The Complete Fawlty Towers [1975]

"Fawlty Towers" does more than expose the incompetent, amateurish pomposity and rigid morality which seemed to characterise so many English hotels in the 1970's … particularly those of the seaside variety - 'Kiss Me Quick' hats and saucy postcards, but be back in your room by ten, no hanky panky, and breakfast is at eight!

Basil Fawlty runs his hotel the way some people run a private prison. The patrons are there to do as they are told … unless they can prove a certain social cachet. Cleese satirises the 'Englishness' of the seaside hotelier - racism in his treatment of Manuel and middle class consciousness in his treatment of the Irish labourers, the xenophobia and dreams of imperial glory in his attitude to the Germans, the prim outlook on sex, the cloying efforts to move up the ranks and mix with the upper classes while patronising American money, the horror of illness and death, the sheer terror in the face of psychiatry or even bureaucracy.

The ensemble cast are outrageously funny - incisive wit parallels slapstick comedy and farce in the finest traditions of the English stage. "Fawlty Towers", although a television programme, has that sense of live performance, that aura of being performed on stage for your delectation and delight. Perhaps that's what makes it watchable again and again - even in the latest technology of DVD it still appears as a live stage act. The humour remains somehow spontaneous.

But the humour isn't passive, it actively infects your consciousness. You can't pass a leylandii without wanting to uproot it and thrash a small car. You can't open a tin of biscuits without wondering if there will be a rat within. Every time I see a Waldorf salad on a menu, I snigger. Every time I reach round a corner to switch a light on … well, I live in hope.

You'll find all twelve episodes here - "A Touch of Class", "The Builders", "The Wedding Party", "The Hotel Inspectors", "Gourmet Night", "The Germans", "Communication Problems", "The Psychiatrist", "Waldorf Salad", "The Kipper and the Corpse", "The Anniversary", "Basil the Rat". The very titles are cue for laughter. Sound and picture quality are excellent. The quality of the writing and performance is timeless. The only thing wrong with both series appearing in one package is that you are emphatically reminded how few episodes there were. This really is a case of leave 'em wanting more!


The best British Sitcom ever, bar none   February 1, 2008
 11 out of 11 found this review helpful

Simply brilliant. Only 12 episodes but like diamonds, those things which are most precious are rare but incredibly valuable. Each episode is at least brilliant (Wedding Party, Waldorf Salad, The Builders, The Anniversary) whilst others (especially The Germans, The Psychiatrist, Communication problems and Gourmet Night) are simply legendary. The word genius is used with far too much regularity but in the case of John Cleese and co-writer Connie Booth, and for the performances too, it can't be used enough. The characterisations are great and capture perfectly the mentality and social situation of 70s Britain, they are an artefact of the period neatly timecapsuled for us to enjoy. It has aged very well, look beyond the cardboard scenery, the 70s hairstyles and fashions and each episode is a joy to watch. Despite the fact that they have been shown on TV so much and the fact that just about everyone you meet knows each episode so well, they are still and remain side splittingly funny and now, neatly packaged as a complete set with a natty little extras disc all for under twenty quid, its a steal!


Classic British Comedy   May 3, 2006
 63 out of 68 found this review helpful

Fawlty Towers is now rightly regarded as a comic masterpiece and after watching just one of these episodes you will understand why.

Considering the fact that both seasons (Season 1 - 1975 Season 2- 1979) were made well over 25 years ago, Fawlty Towers still stands very well with its fast, furious, razor sharp witty dialogue and nothing but excellent comic playing. Its an absolute gem!

John Cleese and his then wife Connie Booth wrote all 12 episodes in the two series' that were made in 1975 and 1979. The quality never falters through any of these episodes. John Cleese and Andrew Sachs provide most of the laughs with Cleese playing the permantley harassed and fairly raving mad, Basil Fawlty, the incompentent owner of the appropiatley named Fawlty Towers and Sachs as the Spanish cook who has many hilarious moments with his delightfully fractured English, prompting Basil to continually justify to his baffled guests "Oh don't worry, he's from Barcelona". Classic stuff! Prunella Scales as Sybil Fawlty and Connie Booth as the poor put upon maid have their fair share of laughs too.

Its impossible to select a favourite episode so i'll let you judge for yourselves. A CLASSIC! HILARIOUS! An important contribution to British comedy. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!!!




sublime   October 4, 2006
 47 out of 54 found this review helpful

Featuring all of the 12 episodes of fawlty towers this is pretty much essential comedy featuring john cleese as a madcap hotel owner in perhaps the worst hotel in the world and how cleese struggles with his over zealous wife,a waiter called manuel whos grasp on english is hopeless and who gets many a hiding from basil (cleese).
The series started in 1975 and is hardly surprising that it was based on a stay that the monty pyton team had in a hotel,each episode is pretty much gold and has great laugh out moments,like i said only 12 episodes were made and thats because they wanted the show to go out on a high leaving fans crying for more rather than burn itself out,classic comedy at its finest.


If only there were more.   March 12, 2006
 15 out of 17 found this review helpful

A truly magical comedy series that, is timeless. The timing and, characters are outstanding. I have never laughed so much at any other comedy series or film. It is unfortunate that there were only 12 episodes. This box set takes pride of place in my collection.