The 19th September 2005 saw the 30th anniversary of the first broadcast of Fawlty Towers on British television. Since that time it has come to be seen as a classic of television comedy, regularly being voted at the top of any television comedy polls.

A lot has change in television in the past thirty years, in terms of both production and broadcasting. In today’s digital age, it is easy to forget what it was like to have just three or four channels to choose from. With so many channels to fill these days, there is naturally many repeats (sometimes several on the same day), FT largely escaped this treatment, and there were certainly no “making of” or “behind the scenes” shows in those day. I think that one factor in FT’s continuing popularity is that we have been living on our memories for so long. Our over familiarity with certain modern shows (especially those with short seasons) and their constant repetition has dulled our senses to the quality of the work.

Technology has improved dramatically since FT was made, to such an extent that the effects and sets sometimes provide bigger laughs than the script. No amount of digital re-mastering can hide the wobbly walls and sound booms in shot. I don’t think anyone could deny that by today’s standards the actual production quality of FT was very poor. Perhaps the best illustration of the change in production quality can be seen by Comparing the old and new series of Doctor Who, whilst the ideas behind the series has changed very little over the intervening years, the difference in production quality is outstanding.

There is no doubt that FT is still popular, and given that the standard of production of the show (whilst OK at the time) does not match today’s standards, what we are left with is the script and performance that must make it stand out.

One only has to look at the guidance ratings on the packaging of the DVDs of FT to see how it rates against today’s standards “language: some mild, sex/nudity: some mild references, violence: infrequent mild slapstick”. I think that today we find our television to be more shocking and more controversial than ever before (I am sure this is nothing new, and every generation has felt the same), perhaps FT is an antidote to this?

Another key factor in the show’s lasting appeal may be that it contains a large element of farce and slapstick. Most episodes ended in some sort of bust up (usually involving Basil), there was usually a lot of running about trying to conceal things or people, misunderstandings and Manuel being hit. The fact that farce and slapstick doesn’t rely on a particular level of intelligence, understanding or knowledge of language, has given the show such a wide and timeless appeal.

However the show was more than just farce, there were many complicated threads weaving their way through each episode, secondary to the main plot. Make no mistake, take your eye of ball for a minute and you could very easily loose track of things, as there was so much going on in every minute of every show.

Whether FT will be so popular in thirty years is a difficult question, I certainly can’t imagine it ever going away from popular culture. Too many phrases and ideas from the show, have been picked up by the media, for example “Don’t mention the war”, and every time some bashes their car, we are reminded of the famous scene in Gourmet Night. It is hand thick of another show where lines from the show are quoted at so widely by the media.

From sitcom to cult television to national treasure, Happy Birthday Fawlty Towers