Fawlty Towers – The Play

★★★☆☆     Nostalgic

Playhouse: Tue 27 – Sat 31 Jan 2026
Review by Hugh Simpson

Fawlty Towers – The Play, at the Playhouse until Saturday, is a lovingly assembled recreation of the television programme that is designed to give pleasure to its many fans.

The sitcom only ran for two series, one in 1975 and one in 1979, and was written by Monty Python’s John Cleese and his then-wife Connie Booth. The comedy about irascible hotel owner Basil Fawlty, his wife Sybil, Polly the maid, Manuel the waiter and a series of unfortunate guests, is often cited as the greatest TV sitcom of all time.

Mia Austen and Danny Bayne. Pic: Hugo Glendinning.

Cleese is personally responsible for the script of this adaptation, which makes use of three stories (Communication Problems, The Hotel Inspectors and The Germans) with the occasional nod to other episodes.

So we have Basil attempting to conceal his win on a horse from Sybil, being obsequious to a guest he believes is an inspector, and trying not to mention the war. There is little in the way of new material, while some of the lines which have become more problematic over time have been left out.

a tribute

It is difficult to imagine anyone not already familiar with the series attending the play, and it is clear that the vast majority of the audience are anticipating Manuel saying ‘I know nothing’, for example. From the moment it begins with the familiar theme tune, it all has the air of a tribute to the TV series rather than something new.

There is no doubting the quality of writing in the original episodes, each being beautifully constructed and crammed full of material in a way that no other sitcom has equalled. Which actually is something of a drawback when it comes to combining them; the pacing suffers, and the individual pay-offs of each episode lose their impact.

Danny Bayne and Hemi Yeroham. Pic: Hugo Glendinning .

The first act in particular fails to convince as a piece of theatre in its own right. The second act (a brisk 35 minutes) is a taut, farcical affair and far more persuasive.

The desire to please the fans does mean that the production trades on nostalgia more than is ideal. There is a reverence to the whole thing that means it rarely sparkles; the laughter generally comes from recognition rather than outright glee.

Liz Ascroft’s split-level set, for example, is ingenious and works very well, but noticeably provides exact copies of the sets from the original. The central performances similarly are very close to those on TV, and it is to the credit of the performers that they are as successful as they are.

physicality and energ

Danny Bayne’s Basil is never going to have the completely unhinged quality of the original (certainly not with two performances in one day) but has the requisite physicality and energy.

Giving the one-dimensional character of Sybil as much depth as the late Prunella Scales managed is always going to be a difficult task, but once again Mia Austen is very good at making the character her own.

Fawlty Towers pre-set. Pic: Claire Hutchins.

Strictly Come Dancing’s Joanne Clifton is very fine indeed as the relatively sensible Polly, with an unshowy, contained and very effective performance. Hemi Yeroham’s Manuel is unsurprisingly much more expansive, and is wonderfully timed and very funny.

Neil Stewart (standing in for Paul Nicholas) impresses as the dotty Major, who – shorn of the character’s original inveterate racism – comes across as rather sweet. In a large supporting cast, Greg Haiste and Jemma Churchill are particularly fine.

Director Caroline Jay Ranger marshals her troops with skill, and the more physical, farcical elements are very well handled. There may be an absence of novelty, but a faithful replication of the original is clearly what the fans expect.

Running time: Two hours (including one interval)
Edinburgh Playhouse, 18-22 Greenside Place, EH1 3AA
Tuesday 27 – Saturday 31 January 2026
Evenings: 7.30pm; Matinees Wed, Thur, Sat: 2.30pm.
Tickets and details: Book here.

The cast of Fawlty Towers – The Play. Pic: Hugo Glendinning

*Paul Nicholas will not be appearing at Newcastle, Leeds and Llandudno

ENDS

Tags: Caroline Jay Ranger, Connie Booth, Danny Bayne, Fawlty Towers, Fawlty Towers – The Play, Greg Haiste, Hemi Yeroham, Hugh Simpson, Jemma Churchill, Joanne Clifton, John Cleese, Liz Ascroft, Mia Austen, Neil Stewart, Paul Nicholas, Playhouse, Review, Theatre