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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Spells &amp; Karma" data-source="post: 438828" data-attributes="member: 23">Oh, that's funny. I'd forgotten this one was next. From the beginning I was very curious to know your reaction to this one because you'd already seen Snavely. As I mentioned earlier in the thread, my view on it is biased by familiarity with the original version, so I wasn't sure how much better you'd feel it was. I'm pretty chuffed to read your conclusion.And it came from someone who - eccentric as he was - did not seem initially like the type who would thump someone.(As a Gen-X Brit, the actor playing Mr Hutchison - Bernard Cribbins - was well-known to many of my age for reading storybooks on pre-school series Jackanory, and for narrating the gentle animated series The Wombles).Yes, the execution is quite wonderful. One look in the wrong (or right) direction would have ruined it.On the subject of getting it wrong, a favourite scene of mine (of the entire series) is this episode's "corked wine" sequence, where Fawlty struggles to uncork the wine only to find out that it's bad. It went up even further in my estimation when I found out that there was a technical error which was left in because the actors went with it.Once uncorked, the wine was supposed to pour, but John Cleese had difficulty removing the cork for real during the take, so the wine came out as a tiny trickle, then a ferocious glug, ending up all over the table. John Cleese spoke about it in the commentary, and was very grateful for the professionalism of James Cossins who remained perfectly in character as he was battling with the prop. [MEDIA=youtube]2o3EUVht1G0[/MEDIA] One scene from a much later episode springs to mind which may shed a little light in this area (even if not definitively), but I'm enjoying your detective work in the meantime.It's quirky, isn't it?  I have encountered this higgledy-piggledy layout from time to time, mostly in older buildings such as hotels (and, yes, homes that were build in the Victorian/Georgian eras). For a time I worked in an office in a very old building that had been a grand old house, converted to offices and accommodation. The loo was a floor up, then there were several more steps from the landing up to the door  and I think there were then steps down upon entry to the room. You're not the first to have wondered, and there are topics to be found online such as <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/comments/8clljw/eli5_what_is_the_purposemeaning_of_the_extra_bit/" target="_blank">this Reddit</a> which delve into it a little.I'm trying - and failing  - to remember if John Cleese said anything about this in the audio commentaries and feel sure he must have done, but I think the short answer is that as well as a degree of accuracy of such buildings it also adds to the chaos.Many Brits would join you there. The reference is almost certainly considered archaic now.I haven't read the strips or seen the films myself and only know of the character from hearing it referenced in relation to a certain character archetype. A close 21st Century equivalent would be the controversial term "gammon".</blockquote>

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