British Sitcoms: Fawlty Towers, A Radical Change

Fawlty Towers was a hit sitcom that coincided with the ‘Golden Age’ of British sitcoms in the 70s. The series, despite being short, was a radical series that touched upon many issues that had not been touched on in the past, mainly dealing with prejudices. The story focuses around Basil Fawlty, the manager of a hotel, and the eccentric guests that come to stay at his hotel. It features likeable characters that are very realistic. No one is superficial, for these people have no special qualities, yet they are interesting to watch, simply because they remind us of others we know. It is interesting to note that commercial channels, which place much importance on ratings, would never have let a show like this be aired, yet the head of the BBC at the time was willing to experiment with something ‘different’ and was glad that he did! The sitcom shows exactly what real life is like, in that life is filled with unexpected occurrences.

Socially, Basil Fawlty tries to impress everyone. However, the faults of employees and some fairly odd guests complicate the overall success of the hotel. Basil is constantly concerned with how the hotel comes across to people. He wants everything to look good and for guests to want to come back. Basil seems to spend most of his life alternating between trying to impress guests who he perceives as being worthy of his attention. However, after learning that some guests do not quite have the social standing he first thought they had, Basil goes into a frenzy. Basil's problem is that he believes his hotel is a high class establishment worthy of the upper class, rather than the ‘riff-raff’ that he has to endure. The hotel is not all that it appears to be though. The hotel can only afford a small staff of one maid, one waiter/porter, and one chef. Basil’s desperation is apparent, as he makes increasingly hopeless attempts in trying to gain favor with the wealthy. Yet, he finds himself forced to serve and help people he sees as beneath him. In one instance, Basil drives all the way into town to buy a specific meat that a guest wants for dinner, only to return and end up dropping the meat on the floor after bumping into an employee. As such, Basil's efforts tend to be counter-productive with guests leaving the hotel in disgust, and his sanity stretching towards a breaking point.

In terms of morals and ethics, a lot of questionable activity takes place. The quality of the hotel itself is not as great as it appears to be. Guests are made to think that they are getting more for their money than they really are. Additionally, the audience is sent mixed messages when it comes to dealing with foreigners and elderly people. In one episode a group of German tourists stay at the hotel, all while Basil insults them without realizing it. He instructs his staff to not mention ‘the war’ (World War II), for he believes that doing so will upset them. Ironically, after doing this, Basil himself constantly brings up the war without realizing it until after he has said the word. Similarly, Manuel, the waiter, does not speak or understand English well. As a result, Manuel often misunderstands Basil and does something wrong. In one episode, Manuel is put in charge of the front desk, and everything goes wrong. As a result, many customers leave simply out of frustration with him. Manuel often ends up being blamed for anything that goes wrong. A common stereotype against elderly people is also clearly shown in an episode when an elderly woman comes to stay at the hotel. She cannot hear very well, so the employees take advantage of that by mocking her right in front of her. Elderly individuals, despite comprising the majority of the hotel’s cliental, are shown to constantly be exploited for their good nature. Additionally, many of the guests are treated in a rude manner. In one instance, a guest is unhappy with her room and Basil sarcastically says: “What did you expect to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window? Sydney Opera House perhaps? The Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically…” (Fawlty Towers)! Basil does not like to have his hotel degraded, but ironically he hurts his own business being rude to guests. At one point he even says: “A satisfied customer, dear…we should have him stuffed” (Fawlty Towers)! Generally, we can laugh at these insults simply because we know that these types of situations really do occur. People can relate with having to deal with someone who is hard of hearing for example, and know that they too can get away with saying almost anything.

In terms of gender, women are shown to be more dependable and powerful than males. Basil, because of his own inner flaws, never ceases to drive people away. He has a very short fuse and has a problem handling guests. However, Cybil, his wife, is much more patient and diplomatic. She easily can calm irate guests down and resolve problems. In one instance where a guest loses money, Basil becomes panicky, but Cybil chooses to just take money out of the register and give it to the guest to pacify them. On the other hand when it comes to Poly the maid, she’s never one to shirk an argument like Basil. Her lack of patience and quick temper often find her engaged in a battle of wits with a guest either in the dining room or at the reception desk. In one situation, she gets into a heated argument with a guest who cannot decide what he wants to order. She never forgets her place in the grander scheme of things though, often relying on subtle quips and one-liners rather than outright displays of insolence. Poly, unlike Cybil, is unable to vocalize openly how much she despises her position. As a ‘co-owner’ of the hotel, Cybil is in a position of power, but Poly as an employee can do little in terms of rebel without facing repercussions. Ironically, despite all his power, Basil is terrified of Cybil, his own wife. He wants to stand up to her, but his plans frequently conflict with her desires. In one episode, Basil tries to hide the fact that he has gambled on horse racing. In the end when Cybil does find out his secret, she gives him an earful and makes him give up the money. She is often verbally abusive towards him such is evident when Cybil describes him as "an ageing stick insect” (Fawlty Towers).

Fawlty Towers is a series that people can still relate to today. This has been proven by a recent poll that was conducted in 2004. People were able to vote for their top favorite British sitcoms of all time, and Fawlty Towers, ended up in fourth place out of a hundred. The show leaves a heavy impression on people simply because a lot goes on in a relatively small number of episodes. The members of the staff at the hotel can be related with. They go through day to day life doing mundane work, but their presences in the hotel add excitement. Manuel constantly drives Basil to act irrationally and makes Basil look like a fool. Manuel’s poor understanding of English creates a communication barrier, and Basil often loses his temper when trying to get Manuel to understand something. Poly is a fairly easy character to relate to, in that she is an aspiring student that cannot fulfill her dreams because of her position. She needs money, and has to work in order to support herself. Socially, these people act in ways that any normal person would. When people are under stress in the workforce, they do tend to lash out at others. Misunderstandings are also part of everyday life. It is very easy to misinterpret something and then blow something out of proportion. Also, when it comes to gender, women are shown in a fairly modern way. Neither Poly nor Cybil are domestic goddesses by any means. Both work to earn a living and are not dependant on men. They enjoy the freedom of being able to work outside of the household. However, the limit of job availability for women is evident with Poly’s position, which was likely true in the 70s. Poly would rather have continued her education at a university, but her status as a woman and lack of money curtailed her college career. She is highly educated though, as she is shown to have knowledge of multiple languages and is quite good at art. Like many women in the 70s, college was a privilege and not something all were able to attend.

Morally and ethically, the show is not one that completely reflects British society. Foreigners are not constantly scoffed at and ridiculed for not knowing English. I do believe that all the stereotypes that are shown in the series do exist within British society, however, most people are not as outspoken with them. I believe that Fawlty Towers, makes a point to show that we all have prejudices whether we want to accept it or not. The show exaggerates certain stereotypes, however, a message is sent directly to viewers. It encourages people to be more tolerant of others and realize that everyone has their flaws. Additionally, I do believe that Basil’s great British pride is something that is accurately portrayed. The British are proud of their heritage and are generally proud of their nation’s triumphs over the years. I think this point is true with all people. For the most part, we are proud of our own culture as well. We often resist having values of other cultures thrust on us, because we are not used to foreign ideas.