Join Basil, Sybil and Manuel for dinner

The Faultytowers Dining Experience returns to Canterbury after sell-out dates across the world.

The Gulbenkian Theatre in Canterbury has tickets for a September performance of the hit show, which pays tribute to the classic BBC sitcom featuring chaotic hotelier Basil Fawlty.

A performance earlier this week had sold out quickly and early booking for the autumn visit is recommended.

Faulty Towers sees audience members sit for a three-course meal as the largely unscripted theatrics unfold before them.

Waited on by the characters Basil, Sybil and Manuel, the audience can expect “highly improvised and site-specific comedy theatre at its best”, say promoters.

The idea was conceived in Brisbane in 1997 and made its international debut in 2008 at the Edinburgh Fringe – where it has sold out every year since. It opened a residency in London’s West End in October 2012 and continues to draw crowds to this day.

The show has also enjoyed a sell-out season in Sydney Opera House. It has also courted controversy, with Monty Python star John Cleese – creator of Fawlty Towers – branding it a rip-off. Earlier this year he hinted he was considering legal action after learning the producers were thought to rake in £1m a year with the Dining Experience. Among many angry tweets, Cleese had said: “I had never realised that ‘tribute’ is a synonym for ‘rip-off’.” Producers have defended their show, saying: “It is a shame he has chosen to air his frustrations so publicly rather than contacting us directly.”

Faulty Towers The Dining Experience will be on Wednesday, September 14. Tickets are £40, including three-course meal. Visit www. thegulbenkian.co.uk or call 01227 769075.