Interview: 'You're Having a Mental Breakdown Eight Times a Week!': Actor Danny Bayne on Finding Truth in Comedy and Going on Tour with FAWLTY TOWERS - THE PLAY

After a run on the West End last year, Fawlty Towers - The Play has returned to London, performing for a limited time at the Apollo Theatre before it tours the UK until next July. The play, written by John Cleese and Connie Booth and directed by Caroline Jay Ranger, combines three episodes from the iconic series, with Cleese writing an exclusive ending for the stage that brings everything together. 

Recently, we had the chance to chat with Danny Bayne, who is playing Basil Fawlty. We discussed what it was like growing up as a fan of comedies like Fawlty Towers, what he’s looking forward to on tour and why he thinks it’s important that the cast on stage aren’t simply doing impressions of their screen predecessors. 

What made you want to be part of Fawlty Towers - The Play? Had you been a fan of the show?

Oh, my god, of course! Since I was a kid. I'm from South East London, so where I grew up, Only Fools and Horses and Fawlty Towers were regular appearances on our television. And Fawlty Towers . . . you couldn't have told me there was only twelve episodes. When I was a kid, I thought I was always watching something new! I dread to think how many times I've seen every episode, and they're never not funny.

When the chance came along, I played a character called Mr. Walt, who's lovely. It's a lovely track - talk terribly well and deal with wine! Then I covered Basil. But I'm Basil now, which is wonderful! So the last show I did as the cover, John Cleese came and sat in the box. So that was a terrifying audition - just 850 people watching you, and John Cleese!

No pressure!

But luckily, when you put the work in and you do the thing, then you are able to rise. Now I'm doing this, which is marvellous.

And what has it been like to be returning to Fawlty Towers on the West End?

It's been great! Honestly, first and foremost, the director, Caroline Jay Ranger, she's lovely. In rehearsal, she creates a really nice atmosphere, which is the most important thing. Anyone that does this for a living would tell you the atmosphere is really important, especially when you're trying to create in comedy. If it's all serious all the time, nothing's funny. It needs to be fun and playful. She creates a really nice environment, and she's cast just a bunch of really lovely people. And I mean that sincerely! They’re just a great bunch of people, which has made it a lot easier. It means that we can create and play every day, which makes the job really fun.

It's a marvellous job, and I am looking forward to going on tour. The only downside I have is I'm away from my family during the week, because I live in Somerset. But we still get two and a half day weekends, so I still get to spend plenty of time with my family, and they come down to London a lot. It's a great job. I feel very blessed and lucky, but, at the same time, I have worked really hard for a really long time, and it's lovely to have a job like this.

What is it like to be in stage adaptations of iconic works like Fawlty Towers and Only Fools and Horses?

Obviously, there's a massive pressure that comes with it, but it's lovely. People say lovely things to you, because you're a connection between people's parents and their children.  So that's wonderful, but it's also a lot of pressure, because you want to deliver.

At the end of the day, we're not doing this for us, we're doing it for the people that pay to come. A comedy without laughter is rubbish, so it requires an audience. And so it's really lovely, but it's a pressure, because people expect to see John Cleese on stage! John Cleese is 85 years old and he's hilarious still, but he can't run around. I mean, I can barely do it at 37 - it kills me! My legs feel like they're going to fall off by the end of the week.

But it's a marvellous job. People come up to you and say, “You did such a good impersonation!” And I'm like, “That's very kind of you.” But, from an actor's perspective, if I was trying to do an impersonation of John Cleese, I would be rubbish. So I have to take his physicality, the way he sounds, where he's from, the ex-Army background, all that information, and then create that. And the great thing is, when you have all the information, that's what comes out, because you've done all the backstory. So we were given all the information, it goes in, and you end up becoming that. I don't think I'm good enough for impersonations to be that good without the information. The information is everything!

Do you have any favourite scenes from the show?

Oh, yeah, loads! But I must say, there's things I love that I'm not in. Like Manuel [Hemi Yeroham] is answering the phone, and then he ducks down. As he ducks down, the Major [Paul Nicholas] walks on, and he thinks he's talking to the moose’s head, which is not attached to anything - it's just marvellous!

And then, in terms of physical comedy, The Germans. It's like its own little one-act play in the show, because you've been bonked on the head, so you come back on stage as essentially someone else, with a brain that's not quite functioning properly. It's really fun, because the rest of the time you're slightly unhinged and annoyed and angry, because Basil hates hotel guests, and he runs a hotel, which is always a problem! But that section, the Germans . . . I love it. I just get to look at the other actor's eyes, and they're all like, “What's he going to do now? I don't know!” There's no plan! I have my staging, I have everything, but when people talk to me, whatever's going to happen is going to happen. 

I wouldn't have expected being able to play a bit more. That's great!

In musicals I've done in the past, especially if you're an iteration of a cast that's previously been, it can very easily become, “Stand on seven, say the line like this, then move to three, and the arm has to be here, not here.” Whereas with this, because it's a play and a farce, it requires truth to be funny. I know it sounds silly because it's Fawlty Towers and it seems so maddening, but if it was just silly, it wouldn't be funny.

It's all bed in truth, because the people are all people you know. The hotel guests are all versions of people. It might be elevated slightly for stage, but it’s by no means pastiche. It's by no means a cartoon. It has to be real. 

It's interesting how it does feel stressful, but it's still hilarious. I can't even imagine what you're all are going through on stage!

And that's the thing - if you don't go through it properly, people don't believe it! So you have to go through it, which means you're essentially having a mental breakdown eight times a week, which I'm sure, for my personal health, is not great, but for the laughter aspect of the show, it's marvellous.

And what are you looking forward to with bringing Fawlty Towers - The Play on tour?

I've toured before, but I haven't since about twelve years ago now! I'm looking forward to seeing the country again. I love going to Liverpool, I love going to Manchester . . . I've got friends in other places, so I'll get to see people that I don't usually get to see because I'm a parent and a working professional. So that's nice. And then also, when you're in London, people tend to want to go home, whereas when you're on tour, maybe you'll go for a nice meal or a drink with the cast afterwards. And that's always a nice thing to do as well, just to be with people you love and then entertain people all around the country.

And, most importantly, there's a lot of people in the country that can't afford to go all the way to London, because going to London means the ticket price is higher than general. Then you'll probably need a train, then a meal, so you end up spending hundreds of pounds, whereas we can come to you, and it's the same cast that's coming to you. You're our audience, we love you, so we're going to come to you and give you a good night. 

And finally, how would you describe Fawlty Towers - The Play in one word?

Escapism. Let's not go into details, but with the world being a little bit mad at the moment, and a lot of people being very angry and very upset - and rightfully so - it's nice to just take the edge off for a couple of hours. Go back to basics. Smile, have a drink. Have a good night with the people you love. Escapism.

Fawlty Towers - The Play runs until 13 September at the Apollo Theatre and then tours the UK from 30 September - July 2026. 

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