Actor slams Interactive Theatre International’s ‘utterly shameless’ stage show inspired by his TV series after learning of its ‘astonishing financial success’

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

John Cleese is considering pursuing legal action against an Australian theatre company’s “brazen, utterly shameless” rip-off of his television series Fawlty Towers, from which it has been profiting for decades.

The Australian company Interactive Theatre International has staged its Faulty Towers the Dining Experience in London, most cities in Australia and other destinations around the world since 1997.

Upcoming dates include Dubai, Singapore and Melbourne from 12-17 April for the city’s international comedy festival, with performances fetching for close to $100 a head for the three-course meal and two-hour interactive show.

Tickets for its residency at the Amba Hotel Charing Cross in London range from £47 (A$87) to £64 (A$119).

According to Cleese, Interactive Theatre International and its associated entities has not sought permission from him or his Fawlty Towers cowriter Connie Booth to use the characters, situations and names associated with the show.

Though he has known of the stage show’s existence for a year, he said on Twitter on Wednesday he had “no idea” of its “astonishing financial success”.

John Cleese (@JohnCleese) I've just found out from an Aussie journalist the astonishing financial success of the 'Faulty Towers Rip-Off Dining Experience'.Had no idea

“Seems they thought that by not asking, and by changing the ‘w’ to a u’, they’d be in the clear! Hilarious,” he tweeted.



He quoted a defence of the “excellent” theatre show, adding “I never heard anything was wrong with the show.

“After all, they start with a lot of advantages: the basic concept ... 40 years of unpaid publicity, the characters’ personalities, the characters’ names, the characters’ stress, the characters’ dialogue ... twelve funny episodes to which they make reference, plus all the catch-phrases, without the need to pay Connie Booth and me a single cent.”

Cleese told Fairfax from New Zealand on Wednesday that Interactive Theatre International has been operating for 20 years “without paying us a penny, they could well owe us a very significant amount”.

“They didn’t ask our permission and we didn’t know it was happening on this scale. If little groups are making some money that’s not a problem, but this is entirely different.”

Faulty Towers the Dining Experience bills itself as an “internationally acclaimed ... loving tribute to the BBC’s best-loved sitcom”.

The “loving tribute” line is reiterated in a disclaimer, which clarifies Cleese and Booth’s roles as the writers of the series and adds: “Their original TV scripts are not used in Faulty Towers the Dining Experience.”

Nine teams of cast work from England and Australia and tour around 20 countries a year; the show’s six-nights-a-week residency at the Amba Hotel Charing Cross is also in its fourth year in London’s West End.

In a statement to Fairfax Media, Alison Pollard-Mansergh, founder and artistic director of Interactive Theatre International, rejected Cleese’s comments as “misleading and inaccurate”.

The stage version of Cleese’s show, Fawlty Towers Live, will make its world premiere in Sydney in August.

Cleese told Fairfax he was considering pursuing legal action against Interactive Theatre International’s iteration before its debut.

“Now that Fawlty Towers is about to happen as a proper stage show and producers are investing money in what is a risky enterprise, we certainly don’t want other shows out there confusing people,” he said.

“These people are completely brazen, utterly shameless. The awful thing about our society is that shameless people get away with things – look at [Donald] Trump.

“They take our concepts, they take our characters, they take our characters’ names and then they change the ‘w’ to a ‘u’ and say it’s got nothing to do with our show.”

He remarked on the irony of Interactive Theatre International’s “aggressive” attempts to protect the copyright of its stage show: “It’s absolutely wonderful!”