"The Germans" is the sixth and final episode of the first series of the British television sitcom Fawlty Towers. Written by John Cleese and Connie Booth and directed by John Howard Davies, it was first broadcast on BBC2 on 24 October 1975.
The episode revolves around Basil's attempts to successfully run the hotel alone whilst Sybil is in hospital. Whilst attempting to run a fire drill, a real fire begins in the hotel kitchen, resulting in Basil becoming concussed. Discharging himself from hospital, Basil arrives in time to greet a party of German guests, but he is unable to hide his anti-German sentiment towards them.
The episode has been featured on several "best of" episode lists and is regarded as being one of the most popular episodes in the series. Conversely, it has attracted controversy for its themes of anti-German sentiment and use of racial slurs, and was removed from the UKTV streaming platform in 2020, though later reinstated.
Plot
Sybil, in hospital for a few days for an ingrowing toenail, instructs Basil on several tasks he must complete while managing the hotel, including running a required fire drill and hanging a moose head. At the hotel, Basil has a conversation with the senile Major Gowen, who cringes and expresses anti-German sentiment when Basil tells him that a German group is due the next day. Major Gowen then starts talking about other nationalities, using the racial slurs "wogs" and "niggers".
Cast
Main
- John Cleese as Basil Fawlty
- Prunella Scales as Sybil Fawlty
- Andrew Sachs as Manuel
- Connie Booth as Polly Sherman
- Ballard Berkeley as Major Gowen
- Gilly Flower as Miss Abitha Tibbs
- Renee Roberts as Miss Ursula Gatsby
Guest
- Lisa Bergmayr as German Guest
- Willy Bowman as German Guest
- Brenda Cowling as Sister
- Claire Davenport as Miss Wilson
- Iris Fry as Mrs Sharp
- Dan Gillan as German Guest
- Nick Kane as German Guest
- John Lawrence as Mr Sharp
- Louis Mahoney as Doctor Finn
Production
Interior scenes of this episode were recorded on 31 August 1975, in Studio TC6 of the BBC Television Centre, before a live audience. It was the only episode not to begin with an exterior shot of the hotel. Instead, an exterior shot of the Northwick Park Hospital in Brent was used.
In the scene where Manuel attempts to put out a fire in the kitchen, firemen were on standby to put out the flames. As a result, the BBC paid Sachs damages worth £700.
Co-writer John Cleese claims that he "never think[s] the second half of 'The Germans' is as well written as all that". Although the first half is "written beautifully", Cleese believes the second half has "several things" wrong with it. The phrase was used as a title for a humorous travel book written by Stewart Ferris and Paul Bassett, detailing travels through Germany and other European countries. It is also the title of a book by John Ramsden, published in 2006, which examines Anglo-German relations since 1890, and a 2005 Radio 4 documentary looking at the British perception of Germans.
In the first episode of the second series of the BBC series The Office, David Brent performs an impression of a paper industry figure as Basil Fawlty, quoting the phrase "Don't mention the war", and impersonating the goose step used by Basil.
Home media releases
In 1982, an LP record containing the episodes "The Kipper and the Corpse" and "The Germans" was released by BBC Records. Titled Fawlty Towers: At Your Service, the LP was the third record released by the BBC. The episodes were renamed "Death" and "Fire Drill" for the release, respectively.
Reception
This episode has been listed on several "best episode" lists and is one of the most popular episodes in the series. In 1997, "The Germans" was ranked No. 12 on TV Guides 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time. It was voted as number 11 in Channel 4's One Hundred Greatest TV Moments in 1999. Empire magazine listed this as the best episode of the show in its list of the 50 greatest TV episodes of all time. The American film director Martin Scorsese has cited this as his favourite episode of Fawlty Towers. Gold, a channel that regularly broadcasts Fawlty Towers, has argued that while "The Germans" is the most famous episode, the best episode is "Communication Problems". Morris Bright and Robert Ross, in their 2001 Fawlty Towers history book, wrote that if you "ask anyone who's watched Fawlty Towers which episode they recall more than any other and most will nominate 'The Germans', usually followed by cries of 'Don't mention the war!' and visions of Basil strutting around like a Pythonesque Nazi".
German response
In 1993, Germany began broadcasting Fawlty Towers on cable television. These airings proved to be a "tremendous success" with ratings, and "The Germans" proved to be one of the most popular episodes shown in the country. In response to critics, John Cleese stated that his intention in writing this episode was "to make fun of English Basil Fawltys who are buried in the past" and "to make fun of the British obsession with the Second World War".
In 2013, the BBC edited the Major's use of racial slurs from a repeat transmission of the episode, prompting some criticism by viewers. The BBC defended its decision: "We are very proud of Fawlty Towers and its contribution to British television comedy. But public attitudes have changed significantly since it was made and it was decided to make some minor changes, with the consent of John Cleese's management, to allow the episode to transmit to a family audience at 7.30pm on BBC Two." Cleese spoke against the removal of the episode due to the Major's use of racial slurs: "The Major was an old fossil left over from decades before. We were not supporting his views, we were making fun of them. If they can't see that, if people are too stupid to see that, what can one say?" On 13 June, it was reinstated by UKTV with a warning about "offensive content and language".
Stage adaptation
This episode, along with "The Hotel Inspectors" and "Communication Problems", was adapted into a stage play by John Cleese and director Caroline Jay Ranger. Titled Fawlty Towers Live, the stage play went on tour in Australia in 2016. The three episodes's plot were merged into one storyline. In 2024, the play, retitled Fawlty Towers: The Play, made its debut in the West End.