After The Applause

Now I wasn’t even alive when Fawlty Towers was first on tv, but I have still grown to become a big fan of Cleese’s genius comic writing. I always found the premise so funny, a naturally rude, impatient man trying to run a hotel and stay as professional as possible. When I booked tickets I was worried it would just be his old material simply placed on the stage (it was exactly that), but what saved it was an excellent production design and a really great cast!!

I loved the sense of authenticity when we came in, with the set looking very accurate to the tv show and the music matching the vibe of a hotel. The set is clever as it looks a bit like a dolls house with the iconic reception, dining room and a room for the hilarious and memorable scene with Mrs Richards. As well as the set, Liz Ascroft designs authentic looking costumes that perfectly mimic what we see in the TV show, making it a much more seamless transformation onto the stage.

I don’t usually mention it but the fights and the stage direction were conducted exactly in the same manner as the show, which helped it to feel like Fawlty Towers had jumped out of the screen and plonked itself on the Apollo Stage.

The cast are really good! All the principal characters are acted out as accurately as they could be. I am sure John Cleese was very proud seeing Danny Bayne prance around the stage as Basil Fawlty. I had to stand to give him applause because my word he has such a difficult role to do. As an actor I would struggle to balance all of the different emotions and complexities of the character of Basil, but he does it so accurately and hilariously and it really was a powerhouse performance. The rest of the principal staff of Fawlty Towers are great as well. Joanne Clifton is a snarky Polly, Mia Austen is a strong and defiant Sybil and Hemi Yeroham is the absolute best as Manuel. His chemistry with Bayne makes it even funnier as well. The scene in which Manuel tries to take an order was arguable funnier on stage than on the TV program (I found this pattern the same with a couple of scenes).

Paul Nicholas and Helen Lederer are brilliant as the major and Mrs Richards, oh so accurate to the TV program and they make the characters larger than life so they translate well onto the stage. I also give credit to the actors playing the german guests at the end, this whole scene I couldn’t breathe I was laughing so much with tears rolling down my cheeks. I remember watching it for the first time on tv with my dad and it felt exactly the same.

What I liked about this play is that it helped me relive when I first watched compilations of Fawlty Towers on my ipad when I was 12. However, the reason I can’t give it higher than 3 stars is because it wasn’t original. Cleese had not written any more lines or done anything more than just compile the funniest moments together into one 2 hour play. I also didn’t like the constant use of theme music between scene changes as it made it feel rather episodic instead of a continuous event which I feel may have been more effective.

MY VERDICT:

You know what, I am not going to slate it because Fawlty Towers is comic genius from the GOAT (greatest of all time) of comedy John Cleese and it is is a great example of a term I have coined which is ‘Binge Theatre’. You can go with no expectations and just enjoy it without being too analytical. It falls into the same category of shows such as ‘A Play That Goes Wrong’ or even ‘Nye’ (read my review for that, great show!) that are just crowd pleasers regardless of what critical reviews say. If you are a fan of the show you won’t be disappointed by the design and acting presented in this play, and you will get to relive the joy of when you first watched it, which is something i feel should be commended because it’s hard to do. Whilst it’s nothing original, it is a classic and if you are a die hard Fawlty Towers fan, they haven’t ruined the show at all they have just revived it!!

Fawlty Tower is in the West End until the 13th September 2025 before embarking on a UK and Ireland tour in 2026.