I’ve loved Fawlty Towers as long as I can remember, but I’ve always been somewhat scared to attend the Faulty Towers – The Dining Experience. I didn’t know that spending a night being abused by a John Cleese lookalike and trying to explain my order to a faux-Manuel would be that enjoyable. But I was wrong.
The hugely successful Dining Experience was created in Brisbane and has been running around the world since 1997 in countries as diverse as Bahrain, Malta, Portugal and the United Arab Emirates, as well as hugely successful runs in London’s West End, the USA, Australia and New Zealand. And now I know why.
It’s hard to imagine a more accurate portrayal of the ever-popular hotel owner-operators Basil and Sybil Fawlty and their likeable but hopeless Spanish waiter Manuel. The cast are supremely talented, impeccably portraying these characters in voice, movement and mannerisms.
Only one third of the show is scripted, with some references to classic set pieces from the original episodes woven in to the evenings proceedings as the dinner progresses. The cast seem to be everywhere at once, chatting with guests, and seamlessly working with the real waiters and venue staff to serve the three course meal. There are many laugh out loud moments, but general feelings of mirth are the flavour of the night, as diners are never far from the consistently hilarious action.
The Aegean is a great venue for the show, with the open space and high visibility providing the perfect setting for the evening’s antics. The meal was standard but certainly not unpleasant, and staff (even Sybil) were helpful and reassuring to the many diners who seemed petrified that Basil was about to yell at them. Expect lots of laughs and be prepared to be drawn into some highly enjoyable audience participation.
BY JOSH FERGEUS
