A FAULTY TOWERS DINNER

 It is our village's eleventh birthday so the admin and dinner committee put on a special celebratory dinner this month. We assembled outside the community centre at 5:30 and we were shown to our seats by the Fawlty Towers Characters, Basil, Sybil, and Manuel. "Fawlty Towers" was a famous English sitcom in the late 1970's. Basil and his wife Sybil ran a guest house in Torquey in England. It was hilarious and not politically correct for these days. John Cleese, Prunella Scales and Andrew Sachs were the actors for the main characters and they were so funny you had tears running down your face.

Now days there are theatre groups which have impersonators entertaining you at dinners. Many of the original skits took place in the dinning room where Manuel from Barcelona is learning English and how to be a waiter. Basil and Sybil are continuously bickering at one another while Basil is often making gaffs.

So last night at our special monthly dinner in the village we were entertained by these actors trying to serve us nuts, bread rolls and butter in the most unconventional ways like tossing them at us or emptying the crate of rolls onto the table. They kept us laughing in between courses. Basil continuing to try to train Manuel to be a waiter. Manuel keeps misunderstanding Basil's English instructions. Sybil keeps telling off Basil.

Eddie, Caren our village friends and us.

150 of us getting seated.

Manuel shows guests to their seats.  That is if he can find their table, (we are allocated table numbers)

Our managing director and owner of the village also greets the residents.

Basil and Sybil have a joke with Bill.

Manuel serves the rolls.

The Pumpkin and Leek soup was served by the High School catering students with Manuel's help.

Students and teachers of Rochdale High School help out.

Sybil is screaming I've lost my false teeth. A guest complains about the soup. Basil checks and finds her false teeth in the soup.

Sybil orders Manuel to wait on the tables. He jumps on the table and starts singing Spanish songs. Basel yells at him, "What are yo doing?" Manuel says , "She told me to wait here on table."

There is a skit about Manuel having a pet hamster, which is actually a rat. Basil explodes and says, "You can't have a rat in the kitchen!" Manuel argues, "It not rat it hamster!"

Main course was Chicken Kiev with beetroot medley, pureed peas and roast potatoes.

Dessert was Tiramisu

Our residents' chairperson, thanks the students and chefs.