After more than 40 years, the comedy sitcom Fawlty Towers will return. Along with his daughter, Camilla Cleese, the actor who portrayed Basil Fawlty will return to create and perform in the film.
Following the lives of Torquay hotelier Basil and his wife Sybil as they struggled to maintain both their company and relationship, the two-series show aired on BBC2 in 1975 and 1979.
In the new series, Basil’s sardonic and pessimistic worldview will be examined. Tuesday saw the return of the TV show thanks to a contract that Castle Rock Media had reached with Cleese. Basil and his child, whom he has just learned are his, will also collaborate to run a boutique hotel in the revival.
A group of TV industry professionals selected Fawlty Towers as the best British sitcom of all time in 2019 for Radio Times magazine.
Rob Reiner, his spouse Michelle Reiner, producer and filmmaker Matthew George, and Derrick Rossi will all serve as executive producers for the latest show.
One of the founders of Monty Python, John Cleese, recalled that George gave him “a great idea” when they first met, sparking “one of the most creative art sessions I can recall.”
By dessert, we had a solid overall idea that, some days later, Rob and Michele Reiner gave it their OK.
Cleese and the BBC had a falling out in 2020 after the BBC reportedly pulled a beloved Fawlty Towers show due to “racist insults.”
In the 1975 television special The Germans, Basil said, “Don’t discuss the war,” and the Major Gowen character used extremely unpleasant language.
The choice was criticised by Cleese, who stated: “I would have assumed that someone at the BBC would grasp that there are two ways to make fun of human nature.”
“One is to go right for it.” The alternative is to get someone to stand out in favour of that activity who is being facetious.
While conducting a review, streaming platform UKTV briefly took the programme down; however, it was then put back up with a disclaimer concerning “offensive material and language.”
Cleese and Connie Booth wrote the original script for the program.
The Monty Python actor announced in October 2022 that he would be presenting his personal GB News TV show.
