U&Gold grab the rights to John Cleese stage show

John Cleese's Fawlty Towers: The Play is to be screened on TV.

Archive channel U&Gold will air the two-hour show, as filmed on the West End stage, in September. 

It will feature the original cast including Adam Jackson-Smith in Cleese's role of Basil Fawlty, Anna-Jane Casey as Sybil, Hemi Yeroham as Manuel and Victoria Fox as Polly.

Cleese said: ‘I've been overwhelmed by the wonderful response to Fawlty Towers: The Play since its debut in the West End and it's a pleasure to hear U&Gold will be bringing it straight to everyone's living rooms just in time for the 50th anniversary.’

The TV screening will come just before the stage show hits the road for a tour of the UK and Ireland from the end of September, after the London run ends at the Apollo Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue, on September 13.

Cleese – who co-created the comedy with Connie Booth – has also written a book about the show, Fawlty Towers: Fawlts And All, which will be released in October in time for the Christmas market.

Last week, it was announced that a behind-the-scenes documentary shot during his John Cleese Packs It In tour will also be released in more than 350 cinemas across the UK when it is released on November 19.

Gerald Casey, UKTV’s director of programming for comedy, said: ‘Fawlty Towers is a cornerstone of British comedy, and we're honoured to be the first place TV audiences can watch this new stage version to mark the show's 50th anniversary. With the legendary John Cleese at the helm, U&Gold viewers are really in for something special.'

Senior commissioning editor Mark Iddon added: ‘Fawlty Towers has been making generations of viewers laugh for 50 years and this new stage reimagining is a wonderful way to honour the original series.’

Fawlty Towers: The Play weaves together three episodes:  The Hotel Inspector, The Germans and Communication Problems.

The recording will be made by the TV arm of Phil McIntyre Entertainment, producers of the stage show.

» John Cleese's Fawlty Towers: The Play tour dates

» Our review of the stage show

Published: 15 Jul 2025