Fawlty Towers
8.8100%93%8.3
Inept and manic English hotel owner and manager, Basil Fawlty, isn't cut out for his job. He's intolerant, rude and paranoid. All hell frequently breaks loose as Basil tries to run the hotel, constantly under verbal attack (and sometime physical) from his unhelpful wife Sybil, and hindered by the incompetent, but easy target, Manuel, their Spanish waiter.
Richard reviewed
26 October 2025•
Saw it on TV as a kid and it felt like British comedy had been weaponized into pure chaos, sarcasm and slapstick.
John Cleese’s Basil Fawlty is the hotel manager from hell: rude, neurotic and constantly sabotaged by his own incompetence.
Whether he’s insulting guests, dodging inspectors, or sparring with his wife Sybil and the hapless waiter Manuel, every episode is a masterclass in escalating absurdity.
The tone? Sharp, fast and gloriously unhinged. The cast: Prunella Scales, Andrew Sachs, Connie Booth, deliver pitch perfect performances and the writing is so tight it squeaks. Each of the 12 episodes is a gem… unless you were watching in Germany.
Because here’s the twist: for decades, German TV only aired 11 of the 12 episodes.
The infamous “The Germans”, with Basil’s manic “Don’t mention the war!” routine, was withheld due to concerns over WWII references and cultural sensitivity.
It wasn’t until much later that the episode was finally released, giving German fans the missing piece of the puzzle.
Richard reviewed
26 October 2025•
Saw it on TV as a kid and it felt like British comedy had been weaponized into pure chaos, sarcasm and slapstick.
John Cleese’s Basil Fawlty is the hotel manager from hell: rude, neurotic and constantly sabotaged by his own incompetence.
Whether he’s insulting guests, dodging inspectors, or sparring with his wife Sybil and the hapless waiter Manuel, every episode is a masterclass in escalating absurdity.
The tone? Sharp, fast and gloriously unhinged. The cast: Prunella Scales, Andrew Sachs, Connie Booth, deliver pitch perfect performances and the writing is so tight it squeaks. Each of the 12 episodes is a gem… unless you were watching in Germany.
Because here’s the twist: for decades, German TV only aired 11 of the 12 episodes.
The infamous “The Germans”, with Basil’s manic “Don’t mention the war!” routine, was withheld due to concerns over WWII references and cultural sensitivity.
It wasn’t until much later that the episode was finally released, giving German fans the missing piece of the puzzle.
