Welcome to the ‘Fawlty Towers’ page on ‘Bradley’s Basement’!
This is a fantastically brilliant and funny comedy TV series by John Cleese and Connie Booth.
‘Fawlty Towers’ is one of my favourite BBC TV comedies in the UK. It brings back cherished memories for me when I first saw it. I did my own version of ‘Fawlty Towers’ with Stephen, my best mate from school, when we were young. This is twelve episodes of superb BBC TV comedy that doesn’t fail!
I remember seeing ‘Fawlty Towers’ when my parents and I were first lent the original BBC VHS videos by my grandparents back in the 1990s. When DVDs came in the 2000s, there was one TV show I especially wanted to have on DVD and that was ‘Fawlty Towers’. My parents and I got Series 1 and 2 of ‘Fawlty Towers’ in one complete DVD box set with DVD special features in it.
The ‘Fawlty Towers’ DVD box set has been repackaged over the years, most recently in 2010, with remastered episodes. The 2010 DVD is a 3-disc set with Series 1 on Disc 1, Series 2 on Disc 2 and DVD special features on Disc 3. Here on ‘Bradley’s Basement’, I’ve added my reviews on the twelve episodes of the ‘Fawlty Towers’ TV series. I’ve also added my review on the Specsavers TV advert ‘Fawlty Car’.
‘Fawlty Towers’ is a classic TV comedy series that will be remembered for years to come. It’s also had its own legacy. I attended a special restaurant performance in Cardiff Bay called ‘The Fawlty Towers Dining Experience’ back in September 2015. I’ve also seen ‘Fawlty Towers’ performed on stage in Cardiff close to where I live, which I’ve really enjoyed seeing. ‘Fawlty Towers’ is something to enjoy when going on holiday and/or when staying at a nice hotel.
Just remember one thing! “Don’t mention the war!” 😀
Check out who’s who in the ‘Fawlty Towers’ TV series. Below is a list of the twelve episodes featured in the ‘Fawlty Towers’ TV series. Please feel free to check out, read and comment on my reviews on the ‘Fawlty Towers’ episodes by clicking on the links in the list below.
Enjoy! 🙂
MY ‘FAWLTY TOWERS’ REVIEWS
‘Fawlty Towers’ (TV Series)
- Series 1
- Series 2
- ‘Fawlty Car’ (Specsavers) (TV)
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Bradley's Basement 
Afternoon Tim.
I like what you’ve done with this page. I am also a big ‘Fawlty Towers’ fan. You will most likely have seen in that DVD/Blu-Ray/CD collection video that I made that I own the series on Blu-Ray. Despite its controversies, it’s usually a joy to view.
I have since seen many of the cast members of other things. I have seen Prunella Scales in a sitcom called ‘After Henry’ with Joan Sanderson. I have also seen John Cleese and Prunella Scales in a couple of ‘Monty Python’ films which is of course his other most well known work.
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Hi WF92.
Glad you like what I’ve done with my ‘Fawlty Towers’ page and that you’re a fan of the series. One of my ‘Doctor Who’ stories ‘The Space Hotel’ is based on ‘Fawlty Towers’. I saw John Cleese and Joan Sanderson recently in ‘The Great Muppet Caper’ on Disney+.
I hope to revisit ‘Fawlty Towers’ again soon both on Blu-ray and on audio when I stay at a hotel for a future holiday sometime soon.
Many thanks for your comments.
Tim. 🙂
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Because you mentioned ‘Fawlty Towers’ in one of your comments in our discussion last week, I thought I’d comment on this page with my thoughts on the show currently. If I’m honest, I’m not all that keen on the show anymore, but I will admit that it has been a little over a year since I last checked the show out.
My main issue with the show is that the humour is just too over-the-top and on-the-nose, and that’s not just the ‘Germans’ episode. And then there’s the relationship between Basil and Sybil. As terrible a hotel manager as Basil is, I find that Sybil can be really abusive to him a lot of the time.
But despite that, there are still some great moments in the show, and I appreciate that’s it well like, not just in the UK, but in other parts of the world as well. I just don’t find it to be all that great looking back on it, but that’s just me.
Xavier
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Hi Xavier,
Thanks for sharing your latest thoughts on ‘Fawlty Towers’. Sorry to hear you’re not keen on the TV show anymore. I still enjoy it whenever I see it on DVD and Google Play and I sometimes enjoy hearing it on audio with the soundtrack narrated by Andrew Sachs as Manuel.
I know the series been criticised quite lately, especially concerning the racial slurs featured in ‘The Germans’, but I appreciate what John Cleese was trying to get across about people being stuck in the past. I didn’t mind the racial slurs at the time when I first heard them uttered by either the Major or Basil himself, but I appreciate why it can be upsetting for people nowadays.
I was very disappointed when ‘Fawlty Towers’ was taken off Britbox and other streaming sites in the UK lately, since I enjoy the episodes very much. I still have the episodes to enjoy on DVD and Google Play, which I purchased quite a while ago. I’m keen to find out what the upcoming ‘Fawlty Towers’ sequel series by John Cleese and his daughter will be like. I know it won’t be as good as the original series and it probably won’t be the same without Sybil, Manuel and Polly, but I’m still intrigued to find out what the new series will be like.
I see where you’re coming from regarding Basil and Sybil’s relationship. I’m not sure how much of the relationship is fictionalised by John Cleese and Connie Booth, based on the Donald Sinclair and his wife relationship when he ran the Gleneagles Hotel in Torquay in the 1960s/70s which John Cleese and the ‘Monty Python’ crew visited. I suppose it depends on how much you want to view the events of the TV series as whether it would happen in real life or not as opposed to fiction, as there are bound to be relationships where husbands and wives are abusive to each other all the time. Sadly. not every relationship in the world is a happy one. In terms of the humour being over-the-top and on-the-nose, I’m never sure if that’s defined as being pure farce, but I enjoyed it when I saw the TV series on VHS back in the 1990s. I was a kid back then and probably didn’t know any better regarding how comedy was supposed to work with a balance of seriousness and light-heartedness, but I greatly enjoyed ‘Fawlty Towers’ whilst growing up and cherish fond memories from watching it. I wouldn’t want that to be taken away from me and I always look forward to revisiting the series when I can.
Many thanks for your comments.
Tim 🙂
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P.S. I just saw John Cleese when revisiting ‘City of Death’ on Blu-ray.
Hope you’re enjoying ‘The Thirteen+ Doctors – Part I’ so far. Looking forward to the upcoming ‘Doctor Who’ 60th anniversary specials in November, starting on the 25th.
Tim 🙂
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Hi Tim,
Thank you for your reply. I guess it’s down to how we interpret things. ‘The Brittas Empire’ handled farce comedy better in my opinion. I am hoping to rewatch that at some point, as well as watching Series 6 and 7 for the first time. Hopefully I’ll be able to buy the entire series on DVD. https://eurekavideo.co.uk/movie/the-brittas-empire-the-complete-brittas-empire-series-one-to-seven/
As for John Cleese, I enjoyed him ‘Monty Python’. Have you seen that, Tim? I’m not sure how the new ‘Fawlty Towers’ will work though.
Anyway, I’ve read the first chapter of ‘The Thirteen+ Doctors’. Once I’ve read a bit more, I’ll share my thoughts on it so far. I’m still writing up ‘Siroto’, as well as reviews on my blog, like of video games, including ‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ and ‘Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time’, as well reviewing episodes of ‘F-Zero: GP Legend’. And whilst I won’t be updating my review of ‘Arc of Infinity’, but I’m enjoying watching it on Blu-Ray. I’ve also enjoyed the ‘Messages from Space’ doc.
Xavier
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Hi Xavier,
Glad you’ve found the complete ‘Brittas Empire’ series via Eureka. It’ll be interesting to hear your thoughts on Series 6 and 7. I’ve not seen ‘Monty Python’ yet. I did see one episode once, although I found the comedy in that more OTT than in ‘Fawlty Towers’. Maybe I should check out the series properly to be proven wrong.
Glad you’re enjoying ‘The Thirteen+ Doctors’ so far. Hope you enjoy more of it and I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts on it. I hope to check out your upcoming reviews and ‘Siroto’ when they become available on your blog. I’m currently revisiting Season 17 of ‘Doctor Who’ on Blu-ray. I’m looking forward to checking out Season 20 on Blu-ray soon.
Many thanks,
Tim 🙂
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