Fawlty Towers' Connie Booth "surprised" by John Cleese revival announcement
Booth starred as Polly in the classic sitcom – which she co-wrote with then-husband Cleese.
The news that Fawlty Towers is set to be revived by John Cleese came as a big shock to many TV fans when it was announced last week – and it appears that former star and co-writer Connie Booth was one of those surprised by the announcement.
Booth, who played Polly in the classic sitcom – which she wrote with her then-husband Cleese – has revealed that she found out about the reboot in the newspaper and hadn't been alerted to the news in advance.
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Speaking to The Times, she said she'd "have appreciated learning about the project from John rather than reading about it in the papers" and added that since a previous American reboot (1999's Payne) had been a failure, she "was surprised that another was being planned".
She continued that she "was even more surprised to read that John intends to write and to perform in it together with his daughter Camilla", but wished the pair well with the project despite the shock nature of the revelation.
Earlier this week, Camilla Cleese told The Sun that the revamped version of the show won't be "out to get anyone".
"There will be jokes that will be a little bit edgy but we’re not out to get anyone, we don’t dislike any people," she said. "That’s not the basis of it. People are a little sensitive nowadays, to put it lightly.
"If anything we’re making fun of the show’s characters and their idiosyncrasies."
Read more:
- John Cleese's Fawlty Towers revival will be set abroad – won't be on BBC
- What happened to the cast of Fawlty Towers?
- Fawlty Towers reboot confirmed with John Cleese and daughter Camilla
The iconic series originally aired for two seasons on BBC One in 1975 and 1979 respectively and went on to become one of the most revered shows in British TV history, winning a 2019 Radio Times poll to determine the greatest British sitcom of all time.
Last week, John Cleese – who has repeatedly hit out at cancel culture – said that the Fawlty Towers revival would be set abroad and would not be airing on the BBC.
The new run will see Basil manage a boutique hotel with his daughter, who he has just realised is his, and will explore how the character navigates the modern world.
No further casting information has been revealed at this stage, but executive producers for the reboot will include actor and director Rob Reiner, his wife and actress Michele Reiner, director and producer Matthew George and Derrick Rossi.
Check out more of our Comedy coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on.
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Authors
Patrick Cremona is the Senior Film Writer at Radio Times, and looks after all the latest film releases both in cinemas and on streaming. He has been with the website since October 2019, and in that time has interviewed a host of big name stars and reviewed a diverse range of movies.
