Upon entering the theatre the curtain was up and the stage was set. Vivid memories of Fawlty Towers, the BBC TV series from 1975, came flooding back. Nearly 50 years since it was shown on TV, comedy legend John Cleese has adapted Fawlty Towers into a brand-new stage play, directed by Caroline Jay Ranger. Cleese has pulled together some of his favourite scenes and one-liners from TV show, Fawlty Towers into an entertaining comedy stage play. Writers of the TV series, Cleese and Connie Booth put together an innovative comedy series of just twelve episodes which are lauded as classic cult comedy today.
On stage it was set up displaying
the inside of the hotel; there was the hotel reception area, the stairway to the
upstairs bedrooms, the dining room and the upstairs bedroom above plus the
Fawlty Towers hotel sign and an illustration of the outside of the hotel in Torquay.
This production, penned by John
Cleese who was original character Basil from the TV series, compiles three of
the original TV episodes, The Hotel Inspector and The Germans from Series 1 and
Communication Problems from Series 2, into a two hour play and it works very
well and is thoroughly amusing. Parts of the script hark back to the 1970’s
when the cost of a hotel room was £7.20 and guests paid for them in cash and
would-be guests called the hotel and spoke to the Manager or the Owner to book
the room – how times have changed!
Danny Bayne (Basil Fawlty) takes
on the leading role with a challenging script, capturing Basil’s voice tone and
inflections and extreme mannerisms immaculately, almost perfectly, with proficiency
and skilfulness whilst adding his own snippets of characterisation which blend
well. He is tall and lean as Cleese once was and has all the attributes needed
for the role plus excellent comic timing. Mia Austen (Sybil Fawlty) plays her
part well capturing Sybil’s annoying laugh and consistent irritating nagging of
her husband, Basil. Her wig and attire bring plus facial expressions bring to
mind much-loved Prunella Scales who made the role her own.
Joanne Clifton plays Polly the
pleasant, unflappable hotel waitress helping to cover-up for Basil in many scenarios
and friend to waiter, Manuel (Hemi Yeroham) who re-enacts the part comically
with clever comic timing and energy.
The Major is portrayed by Paul
Nicholas, a much minor role, as the bumbling ex army soldier, expertly
commandeered; he was given a warm reception from the audience who no doubt
recalled his excellent portrayal of Vince in TV series, Just Good Friends.
Jemma Churchill plays the hard of
hearing complainer, Mrs Richards, a guest from hell, expertly, again her comic
timing is excellent and the whole cast show excellent camaraderie and work well
together doing a competent job that amused the audience throughout.
It was a full house and the
audience were of mixed ages, mostly I presume having wanted to see the show due
to their love of the TV series and on the whole, the production doesn’t miss
the mark. I guess having seen the
original TV series one may be somewhat more critical and perhaps the original
cast members brought about more giggles
and laugh out loud moments but overall it was entertaining, funny and well
produced. Some of the jokes seem very dated but I guess the audience
appreciated that the play is of its time and couldn’t fault it for keeping them
the same. I think on the whole, the audience went home satisfied and felt
thoroughly entertained.
The actors have done exceptionally
well to reproduce the feel of the original series, they render sensitive
reproductions of the moves, accents and delivery viewers got to know so well
via the TV show's short run.
The rest of the cast are worth a mention and are as follows:-
Mr Hutchinson / Wilhelm: Greg Haiste
Miss Tibbs: Emily Winter
Miss Gatsby: Dawn Buckland
Mr Thurston / Günter: John Hasler
Ensemble/Additional Roles:
Mr Walt: Adam Elliott
Taxi Driver / Mr Firkins / Mr Kerr / Mr Sharp: Neil Stewart
Johanna / Liz (Hotel Guest): Josie Brightwell
Debbie (Hotel Guest): Ashleigh Harvey
Ken (Hotel Guest): Ben Jacobson
Mr Dale (Hotel Guest): Matthew Gordon
Philip (Hotel Guest): Raymond Rose
The show runs from 2nd - 4th April 2026. Tickets are
available from https://www.wintergardensblackpool.co.uk/events/fawlty-towers/#overview
This production is touring the UK. See Fawlty Towers tour
details here. https://www.uktw.co.uk/Tour/Play/Fawlty-Towers/T1271016179/
On: 2nd April 2026
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