Comedy goddess? Definitely. National tax? Sure. But could Sybil the wasp, immortalized in the iconic Fawlty Towers, ever be described as a “piece of a babe”?
Well Suzanna Hughes who hails from Muswell Hill and plays the doyenne in the show’s delightfully fantastic spin-off, The Faulty Towers Dining Experiencereally think so.
“If you watch the episodes again, Sybil was a chick,” says Suzanna. “She loved a drink, she loved a chat, she loved a flirt – and my Sybil likes it too. Sybil was just always stony in front of Basil and come on, she had her reasons… but to everyone else she was a social butterfly .Sybil is actually a lot of fun, and I think she and Audrey (Sybil’s best friend in the series) had many a cracking night out.
It is not only Suzanna who loves Sybil. Half a century after the original series aired, our appetites for Basil, Manuel and Sybil’s antics are brilliantly satiated by its unique spin-off, Faulty Towers The Dining Experience.
Born in Australia in 1997, and having celebrated its 11th birthday in the West End, the show has become a global phenomenon in its own right, with audiences wanting not only to watch, but to be part of an evening of comedy gold – washed down with a delicious three-course dinner.
“It’s so chaotic and it’s just ridiculously stupid,” laughs Suzanna. “I think there’s a bit of humor for everybody. You don’t have to stand up and shout and be particularly loud – you can sit back, watch the others and enjoy it because it’s so well done.
“We’re kind of universal. I think even if guests have never seen an episode — and we get a lot of that because family members are brought in — they still enjoy it because it’s that slapstick comedy.”
“The show is always different,” she explains. “Even though we have a script and a storyline, so much of what we use is from the audience, and they also set the mood. If you have a nice, gentle Saturday matinee crowd that attracts families, it’s going to be a different show than a raunchy Friday night straight from the pub or celebrating the 40th birthday.
“Because we’re so interactive and immersive, we get to know the audience. We take little bits and pieces and use them in the show. It keeps it really fresh and exciting.”
These unscripted moments have included marriage proposals and a very special lady.
– We have had a couple of proposals, says Suzanna. “My first one was at the Cardiff Millennium Center and the groom wrote that he wanted to propose to his girlfriend and could we incorporate that. I found out their song was Together in Electric Dreams so I started singing it during the main course. I said ‘this song mean something to someone here’ and he said ‘yes we’ and got down on one knee and proposed I’m about as romantic as a clothesline but even I stirred a bit.
“Another time we were at the Theater Royal in Newcastle, and there was a lady who went to every single production there – and had done for 50 or 60 years. She was celebrating her 102nd birthday. If Sybil finds out it’s a birthday she gives them a gift.And that gift is the gift of song.
“I was talking to her and she actually produced a trumpet so I spent the whole show pretending to call the trumpet down. I sang ‘happy birthday’ to her, and she absolutely loved it – it was such a lovely moment. She was my favorite audience ever.”
Sybil has been so constant that it shouldn’t be a huge surprise that she “shared” one of Suzanna’s most special days.
“My parents used to watch Fawlty Towers, so I was a bit of a fan and strangely enough, me and my husband – who was my boyfriend at the time – used to always say ‘wouldn’t it be funny if we got married and had people sitting down to the Fawlty Towers’ theme song. Well, we ended up having the Fawlty Towers theme song at our wedding.”
Suzanna has been touring the world as Sybil for the past 12 years, and despite the stresses and strains of life on the road, she doesn’t plan on hanging up her wig anytime soon.
“The benefit of making people laugh, there’s nothing like it, it’s so special,” she says.
“And every time you get a round of applause, it’s really lovely, and we’re so grateful and appreciative. I wouldn’t want to do anything else. It’s always been such a big part of my life. Even if I stop doing these shows tomorrow – which I won’t do – then I really like Sybil, she’s a chick!”
Faulty Towers The Dining Experience is at the President Hotel,Guilford St, London.To find out more or Book tickets, visit www.interactivetheatre.com.au//faulty-towers-the-dining-experience
