Fawlty Towers: Season 1, Episode 2 The Builders Reaction

[@Dreyno]

O’Reilly is David Kelly. He played Grandad in the remake of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”.

[@StuartJ]

"Communication Problems" is my favourite episode. It's the one with the deaf old bat Mrs Richards.

[@gibsonms]

Herds of wildebeest!

[@matthewcook953]

Definitely one of the best

[@pjtufty66]

I know nothing

[@bewd4310]

My favourite too. Is this a piece of your brain. 😆

[@rickb.4168]

We had an L.P. Of communication problems, and hotel. Inspectors(days before videos) I used to be able to repeat ‘communication problem’ exactly, I listened to it so often.

[@Gard7ner]

The best Sitcom ever made! It´s intelligent and never gets old Ohh boy I love it! John Cleese is the master of timing! I can´t express how much I love him!

[@jimmyskinner7211]

John Cleese and Connie Booth (the maid) were actually married at the time of Fawlty Towers.

[@davidekstrand8544]

“Yeah, that’s right. We’re orally men. 🙂 …Thick as a plank.” 😒 😆

[@bpfromowc]

This is one on the best British comedies of all time. Guaranteed.

[@bpfromowc]

allan allen I hear you Allan. SMDHE is seriously funny, at times bordering on genius. Ditto Blackadder.

[@nickshale6926]

Fawlty Towers is the Sistine Chapel of Sit-Coms

[@lkrnpk]

Sixteenth Chapel, as Justin Bieber put it :D

[@danmatthews4174]

I had no idea you were on Patreon! Been literally bingeing the last couple of days and it was great watching Fawlty towers again. You're laugh is amazing!

[@lescowan]

Check out the small sign at the beginning of each episode, they rearrange the letters of Fawlty Towers.

[@victorsixtythree]

Man, what a classic show! By the way, if it hasn't been pointed out, the show was written by John Cleese and Connie Booth who played Basil and Polly (Cleese and Booth were married at the time). Booth also played the witch (who weighed the same as a duck) in Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

[@tomsmith9208]

I never see anyone recommend the eppisode Wardorf salad... but it is very funny, Bruce Boa’s performance as the American is great

[@trikky2.2]

I think we are all out of waldorfs :)

[@jonathanwilson8951]

@@trikky2.2 No! No cheese! It's celery, apples, walnuts, grapes!

[@skyebates246]

John claes is actually quite a physical specimen a 6' 5 quite sporty and athletic. He uses it in this so well.

[@Wriggs74]

For me Gourmet night is my favourite. When Basil assaults his car with a tree branch. Absolutely classic.

[@squishydafishy]

Short lived but one of the funniest shows ever made imo

[@FerDeLance06]

Probably because it was short-lived - it didn't keep going into several seasons and eventually become just silly, as many comedy series do. Just the one season is likely what makes it so golden.

[@thewomble1509]

@@FerDeLance06 Two series, six episodes in each.

[@FerDeLance06]

@@thewomble1509 Ah yes, I forgot; back then, six episodes was about the standard for a lot of TV series. LOL, I guess it's been a while. :-D

[@ianpilgrim7681]

The production team had to put padding inside the umbrella that Sybil was hitting Basil and O’Reilly with.

[@rebusak47]

The thing about this show that amazes me is the fact that Basil (John Cleese) and Polly (Connie Booth) were going through a divorce while filming this. When you know this you can see it how they interact with each other.

[@joeb2487]

They were still married when they were writing this episode. They got divorced between series 1 and 2. They wrote series 2 while going through the divorce. Having said that, there are signs their marriage was on the rocks in series 1.

[@nobbycheeseman2915]

There are several moments where you can see the mic booms and shadows of the filming equipment throughout this series. For example in this episode when the Major walks into the dining room after the door has been put back in, you can see the shadow of the equipment moving on the wall next to the door.

[@StuartJ]

It was made at BBC Television Centre. Not all the studios exist now, but the building is on Google Maps, and you can wonder around inside it as it was.

[@Zelig2Cents]

"There's no way it's gonna be this easy!". Haha! Made my night! This is the kind of battle axe Norm was talking about.

[@matthewcook953]

Finally you get to see some old school English comedy

[@shenysys]

The actor who played O’Reilly also played the waiter in Robin’s Nest. Which was a spin off of Man about the house.

[@hesch-tag]

Yes and Charlie's grandpa in The Willy Wonka film ( The Depp version).

[@gpreactions3194]

My favourite episode has to be the Germans, but please keep in mind, the language is a bit tasty, even for the 1970s.

[@annaakin195]

They only made 12 episodes. Connie Booth who plays Polly the chambermaid and John cleese who plays Basil co wrote Fawley Towers and were married to each other from 1968 - 1978. Connie Booth ended her acting career in 1995. After studying at London University she became a psychotherapist

[@badvock71]

Just for the record... you absoloutly HAVE to watch the opening credits as the sign is a different anagram in every episode ;)

[@fabulousmyriad267]

My favourite is "Farty Towels"

[@martinkulkarni3569]

Flowers Twats!

[@hellonlegs6134]

I love the way the sign changes every week lol

[@white-dragon4424]

It's just hinted at right at the end, but I get the impression that he's going to stuff that garden gnome somewhere rather intimate and painful in Mr. O’Reilly.

[@ColinPoole]

The Dinner Party gets my crying from laughter

[@stevious7278]

Basil certainly taught that bloody car a lesson!! ROFL :):)

[@Naylte]

Oh, you mean Gourmet Night.

[@PsychoSausage]

Great reaction video once again, glad you are enjoying them. Keep an eye on the sign in the opening credits on each episode you watch. :D

[@kernow9324]

Connie Booth who plays Polly is American but can do a fantastic British accent.

[@jamescockings6852]

Every episode a classic

[@bryannugent5860]

Love that you are enjoying this show. I truly hope you finish it. Fawlty towers got its inspiration from the glenn eagle hotel ran by donald Sinclair who was very rude to the python troup when they stayed especially to michael palin for his american upbringing and lack of refinement. They enjoyed his antics soo much that john cleese and his wife connie booth (the girl who plays paulie) stayed past filming to observe his mannerisms. The man even put one of the troups luggage outside beyond a wall and when asked about why he did it he said it was because they thought it had a bomb in it. The man was very conservative in his ways especially toward men and women who werent married sharing a room. America tried to do their versions of the show most notably Amanda's place starring bea Arthur and Payne staring john larroquette neither anywhere as good as fawlty towers but check them out to see how they did it's pretty interesting

[@jameshiggins1990]

Can't beat British humour

[@klcpesan]

Fealty Towers is one of my favourites! Watched it countless times

[@bobm839]

Love that you are doing Fawlty Towers!!!

[@fegman]

You must watch the Germans episode. Utterly amazing!

[@Thievius333]

That's the best episode, imo. Rolling on the floor funny.

[@shatnersbassoon3390]

He just watched that episode on patreon last week.

[@SpaceCattttt]

@@shatnersbassoon3390 What? For fuck's sake. What about our freebies??

[@OblivionGate]

@@SpaceCattttt 😂😂😂😂😂!!!!

[@OblivionGate]

@@SpaceCattttt Honesty... I'm still laughing at that!! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣!!!!

[@infrasleep]

This is also from the era when British "service" was appalling -Cleese based it on an actual Hotelier in Torquay. Customers really were regarded as utter pests and vermin ; everything really was too much trouble and you had to order-lunch for example- at the specified time or get nothing, and if you wanted soup at the wrong time you were told "No" in no uncertain terms. Thatcher may have been a mare, but our service certainly improved during her years.

[@jetterjohn]

Re British customer service, This was in a time thanks to Sunday trading Laws, on Sunday shops would close at 1pm, some of the restrictions were you could buy A porno mag but not a Bible, buy an apple but not tins of pears, buy a newspaper but not a comic, pubs were open only 12pm -2pm,, then allowed to reopen from 7pm - 10pm, terrible lack of freedom, and it goes on

[@briwire138]

Still funny despite being 50 years old. Not sure how they will get away with some of the dialogue in forthcoming episodes, especially the one with the Major talking about cricket.

[@dickiey1983]

If you're delving into old-school British sitcoms "Open All Hours" is definitely worth a look.

[@Live-by2vk]

As is porridge 👍

[@drivingwithmatt]

Fantastic, a new video!

[@kennethstark9383]

A British classic lol 😂🇬🇧

[@ScreamingScallop]

They're all awful in different ways. Basil is arrogant and cheap, Sybil is only serious once things have gone to hell, Manuel is in way over his head, and Polly and Cook can't be arsed to do their basic jobs properly. And of course many of the guests are absolute nightmares.

[@trikky2.2]

I'd say Polly is the one that keeps them all together.

[@norwegianblue2017]

Fun fact, the actress who plays Polly is actually an American and was married to John Cleese for ten years and had a kid with him.

[@RS-et2hx]

I love the one with the kippers

[@swingsloth]

I reckon you'd love Derry Girls. Bloody ace show to watch.

[@theincredibledrl9684]

Derry girls is the perfect balance between boomer and gen z humour

[@christhornycroft3686]

Are You Being Served, Keeping Up Appearances and Mulberry are great too.

[@Haveaniceday80]

“Are you being served” is also a very funny serie

[@killerbeez95]

Can’t wait until you get to the one with the Germans

[@matthewcook953]

Could agree more

[@antlermagick]

He's already uploaded his reaction to The Germans on his Patreon page :)

[@CycolacFan]

Or the American guests...

[@Pighood]

@@TheCornishCockney Don't tell me...you mentioned it, but got away with it

[@pauleomac]

Cant wait for you to upload the next episode!

[@celticcountry2119]

Basil is always getting into situations, polly has to cover fror him, manuel gets the brunt of basils outrages , he is either groveling or abusing the guests . I love every episode all the players are fantastic. I watched them since the 1981 mr. bean is great also you should check out his show. They don't have comedy made like that these days.

[@MegaRockstar48]

Deaf old lady episode is my fav episode

[@Dasharr]

Basil and Sybil are great because they're as bad as each other, in just the worst possible way to wind each other up.

[@trikky2.2]

Been really enjoying the reaction stuff you do .... Might have missed it but think it would be better if your timer was linked to the video you were watching so showed how much was cut out ?

[@charliebryce3783]

My favourite episode is the one with the guest that dies in the night.

[@annedunne4526]

Yes I adore the madness that ensues. Just hilarious. In this one it's nice to see David Kelly as O'Reilly . Sadly he's gone now.

[@morningcoffeecat2271]

Hey Josh, am a former patron. Did you get the whole reuploading stuff done? I remember just before I stopped you were using links to google drive

[@denisedale4125]

John cleese and Connie booth who played Polly were married at the time

[@annescholey6546]

Stubbs vs o Reilly and Manuel vs Bullet Baxter.

[@jamesharland5137]

Thanks dude

[@bunpeishiratori5849]

This was John Cleese's least favorite episode. I think it's also the shortest. Cleese's issue was with the audience, which didn't really laugh appropriately. He later found out that it was filled with foreigners who didn't really understand the language. Overall I think this is a very good episode, but even still would rank in the bottom half of the twelve.

[@rullmourn1142]

I love the next ep. Wedding Party.

[@vaughanwilliamson5401]

Polly the waiters is an American

[@SpaceCattttt]

About time!

[@sanderdeboer6034]

Do you see the entire show or what we see with breaks all the time?

[@StrongandStable17]

He sees the full thing, he just cuts it to avoid copyright claims.

[@Thievius333]

So are you done watching these or something?

[@matthewcook953]

I men this probably a year ago, take y time to get to the the characters

[@jericoba]

Sybil's the boss.

[@kevanbodsworth4817]

But Sybil is definitely a woman who needs a god clip round the ear ole,....

[@worthalook4870]

Classic

[@jules.8443]

Polly (the maid) is married to John Cleese (Basil Fawlty)

[@Thievius333]

Was. They divorced long ago. In fact, they were already divorced while they were filming the Fawlty Towers series.

[@dnfkofficial4067]

Watch the one with the Germans

[@linuxfreakful]

I didn't like that it kept skipping. I'd rather watch the whole episode to get all the jokes. Very hard to keep up with this even though I've seen it 10 times!

[@gibsonms]

Yessss!!!

[@HEWfunkingKNEWit]

This wasnt my favourite episode but still good for its time. I think youll enjoy the upcoming episodes more.

[@hobbitassassin1]

Fun fact: basil and polly were married in real life

[@hashworld5492]

Can we have some more It Crowd please and derek

[@raymondkidd2346]

Every episode is as good as the next and before.try making a word out of the letters Fawlty Towers.they do."well"

[@philipmason3218]

Start you bastard, start, right, I've warned you!

[@jeremygovender]

fun fact : when the Americans tried to remake the show it was doing badly.. so they got rid of the Basil Faulty character

[@BLUEsurf63]

It's missing most of the best lines, hope you managed to watch them.

[@jeanfoster8979]

phoenix nights - kzbin.info/www/bejne/j6HGnY2MaLVras0

[@Yldcatz]

Polly is a ..... of ...

[@StrongandStable17]

What? She's the only normal person in the show.

[@reecemartin2509]

Your cutting out the funniest parts the first videos without the timer were much better

[@kieronkealy9016]

Do reactions to some mothers do have um

[@salvadormarley]

This one was my least favourite. The Kipper and the corpse is great.

[@combatduckie]

Do another Harry Enfield one: kzbin.info/www/bejne/n5DMgXaDotR6g9k Women keep your virtue! :-)

[@sandypauldavis]

I'm sure you mean well but you look as though you don't identify with our mentality because you laugh in a general way and you're waiting for a punchline

[@raymonddixon7603]

The clips missed all the jokes. I am afraid Americans do not understand the humour at all.

[@StrongandStable17]

He cut the video to avoid copyright claims. Playing the full thing increases the changes his video will be taken down. To be fair this guy genuinely seems to appreciate and understand the humour. See some of his other fawlty towers reactions for proof.

[@spencercollison1695]

Cleese is funny in FT's but i don't think they've aged particularly well tbh. Mildly amusing at best, flame me😅

[@BintyMcFrazzles]

Can I put it out there that I never found Fawlty Towers that funny. Each to their own.

[@OblivionGate]

You really need to see a Doctor about that!

[@BintyMcFrazzles]

@@OblivionGate 🤣 I will die on this hill. I just don't think it's funny. Apart from the bit where Fawlty hits his car with a tree branch as I can relate to that.