Fawlty Towers

Fawlty Towers (1975)

4 corrected entries in Gourmet Night (a.k.a. Gourmet's Paradise)

(6 votes)

Gourmet Night (a.k.a. Gourmet's Paradise) - S1-E5

Corrected entry: Throughout this episode it keeps switching between day and night. When Basil's second dinner guests arrive, you can see darkness through the hotel entrance, yet when he leads them into the bar it is daylight through the bar windows. This episode is supposed to take place during the evening, yet when Basil collects the duck from Andre, it is broad daylight.

Correction: There is only one quick shot where it appears to be dark outside the front door, but is actually just a dark coloured bush. All other scenes correctly show daylight outside. In Torquay it is daylight in summer evenings at least until 9 pm.

Gourmet Night (a.k.a. Gourmet's Paradise) - S1-E5

Corrected entry: After Basil takes the guests' orders, he goes into the kitchen from the bar to sort out their starters. Then he and Manuel take the starters into the dining room, where the guests are sitting. However, to get from the bar to the dining room, they would have to have gone past the door to the kitchen, which was open throughout the kitchen scene, yet at no point did we see the guests walking past.

Correction: There is another way from the lounge to the lobby, off camera the other side of the reception area. It is also used by "Lord Melbury" in A Touch of Class when he is running from the police.

Gourmet Night (a.k.a. Gourmet's Paradise) - S1-E5

Corrected entry: When Basil hands the guests the new 'duck-or-nothing' menu, one of the guests says "how extraordinary", then Basil says "Lobster, tournedos, you name it, it's in the bin". Later on, Basil frantically starts preparing salmon mousses and mullet with mustard sauce, dishes that were never specified on the new menu. So how were the guests able to order these if everything from the first menu was scrapped and not listed on the second menu?

Correction: The duck was the main course, the other dishes could quite reasonably be starters or similar. It's extremely common to see menus with a number of fixed dishes and the option to choose the main course.

tw_stuart

Correction: Not true, I've just watched this and his reaction time is perfectly natural. It's certainly not one second.

tw_stuart

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Communication Problems (a.k.a. Theft) - S2-E1

Mrs Richards: And another thing. I expect to be able to see the sea.
Basil: [whispering to Manuel.] Deaf, Mad and Blind. [To Mrs Richards.] Yes, this is the view as far as I can remember... Yes, yes it is.
Mrs Richards: When I pay for a view, I expect something more interesting than that.
Basil: But that is Torquay, madam.
Mrs Richards: Well it's not good enough.
Basil: Well may I ask what you expected to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window? Sydney Opera House perhaps? The Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically across the plain...
Mrs Richards: [interrupting.] Don't be silly. I expect to be able to see the sea.
Basil: You CAN see the sea! It's over there between the land and the sky!
Mrs Richards: I'd need a telescope to see that.
Basil: Well might I suggest you move to a hotel closer to the sea. Or preferably in it.
Mrs Richards: Now listen to me. I'm not satisified but I've decided to stay. HOWEVER, I shall expect a deduction.
Basil: Why, because Krakatoa isn't erupting at the moment?
Mrs Richards: Because the room is cold, the bath is too small, the view is invisible and the radio doesn't work.
Basil: No, the radio works. You don't.

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Waldorf Salad - S2-E3

Question: Basil asks the American male guest (Mr Hamilton) if they have palm trees in California. The American replies that, "They say Burt Lancaster has one, but I don't believe them." The DVD then appears to cut prematurely to the next scene. Is there a hidden or subliminal joke here that I'm missing?

Answer: A possible explanation can be found here: http://tviv.org/Fawlty_Towers/Waldorf_Salad Quote: "This is, of course, sarcasm, as southern California in general and Los Angeles in particular is famous for its palm trees".

Mortug

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