Fawlty Towers immersive dining experience coming to Manchester’s Hotel Brooklyn

An interactive Fawlty Towers-themed dining experience is coming to Manchester this February – complete with Basil, Sybil and Manuel.

From Friday 24 February 24 until Sunday 12 March, the Hotel Brooklyn in the city centre will be hosting Faulty Towers: The Dining Experience (spelled differently from the cult TV show), where guests can enjoy their favourite moments from the hit BBC sitcom as they dine on popular dishes from the show’s heyday. Devised by Interactive Theatre International, the event has already had success in London, where it is the city’s longest running immersive experience and has just been extended for another year. It has toured 41 countries, playing in over 1000 venues since 2008.

What does it involve and where can I get tickets?

Actors play the roles of Basil, Sybil and Manuel, while they interact with diners, who will enjoy a three-course, seventies-era menu. Around 70% of the comedy experience is improvised, which means no two evenings are the same. Guests will experience the kind of mayhem and shenanigans one would expect from an evening at Fawlty Towers. It lasts around two hours altogether.

Tickets can be booked online now on the Interactive Theatre International website. Off-peak tickets are £50 plus a £3.65 booking fee and peak tickets (weekends) are £65. Children are also welcome, with tickets costing £35 plus a £3.50 booking fee.

Paul Bayliss, regional general manager at Hotel Brooklyn on Portland Street, said: “This show is lots of fun and I’m sure it’ll bring plenty of laughs to the diners…and of course it’s a great name for the event as every hotel and restaurant gets accused of being Fawlty Towers, so here’s the proof!”

Producer Jared Harford said: “We’re thrilled beyond belief to be bringing the fun and chaos of our show to Manchester, and we have a great partner in the team from Hotel Brooklyn. We know people still want to go out and enjoy themselves, while being conscious of rising costs – which is why an immersive show including dinner really is the best option for anyone looking for a spectacular night out in the centre of town!”

What was Fawlty Towers?

Fawlty Towers was a popular BBC sitcom, written by and starring John Cleese, that ran from 1975 to 1979. The Monty Python actor played perpetually angry hotel owner Basil Fawlty, while Prunella Scales played his enduring wife Sybil, who was always the voice of reason in his spats with Manuel, the hotel’s bumbling Spanish waiter (Andrew Sachs).

Even though only 12 episodes were ever made, the show found international success and has left a lasting legacy on British television history. In 2019, it was voted number one in the Radio Times’ list of the greatest British sitcoms of all time.