With the news that John Cleese has just recorded commentaries for a updated DVD set of Fawlty Towers, we present for you an original press ad aimed at video stores from when the series was first released on a home format, taken from the pages of the Monday the 8th of October 1984 issue of Video Business magazine. The ad features an appalling blurb supposedly written by Basil himself yet clearly written by some boring BBC drone who thinks he’s funny to a Cleese-and-Booth standard.
“Thank you. Thank you so much!”
Do you realise what you’ve done? I mean, since you lot began hawking the first two Fawlty Towers tapes, business down here at the hotel has nosedived again. Just when the odd tourist might have been beginning to forget, and bookings at our select establishment were getting back to normal, you go and remind everybody about our rare - though admittedly severe - catering problems: all ironed out ages ago!
But I don’t expect any sympathy from the likes of you. It’s all look after number one, isn’t it? Typical.
You people know when you’re on to a good thing, don’t you. That’s why you’ll probably cash in on the next lot of tapes as well. Go on, carry on. Really rub our noses in it and make a bloody mint while Sybil and I go under.
So many people wanted the first two tapes (still available if you didn’t have the sense to get them in before) that we’re as good as ruined now anyway.
I mean, the new tapes - each containing three programmes - will really put the nail in the coffin. But who wants to be reminded of corpses in hotel bedrooms, Manuel’s rodent, how not to make a Waldorf Salad and the problems associated with a deaf guest.
Of course, if you really wanted to finish us off, you could get the complete set of twelve on the four tapes in the presentation box.
Then, when the last guest disappears up the drive, we can set fire to the whole bloody place. I think we’ll open a video shop.