‘Fawlty Towers’ Stage Play Won’t Have Racial Slurs, John Cleese Says: ‘The Literal-Minded Don’t Understand Irony’

20 comments

1. “Because literal-minded people don’t understand metaphor, irony or comic exaggeration. People who are not literal-minded can see there’s various different interpretations, depending on different contexts.”

   Say it out loud again, John!

2. Maybe it’s just not funny to use racial slurs fifty years later? Maybe it was never that funny to begin with?

3. Another old man complains that society is evolving with the passing of time.

   Join the queue.

4. I haven’t seen Fawlty Towers in about 20-something years, and I don’t remember any racial slurs. So, this probably tells me it’s not vital to the premise of the show. Not sure why that would be a hill to die on.

5. No no, we get irony. We just appreciate good irony.

6. I feel like the premise of the entire show is dated. You don’t even get little hotels like that anymore… It’s all premier inn and Airbnb.

   I’m sure it’ll be fine, live shows do have the benefit of a good atmosphere, but Peter Kay could make it cry with laughter because everything he said you had experienced

7. [removed]

8. This something I see more often as I’ve aged (almost 50). People who do something * acting, sports, comedy, singing, etc * seem to become toddler-brained once their way of doing the thing is no longer preferred.

   “Why can’t people just like what was done 40 years ago??!!”

   They become whining toddlers instead of just accepting that they had their time and only old people care about old people.

9. Instead of self-censoring your art and whining about it, just put out the product you want and see if there’s an audience for it.

   Unless it’s just about the money, of course. Then maybe consider you’re just a sellout.

10. The small-minded don’t know how to be funny without being racist…

11. So sad when someone you enjoy shows his true face.

12. Are the “literal-minded” in the room with us right now, John?

13. I don’t like whining about pc culture from old people but I 1000% agree with “The Literal-Minded Don’t Understand Irony”

14. As long as they don’t mention the war, it should all be fine.

15. I don’t know how to feel about this guy, Fawlty towers was funny but he really doesn’t seem to like us Irish people and it could stretch to other ethnicities also. Offensive humour is fine when it’s done right but his negative views on Irish people seem to stretch into his personal opinions rather than his actual comedy

16. I respect Cleese for all he’s done for comedy but he’s been polar opposite to me in the past twenty years in opinions.
    You can be funny without punching down – Billy Connelly was doing it in the 70’s all the way up to the thousands very successfully.
    If you’re complaining about ‘cancel culture’ whilst still having a platform to complain about it – you’re not that cancelled, you’re just shitty people can’t laugh at your low effort jokes anymore.
    Which is insane from Cleese especially because he’s got a giant repertoire of hilarity that doesn’t do that so I just have to result to old man yelling at cloud to understand this – and I’d rather not do that. Between Brexit and his cancel culture shit he’s getting harder and harder to like as a person I still think I genuinely respect.

17. What is he scared of exactly? Every comedian is acting like they got a target on their back but they’re still punking like babies because “liberals don’t get it”. No John, you’re just weak.

18. Seems like it’s an excuse if it doesn’t workout.

19. I do understand removing that scene, especially with the specific words used.

    That said – the scene explicitly showed the Major to be an old, senile, crazy nut job stuck in what many older British types considered the ‘glory days’. It’s not presented as a positive – it’s supposed to be funny because of how clearly batshit and wrong that man is.

    Say what you will about Cleese now, but back in the day his comedy ferociously attacked the British Culture and institutions. This particular scene was a dig at how stupid racist old patriots are.

    So, while I get the words being taken out – he is right. People who view it literally, ignoring the context, are idiots

20. It’s a shame Graham died and Cleese hasn’t