BBC comedy boss says “we’d love to talk to John Cleese about reviving ‘Fawlty Towers'” as he unveils next generation of ‘very British’ shows

BBC comedy director Jon Petrie said his team would like to speak to John Cleese about the events ahead FawltyTowers Revival as next generation of ‘very British’ shows unveiled

Cleese has already said the surprise revival he is doing with daughter Camilla Cleese and Rob Reiner’s Castle Rock Entertainment will not appear on the BBC because the British broadcaster will not give him enough editorial freedom.

But speaking to a BBC Comedy Showcase on Tuesday, Petrie described the original BBC FawltyTowers as a “legendary show” and said he was open to discussion.

“We found out [the Fawlty Towers revival] while everyone else did,” he added. “I don’t know if it will work for us and we haven’t spoken to John Cleese, but of course it’s a legendary show and we’d love to talk to John if he wants to talk about it.”

Widely regarded as the greatest British comedy of all time, Cleese’s revival, which aired more than 40 years ago, will see his over-the-top misanthrope Basil Fawlty navigate the modern world in a “little byou hotel” in the Caribbean.

In recent years, the now arch-enemy 83-year-old has repeatedly criticized the BBC for not showing repeats Monty Python And Fawlty Towers, while he plans to host a program for the right-wing British network GB News, which will defend freedom of expression.

“Very British” comedy

After nearly 18 months in the role, Petrie turned to the press as he revealed a line-up of seven comedies, including Catherine Tate’s queen of oz, black operations from the makers of FamalamThatcher era show Get rid of Martin Parker And Dream while black which is produced by Big Deal Films and supported by A24.

Despite stiff competition from rival networks and US streamers, he said the shows, none of which are co-produced, “feel very British” as he celebrated a “huge” 2022 in which more than 500 million iPlayer requests for BBC comedy listed. .

“I don’t think you’re going to find that among streamers or competitors,” he added. “All SVOD players are comedy-backed, but iPlayer is unique in that it’s British comedy-backed – British comedy for a British audience.”

Identification of the will of bandits with Amazon Prime Video and star struck With HBO Max, Petrie said he remains open to US co-productions, but projects “have to work for a British audience”.

Still, he “prioritises British talent” amid the possibility of American writers seeking work in the UK in the coming months due to the looming writers’ strike.

When asked if sketch shows could work at the BBC, Petrie said “the bar is set high” and the subgenre is “expensive”. The company only gave the green light to sketch shows in recent years Famalam And Ellie and Natalia of Stath rents apartments Duo Ellie White and Natasia Demetriou.

Petrie also emphasized the contemporary nature of his new comic roster.

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“Nothing in comedy should be left untouched,” he added. “You should be able to look at all aspects of life as long as it’s fun and treated appropriately.”

Four of the seven comedies were written by women in a traditionally male-dominated field, but Petrie said the move was “not intentional”.

Petrie joined the BBC in 2021 after working on Charlie Brooker’s Broke & Bones and Stath rents apartments Indie rough TV.