Fawlty Towers has been named as the greatest British sitcom of all time, beating the likes of Father Ted, Blackadder and Peep Show.
A list of the 20 best British sitcoms has been compiled by a panel of television experts.
The TV boffins credited John Cleese's performance as the highly-strung Basil Fawlty, proprietor of a sub-par Torquay hotel, for the success of the hit show.
Speaking to the Radio Times, who commissioned the list, co-writer and co-star Connie Booth said: "Fawlty Towers succeeds, I think, because it allows infantile rage and aggression a field day in a buttoned down, well-mannered English society.
"It's unique in being a farce, with all the plot surprises and precision that the style requires.
Advertisement
"And it doesn't hurt that the star of the show is a six-foot-five comic genius.
"If he was shorter I can't imagine how it would have worked."
More from Ents & Arts
:: You decide – What is Britain's best sitcom?
Cleese added: "I was very lucky to be working at the BBC when decisions were taken by people who had actually made programmes.
"What a cast. I'm proud we are up there with Porridge and Only Fools and Ab Fab and Blackadder and The Office and Reggie Perrin and The Thick of It."
Sky News
[contfnewc] [contfnewc]
