Gourmet Night
Encyclopedia
"Gourmet Night" is the fifth episode in the first series of the BBC
TV
sitcom Fawlty Towers
.
With:
"). A party of four, the Coosters, was supposed to be in attendance, but are forced to cancel at the last minute due to one of them getting ill. When Basil learns of this, he snidely remarks "let's hope it's nothing trivial."
As the episode unfolds it is revealed that Kurt is a homosexual alcoholic
and his interest in Manuel is actually on a romantic scale, but Manuel, who is straight, is not interested, so Kurt seeks solace in alcohol and ends up drunk to the point of being unable to cook, unbeknownst to Basil, as the dinner guests are arriving.
Basil displays his extreme social awkwardness as he becomes over sensitive to Colonel Hall's introduction to the other guests. The Colonel has a nervous twitch which causes his neck and head to convulse violently. When Fawlty attempts to introduce the two couples he gets hung up on the name of "Lionel Twitchen", so as not to offend the Colonel, and is unable to introduce them, thereby causing maximum embarrassment for himself. Mr Twitchen, upon seeing the Colonel's twitch, realises what has happened and gives his surname as "Twychen'.
Basil is horrified to realise that Kurt passed out, and after he vomited, now doesn't have a chef. Fortunately, André, who was aware of Kurt's alcoholism, is on hand to help Basil. However, as André's restaurant has a restricted availability, the 'gourmet' menu ends up with only three possible dishes for Basil's guests to choose from - all consisting of various forms of duck: Duck with orange, duck with cherries, or 'duck surprise' (duck without oranges or cherries). When Basil is asked what happens if they don't like duck, he responds "If you don't like duck... then you're rather stuck!" (to which Mrs. Hall responds that she loves it).
Basil's attempts to obtain the food are complicated. The first duck is ruined when Basil accidentally drops the tray and Manuel's foot gets lodged in it, so Basil ends up having to ask André for another. The second attempt is hampered by Basil's car, which finally breaks down on his way back with the food; the scene ends with what is arguably one of the most famous sequences: Basil screaming at the car and giving the vehicle fair warning, followed by a "damn good thrashing" with a tree branch after it finally completely refuses to start.
The staff try to stall for time while waiting for Basil to return with the duck: Manuel plays flamenco
tunes on his guitar, Polly sings "I Cain't Say No
" from the musical Oklahoma!
, and Sybil drunkenly recounts an anecdote about "uncle Ted and his crate of brown ale." Basil manages to get back to the hotel on foot and the guests are finally presented with the "duck" which they have so eagerly awaited, only to discover that, due to a mix-up in Andre's kitchen, it has turned into a Bombe Surprise when Basil removes the cloche. Basil is so surprised that he searches through the trifle with his hands to see if there is a hidden duck. When asked to explain this, Basil deadpans "Duck's off, sorry."
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
TV
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
sitcom Fawlty Towers
Fawlty Towers
Fawlty Towers is a British sitcom produced by BBC Television and first broadcast on BBC2 in 1975. Twelve television program episodes were produced . The show was written by John Cleese and his then wife Connie Booth, both of whom played major characters...
.
Cast
Episode credited cast:- John CleeseJohn CleeseJohn Marwood Cleese is an English actor, comedian, writer, and film producer. He achieved success at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and as a scriptwriter and performer on The Frost Report...
as Basil FawltyBasil FawltyBasil Fawlty is the main character of the British sitcom Fawlty Towers, played by John Cleese. The character is often thought of as an iconic British comedy character, and has been deemed unforgettable despite only a dozen half-hour episodes ever being made.... - Prunella ScalesPrunella ScalesPrunella Scales CBE is an English actress, known for her role as Basil Fawlty's long-suffering wife in the British comedy Fawlty Towers and her award-nominated role as Queen Elizabeth II in the British film A Question of Attribution.-Career:Throughout her long career, Scales has usually been cast...
as Sybil FawltySybil FawltySybil Fawlty is a fictional character from the BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers. She is played by Prunella Scales. Her age is listed as 34 years old as seen on her medical chart in the 1975 episode "The Germans", thus presumably indicating that she was born in 1941... - Andrew SachsAndrew SachsAndrew Sachs is a German-born British actor. He made his name on British television and is best known for his portrayals of Manuel in Fawlty Towers, a role for which he was BAFTA-nominated, and Ramsay Clegg in Coronation Street.-Early life:Sachs was born in Berlin, Germany, the son of Katharina , a...
as ManuelManuel (Fawlty Towers)Manuel is a fictional character from the BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers. Played by Andrew Sachs, he is an iconic character in British comedy history... - Connie BoothConnie BoothConstance "Connie" Booth is an American-born writer and actress, known for appearances on British television and particularly for her portrayal of Polly Sherman in the popular 1970s television show Fawlty Towers, which she co-wrote with her then-husband John Cleese.-Biography:Booth's father was a...
as Polly Sherman - Ballard Berkeley as Major GowenMajor GowenMajor Gowen is a fictional character played by Ballard Berkeley in the BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers.Major Gowen is an old, befuddled, somewhat senile ex-soldier permanently residing in the hotel. He enjoys talking about the world and is always on the lookout for the newspaper. He has trouble forgiving...
- Gilly FlowerGilly FlowerGilly Flower was an English actress, best remembered as the elderly Miss Abitha Tibbs in the cult BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers.Gilly Flower played Miss Tibbs in all twelve episodes of the show, which was produced in two six-episode series separated by a three-and-a-half-year interval Gilly Flower...
as Miss Abitha TibbsMiss Tibbs & Miss GatsbyMiss Tibbs and Miss Gatsby are fictional characters, played by Gilly Flower and Renee Roberts respectively, in the BBC television sitcom Fawlty Towers.... - Renee Roberts as Miss Ursula GatsbyMiss Tibbs & Miss GatsbyMiss Tibbs and Miss Gatsby are fictional characters, played by Gilly Flower and Renee Roberts respectively, in the BBC television sitcom Fawlty Towers....
With:
- Elizabeth Benson as Mrs. Heath
- Richard CaldicotRichard CaldicotRichard Caldicot was a British actor famed for his role of Commander Povey in the BBC radio series The Navy Lark. He also appeared often on television, memorably as the obstetrician delivering Betty Spencer's baby in Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em.His father was a civil servant and he attended Dulwich...
as Lionel Twitchen - Allan CuthbertsonAllan CuthbertsonAllan Cuthbertson was a naturalised Anglo-Australian actor.-Early life:Born Allan Darling Cuthbertson in Perth, Western Australia, son of Ernest and Isobel Ferguson Cuthbertson, he performed on stage and radio from an early age.During World War II, he served as a Flight Lieutenant with the RAAF...
as Colonel Hall - Betty Huntley-WrightBetty Huntley-WrightBetty Huntley-Wright was a British actress and vocalist. Daughter of the comic actor Huntley Wright, she had a long career on stage, chiefly in comedy and pantomime, and in film, radio and television...
as Mrs. Twitchen - André MaranneAndré MaranneAndré Maranne is an Anglo-French actor who appeared chiefly in English-language roles from the mid 1950s.-Career:Born in Toulouse, France, Maranne's most prominent recurring role was Sergeant François Chevalier in six of The Pink Panther films, alongside Peter Sellers and Herbert Lom. Before the...
as André - Tony Page as Ronald Heath
- Steve PlytasSteve PlytasSteve Plytas was an actor who worked in British films and television....
as Kurt - Jeffrey SegalJeffrey SegalJeffrey Segal is a British actor.He made his first screen appearance, as an extra, in the film Jud Süß .From the early 1960s onwards he appeared in many British TV series, notably Callan, Z-Cars, The Protectors, Terry and June, The Pallisers and Dad's Army.He played the part of 'Arthur Perkins'...
as Mr. Heath - Ann WayAnn WayAnn Way was an English character actress in film and television. Born in Wiveliscombe, she began her career in repertory in Dundee in the 1960s....
as Mrs. Hall
Plot
Fawlty Towers has a new chef named Kurt who has been found for them by André, Kurt's culinary trainer and a friend of the Fawltys, just ahead of a gourmet night that Basil, ever eager to attract the upper crust of clientéle in Torquay, is intending to host at the hotel. Kurt has taken a liking to Manuel. Basil, meanwhile, is having trouble with his Austin 1100 Estate car. Despite Sybil's insistence that he take the car to be mended, the miserly Basil tries to fix the car himself. Unfortunately, when the gourmet night arrives, only four people turn up (Colonel and Mrs. Hall, both JPs and Lionel Twitchen, one of Torquay's leading rotarians, along with his wife, Lotte) due to Basil including a "no riff-raff" notice in his advertisement after a rude and pampered boy brands the hotel a "dump" simply because his chips weren't the shape he preferred and they didn't have any salad cream (to which Basil responds by "accidentally" elbowing him in the head and comparing him to "Henry KissingerHenry Kissinger
Heinz Alfred "Henry" Kissinger is a German-born American academic, political scientist, diplomat, and businessman. He is a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. He served as National Security Advisor and later concurrently as Secretary of State in the administrations of Presidents Richard Nixon and...
"). A party of four, the Coosters, was supposed to be in attendance, but are forced to cancel at the last minute due to one of them getting ill. When Basil learns of this, he snidely remarks "let's hope it's nothing trivial."
As the episode unfolds it is revealed that Kurt is a homosexual alcoholic
Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
and his interest in Manuel is actually on a romantic scale, but Manuel, who is straight, is not interested, so Kurt seeks solace in alcohol and ends up drunk to the point of being unable to cook, unbeknownst to Basil, as the dinner guests are arriving.
Basil displays his extreme social awkwardness as he becomes over sensitive to Colonel Hall's introduction to the other guests. The Colonel has a nervous twitch which causes his neck and head to convulse violently. When Fawlty attempts to introduce the two couples he gets hung up on the name of "Lionel Twitchen", so as not to offend the Colonel, and is unable to introduce them, thereby causing maximum embarrassment for himself. Mr Twitchen, upon seeing the Colonel's twitch, realises what has happened and gives his surname as "Twychen'.
Basil is horrified to realise that Kurt passed out, and after he vomited, now doesn't have a chef. Fortunately, André, who was aware of Kurt's alcoholism, is on hand to help Basil. However, as André's restaurant has a restricted availability, the 'gourmet' menu ends up with only three possible dishes for Basil's guests to choose from - all consisting of various forms of duck: Duck with orange, duck with cherries, or 'duck surprise' (duck without oranges or cherries). When Basil is asked what happens if they don't like duck, he responds "If you don't like duck... then you're rather stuck!" (to which Mrs. Hall responds that she loves it).
Basil's attempts to obtain the food are complicated. The first duck is ruined when Basil accidentally drops the tray and Manuel's foot gets lodged in it, so Basil ends up having to ask André for another. The second attempt is hampered by Basil's car, which finally breaks down on his way back with the food; the scene ends with what is arguably one of the most famous sequences: Basil screaming at the car and giving the vehicle fair warning, followed by a "damn good thrashing" with a tree branch after it finally completely refuses to start.
The staff try to stall for time while waiting for Basil to return with the duck: Manuel plays flamenco
Flamenco
Flamenco is a genre of music and dance which has its foundation in Andalusian music and dance and in whose evolution Andalusian Gypsies played an important part....
tunes on his guitar, Polly sings "I Cain't Say No
I Cain't Say No
I Cain't Say No is a song from the musical play Oklahoma! written by composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist/librettist Oscar Hammerstein II....
" from the musical Oklahoma!
Oklahoma!
Oklahoma! is the first musical written by composer Richard Rodgers and librettist Oscar Hammerstein II. The musical is based on Lynn Riggs' 1931 play, Green Grow the Lilacs. Set in Oklahoma Territory outside the town of Claremore in 1906, it tells the story of cowboy Curly McLain and his romance...
, and Sybil drunkenly recounts an anecdote about "uncle Ted and his crate of brown ale." Basil manages to get back to the hotel on foot and the guests are finally presented with the "duck" which they have so eagerly awaited, only to discover that, due to a mix-up in Andre's kitchen, it has turned into a Bombe Surprise when Basil removes the cloche. Basil is so surprised that he searches through the trifle with his hands to see if there is a hidden duck. When asked to explain this, Basil deadpans "Duck's off, sorry."
Awards
A 1999 poll for NatWest car insurance voted the scene in this episode where Basil attacks his car with a tree branch as "most momentous motoring moment".Connections and errors
- The first time in the programme we see a chef at Fawlty Towers, and the last time until Terry, the regular character in series two. Manuel would later have a disagreement with Terry (as well as a fight) in The AnniversaryThe Anniversary (Fawlty Towers)"The Anniversary" is the fifth episode of the second series of BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers.- Synopsis :Basil pretends to have forgotten about Sybil's and his wedding anniversary, having secretly arranged a cocktail party with their friends due to arrive any minute. However, Sybil becomes enraged with...
. - Basil's car in this episode is a red 1967 Austin 1100 CountrymanBMC ADO16ADO16 is the codename for the development of what became the Morris 1100, a small family car built by the British Motor Corporation and, later, British Leyland...
Estate.. The car, registration number WLG 142E, still exists and is currently owned by an entertainments company. - The scene which ends with Basil giving the Austin 1100 a "Damn good thrashing" with a tree branch has been immortalised in the form of a miniature model car, and Basil swinging the branch, by the Corgi toy company. The scene itself remains one of Fawlty Towerss most iconic and celebrated.
- On the second return journey from Andre's restaurant the road is dry when Basil pulls in behind the other vehicle blocking the road. However, when he reverses out the road is clearly soaking wet as if there had just been a downpour.
- Roughly 17 minutes into the episode the shadow of the microphone boom is visible moving across the wall as Basil sits in front of the typewriter.
- When Manuel bursts through the kitchen door from the dining room and knocks the duck onto the floor, a stagehand can be seen crouching inside the dining room area of the set.
- André's Restaurant is in fact 294 Preston Road, HarrowLondon Borough of HarrowThe London Borough of Harrow is a London borough of north-west London. It borders Hertfordshire to the north and other London boroughs: Hillingdon to the west, Ealing to the south, Brent to the south-east and Barnet to the east.-History:...
and is now 'Wings' restaurant. - The scene where Basil attacks the car with a tree branch was also filmed in HarrowLondon Borough of HarrowThe London Borough of Harrow is a London borough of north-west London. It borders Hertfordshire to the north and other London boroughs: Hillingdon to the west, Ealing to the south, Brent to the south-east and Barnet to the east.-History:...
in the KentonKenton-Notable people:* Actress Michele Austin, best known as PC Yvonne Hemmingway in ITV's The Bill, attended Claremont High School in Kenton* Cricketer Denis Compton lived in Kenton* TV exercise instructor Mr Motivator lived in Kenton...
area at the T-junction of Lapstone Gardens and Mentmore Close (51.581103°N 0.309072°W). - In an external scene with Basil, the shopfronts have TorquayTorquayTorquay is a town in the unitary authority area of Torbay and ceremonial county of Devon, England. It lies south of Exeter along the A380 on the north of Torbay, north-east of Plymouth and adjoins the neighbouring town of Paignton on the west of the bay. Torquay’s population of 63,998 during the...
addresses and phone numbers. - The thrashing of the car is mentioned in Richard DawkinsRichard DawkinsClinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL , known as Richard Dawkins, is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and author...
's The God DelusionThe God DelusionThe God Delusion is a 2006 bestselling non-fiction book by British biologist Richard Dawkins, professorial fellow of New College, Oxford, and inaugural holder of the Charles Simonyi Chair for the Public Understanding of Science at the University of Oxford.In The God Delusion, Dawkins contends that...
. - Andrew Sachs, Andre Maranne and Steve Plytas would later co-star again in Revenge of the Pink PantherRevenge of the Pink PantherRevenge of the Pink Panther is the sixth film in the Pink Panther film series. Released in 1978, Revenge of was the last entry featuring series star Peter Sellers, who died in 1980...
, although they did not share any scenes together. - Manuel attempts to play the guitar in this episode, but clearly does not know how to play it properly. By the time of Basil the Rat, he can play the guitar and sing at the same time perfectly (although the singing is not quite adequate: Basil rolls his eyes in annoyance upon hearing Manuel singing).
- This episode is the only episode where Sybil drinks to excess. Her behaviour in this episode, such as her anecdote at the end of the episode, is also one of the few indications of her background.
- This episode is also one of the few occasions in which Sybil directly expresses signs of affection to Basil (while drunk), when they are having dinner with Andre.
- Elizabeth Benson, who plays Mrs. Heath, would go on to appear in the second series as Mrs. White in The Kipper and the CorpseThe Kipper and the Corpse"The Kipper and the Corpse" is the fourth episode of the second series of the British sitcom Fawlty Towers. It first aired on BBC2 on 12 March 1979. Distinguishing it from other episodes is its heavy use of Black comedy.-Background:...
. She is one of three guest performers to appear in both series. - Ann Way would later star alongside John Cleese again in the 1985 movie ClockwiseClockwise (film)Clockwise is a 1986 British comedy film starring John Cleese. It was directed by Christopher Morahan, written by Michael Frayn and produced by Michael Codron. The film was co-produced by Moment Films and Thorn EMI Screen Entertainment...
- In the scene where Kurt is vomiting, the editor edited the puke showing because it might seem disgusting and offensive and instead took a shot of Sybil, though the puke was shown to the studio audience during filming.
External links
- "Gourmet Night" at Fawltysite.net