In the annals of British TV comedy, few sitcoms are as revered as Fawlty Towers. Spearheaded by Monty Python’s Flying Circus legend John Cleese, the series was set in a seaside hotel run by the highly string Basil Fawlty, and followed the ups and downs of day-to-day life in the hospitality industry. Only twelve episodes were ever made, but Fawlty Towers is still widely hailed as one of, if not the best sitcom ever made – and here are ten things you might not have known about the show.

10. Andrew Sachs was burned for real shooting a fire gag

The stars of Fawlty Towers suffered for their art. In one scene where Manuel’s jacket catches on fire, to give the effect of the suit smoking it was doused in acid, burning right through and scarring actor Andrew Sachs. Due to the injuries suffered by Sachs filming the burning suit scene, he was ultimately paid out damages by the BBC because of the severity of the injuries.

Nor was this the only time Sachs got hurt on set. On another occasion, the actor moved too quickly and John Cleese accidentally hit him in the head with a frying pan for real.

9. Both John Cleese and Andrew Sachs objected to claims Manuel was a racist stereotype

While many viewers loved the character of Manuel, some have accused his portrayal as being racist against Spanish people. Andrew Sachs (who was British in real life) defended the character of Manuel saying that “If it’s insulting to the Spanish what is Basil to the British?”

John Cleese has also insisted that the character of Manuel is not racist, as he is actually a lovely and genuinely nice example of a Spaniard who simply struggles with English. The character was more of a dig against tight-fisted British hoteliers exploiting foreigners for cheap labour.

8. Cleese based the show on a real Torquay hotel he once stayed at

The characters of Basil and Sybil were, amazingly, based on a real couple of hoteliers, Donald and Beatrice Sinclair who ran the Gleneagles Hotel in Torquay. John Cleese stayed at this hotel whilst working with the Monty Python team, and found his hosts such fascinating characters that he saw the potential for a series based around them.

Stories that Cleese witnessed first hand when he stayed in the Gleneagles were Terry Gilliam being told he was eating in a way that was “too American”, bringing Graham Chapman an omelette with 3 fried eggs on top because Chapman asked for an omelette made with three eggs, and throwing Eric Idle’s briefcase over a wall because of he thought it might have been a bomb.

7. It was Cleese’s first big project after quitting Monty Python’s Flying Circus

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John Cleese may be synonymous with Monty Python’s Flying Circus, but after three seasons of the groundbreaking comedy sketch show Cleese had grown tired and felt they were repeating themselves. For this reason Cleese refused to return for the fourth and final season of the show in 1974, and started working on Fawlty Towers instead.

Even so, Cleese would ultimately reunite with the team on their feature films Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Monty Python’s Life of Brian and Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life.

6. Polly actress Connie Booth also co-wrote the series

Fawlty Towers may be remembered primarily as John Cleese’s baby, but the series was co-created by Connie Booth, who also appears in the show as the long-suffering waitress and assistant Polly. Cleese and Booth, who were also married at the time, co-wrote all twelve episodes.

Booth had previously appeared in several Monty Python sketches, and went on to play a small role in Monty Python and the Holy Grail. She retired from acting in 1995 and moved into psychotherapy.

5. ‘The Germans’ has been removed from British streaming services due to use of racial slurs

The character of Manuel is not the only aspect of Fawlty Towers which has been deemed problematic in these more politically sensitive times. Perhaps the most notorious episode is the series one finale The Germans, in which Basil massively insults some German guests at the hotel. This episode famously launched the catchphrase “Don’t mention the war.”

Due to racial slurs used (more in relation to West Indians than Germans), the episode has been taken off BBC streaming service UKTV, much to the disdain of many fans, not to mention John Cleese himself.

4. The show’s initial reviews and viewing figures weren’t that great

For years, Fawlty Towers has been held up as a gold standard for British sitcoms. It may come as a surprise, then, that the show was not all that well received when it first took to the air in 1975. A particularly scathing review from The Daily Mirror was published under the headline “Long John Short On Jokes.”

It was only through repeat screenings that the show gradually built an audience, and came to be re-assessed as a true TV comedy classic.

3. Other sitcoms have been inspired by Fawlty Towers’ decision to end after two seasons

While the show could easily have continued, Cleese and Booth decided to call early doors on Fawlty Towers by calling it quits after just twelve episodes. Many critics and fans have praised this move, as it ensured the show did not end up declining in quality as so many sitcoms do when they outstay their welcome.

Many subsequent British sitcoms have taken inspiration from Fawlty Towers by ending after two seasons, including The Young Ones, The Office, Dinnerladies and Spaced.

2. Cleese and Booth reunited to write a Fawlty Towers stage adaptation in 2016

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Fawlty Towers may have never made a comeback after closing its doors in 1979, but the series did get a new lease of life 37 years later with a stage play. John Cleese and Connie Booth reunited to write an official stage adaptation of the sitcom, which premiered in Melbourne, Australia in 2016.

The show was a commercial success down under, where it wound up going on tour. Reviews were mixed, however; The Guardian remarked, “it would be cheaper – and probably more fulfilling – to just stay at home and revisit the old episodes on DVD or a streaming service.”

1. It’s been unsuccessfully remade for American TV – three times!

It’s not too unusual for British sitcoms to be remade on the other side of the Atlantic (for instance, Britain’s Man About the House formed the basis for US hit Three’s Company). However, Fawlty Towers has proved to be a tough nut for the Americans to crack, as not one but three remakes of the show have been attempted without success. Firstly, a pilot episode for a proposed series called Chateau Snavely (co-starring Betty White) was produced in 1978.

After this failed to get picked up for a series, Bea Arthur (later White’s co-star on The Golden Girls) headlined a gender-reversed remake entitled Amanda’s in 1983, but this was cancelled after ten episodes due to low ratings. A similar fate awaited 1999 series Payne, which met an end after only nine episodes.