--- title: "Fawlty Towers: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/tv/fawlty-towers/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/tv/fawlty-towers" critics_score: 87 critics_reviews: 7 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Fawlty Towers (1975): what the critics said Critics' score 87 from 7 reviews: 7 positive, 0 mixed, 0 negative. The reviews are unanimous in their approval, and most of them say the same thing about why. John Cleese’s performance as the hotel proprietor is the centre of nearly every piece: the manic physical business, the timing, the way the scripts build a small grievance into total collapse. Several critics treat the twelve episodes as a benchmark for British sitcom writing, and the pieces written around the 50th anniversary argue that the cruelty and snobbery still play as sharply as they did on first broadcast. Reservations are scarce and the spread is narrow. The one cooler notice, from The Times, comes from a critic who admits his enthusiasm lapsed for a while before a fresh viewing restored it, and even that piece ends on the show’s side. Two of the later reviews spend as much time on the reissued DVD commentaries as on the episodes. The Guardian was already calling it the comedy hit of the season in 1975, so the praise has held steady for half a century. ## The AV Club — Tasha Robinson Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 19 April 2002. The critic praises the series as one of the high points of post-Python work and the British television industry's favorite sitcom, citing its sharp scripting, physical slapstick, and chaotic farcical energy built around John Cleese's performance. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/fawlty-towers-the-complete-collection-1798197206) ## The Guardian Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 18 October 1975. The critic calls Fawlty Towers the undoubted comedy hit of the season for its fresh mix of comic techniques. John Cleese's manic physical performance as the hotel proprietor stands out, supported by strong turns from the cast and precise direction. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/sep/19/fawlty-towers-review-john-cleese-is-like-an-octopus-with-its-elastic-wound-to-bursting-archive-1975) ## The i Paper — Alec Evans Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 19 September 2025. Marking the 50th anniversary, the writer ranks all 12 episodes from the two series, affirming the show’s status as a British institution and comedy benchmark while noting how even its lesser entries deliver memorable laughs and character work. [Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/fawlty-towers-episodes-ranked-3927791) ## The Telegraph — Sean Thomas Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 20 September 2025. The critic celebrates Fawlty Towers on its 50th anniversary as still the pinnacle of cruel British humour, highlighting its blend of snobbery, bullying and surreal chaos as essential national traits that make it enduringly funny and cathartic. [Read the review](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/09/20/fifty-years-on-fawlty-towers-is-still-the-best/) ## Variety — Tim Gray Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 12 October 2001. The critic calls the series one of the funniest in TV history, averaging more laughs per minute than most sitcoms, and praises the DVD extras including interviews with Cleese and the directors' commentaries. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2001/digital/reviews/fawlty-towers-2-1200553392/) ## The Times — Andrew Billen Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 19 October 2009. The TV critic re-examines the series decades later and finds it holds up despite initial 1975 critical dismissal, noting that a recent viewing restored his appreciation for Cleese’s performance and the show’s comic precision after a momentary lapse. [Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/has-fawlty-towers-dated-db3mrv6b5qz) ## Collider — James Napoli Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 8 November 2009. The critic praises the meticulous construction and enduring comedic genius of the 12-episode series, calling it a gold standard for television comedy. The review highlights the inventive premises, Cleese's physical performance, and the value of the remastered DVD set's commentaries and extras for revisiting the classic. [Read the review](https://collider.com/fawlty-towers-remastered-complete-collection-dvd-review/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/tv/fawlty-towers.md