So how has this book turned out? Firstly the design, the cover is really good, nice and bold, it really stands out on the bookstore shelves. The book is packed with colour photos (most very good quality) and some black and white, some rarities not seen before and some old favourites. Some of the pages have a wallpaper effect background which can sometimes be a little distracting from the actual text but makes a nice change from the plain white background.

Moving to the actual content, it is hard to fault (there is one major error which I will mention later), it has the right amount of depth for all but the really expert Fawlty Towers historian. The first section (about a quarter of the book) is devoted to the story of the show, from the well-known story of Cleese's stay in Torquay (which provided the inspiration for Fawlty Towers), to the industrial dispute that delayed the transmission of the final shows. The information comes from a wide range of sources, including the interviews and commentaries from the new DVD, so it can be a little repetitive if you have just watched the DVD's. However, it does do a wonderful job of bringing all the various sources together into a coherent story showing the development of Fawlty Towers.

The second section features biographies of the cast, starting with the regular cast, and John Cleese getting by far the biggest section, deservedly so. The biographies include personal details (births, deaths and marriages), information about the character portrayed in Fawlty Towers and a run down of their career achievements. The section of guest characters is very nice, and has some interesting detail on some of the lesser known actor and actresses. It is often said that the guest actors were made to feel part of the show, even if they were only in one episode, and it is nice that the book mirrors this by including details on these less well-known contributors.

The last major section is the episode guides, which are like the rest of the book, beautifully illustrated and quite detailed (about four pages each). This is no mean feat, speaking as someone who has tried and failed to write episode guides for what is said to be the most complex sitcom ever written.

The book closes with a list of further sources for the Fawlty Towers fan (from which we note this website has been omitted). This page lists books, DVD's, videos etc and it is here that the most glaring omission occurs (which is a repetition of and earlier mistake in the history section). The authors have failed to mention the fourth and final Fawlty Towers album "A La Carte" (released in 1983). In the history section they make a point of saying no more records were issued, "The third and final BBC record, released in 1982, presented 'The Kipper and the Corpse' (renamed 'Death' for the record) and 'The Germans' (retitled 'Fire Drill'). Although no more records were issued".

Despite this omission, I would have no problem recommending this book, it is excellently illustrated, not too heavy going but contains enough detail to keep the average fan happy and a useful addition to the growing catalogue of reference works to television comedy shows that have shaped our culture.