stand up, is she dead too? lashing the car with a tree branch, Ive laid it on the line speech and ending with Ducks Off!!

Also loved Sybil and co trying to enetertain the guests!!


A little titbit for you @Mel O'Drama

Allan Cuthbertson played the husband of Barbara Bel Geddes in Journey to the Unknown as a scientist who was trying to kill her, but the Computex/ computer they were both working on programmed itself to kill him!!!

 

[Barbara Fan]

PS its quite sad really, we still quote Fawlty Towers and an awful lot of Not the nine o clock news! If you werent around late 70s/early 80s you dont know what you missed!!

 

[Swami]

The only episode I have a minor criticism about is Waldorf Salad in that Basil doesn't really give as good as gets with Mr Hamilton - unlike with Mrs Richards or Mr Hutchinson.

At the same how, how can we forget "Basil The Rat"?

As the cheese and biscuits are handed round to the Health and Safety Inspector: "Would you care for rat?"

Swami

 

[Mel O'Drama]

but Mother – well she’s got more of the deathforce really. She’s a worrier. She has these, well, morbid fears they are, really. Vans is one. Rats. Doorknobs. Birds. Heights. Open spaces. Confined spaces. It’s very difficult getting the space right for her really, you know. Footballs. Bicycles. Cows. And she’s always on about men following her, I don’t know what she thinks they’re going to do to her. Vomit on her, Basil says.

I watched this episode last night and thought of you, BF.

Other favourite Basil lines

The "under the breath" comments are the ones that I find funniest. He has a great one after a phone call with Sybil who's in hospital to have an ingrowing toenail removed:

Wish it was an ingrowing tongue

I think my top 3 episodes are

Gourmet night

The hotel inspectors

These two are my current favourites. But I've still got two thirds of Series Two to enjoy so all may change.

Allan Cuthbertson played the husband of Barbara Bel Geddes in Journey to the Unknown as a scientist who was trying to kill her, but the Computex/ computer they were both working on programmed itself to kill him!!!

Wow.

 

[Barbara Fan]

I watched this episode last night and thought of you, BF.

Oh I love her suit in that episode, some of the clothes are so 1970s!! And the platform shoes

Think my least favs are the wedding party and the Anniversary - but that one did grow on me after a while

The Builders Ep 2 is a great one - loved the giant plastic gnome and if i have ever had a patient whose surname is O' Reilly i cant help but think of the Orelly men, you work!!

I might dust off the DVD once more but im binge watching Homeland once more before the final season!!

 

[Daniel Avery]

Pretty much says it all.