Stepping into the shoes of Sybil Fawlty has given Donna Gray comedy inspiration, as she tells Katherine MacAlister

Donna Gray has discovered she can do stand-up.

Not an unusual development for someone specialising in comedy you might think, but for her a eureka moment. It’s all thanks to Sybil Fawlty, into whom’s nylon clothes she slips every week.

Currently reigning supreme in Faulty Towers The Dining Experience, Sybil is coming to Wantage and you are invited to partake, and enjoy being served by Basil, Sybil and Manuel.

“It’s like being on the set of Fawlty Towers, in the restaurant, which means that no one ever knows what to expect,” Donna smiles. “We like to think of it as the 13th episode, because only 12 episodes were made.”

So successful is the act that the show has a permanent West End residency, and has seen Donna performing as far afield as Barbados, Portugal, Norway and the Netherlands, with a Scandanavian tour planned for the summer.

So do they get the humour over there?

“They all grew up with it. They had subtitles but it means they still understand the intonations and jokes and so absolutely love it. They often finish the punchlines and I can often hear people saying the lines.”

Big shoes to step into though? “I did a lot of research and watched old videos of Sybil over and over again to make sure I got her body language and tone right, but I’m not a mimic, I’m an actress so this is my take on Sybil. I base it on how Prunella Scales would play Sybil on stage. Because Sybil is larger than life and gets away with absolute murder by being incredibly rude with a smile.”

Oxford Mail:
Donna Gray as Sybil Fawlty

And do the cast get on? “There is so much chemistry between the characters because Sybil is in charge of Basil who’s in charge of Manuel, and Sybil is always the one who comes in and upsets the apple cart,” Donna says proudly. “So there is some great banter.”

Gathering rave reviews wherever it goes the show is one-third scripted and two-thirds improvised, ensuring it’s fresh and novel while keeping the actors on their toes. But once the mains are cleared, Sybil finds herself centre stage with a 10-minute improv slot to fill, which she has made her own.

As a result when she’s not playing Sybil you can find Donna wowing the crowds at various comedy festivals in her newest guise as Pamela Permanent Wave, which is going down a storm: “I’ve just started my own one woman show and appeared in Brighton last weekend. It turns out I’m quite quick and witty,” she laughs. So how did it go? “It’s definitely got legs and had great feedback from the audience so I’m going to pursue my comedy career, alongside Sybil, because I do love Sybil.”

Presumably Sybil makes swift work of any hecklers. “She’d just swipe them with a fish slice, although I have a few lines up my sleeve. We have had people removed in the past who get too drunk and a bit touchy feely. But otherwise if anyone gets a bit lairy and pompous, we just try to outsmart them. Sybil’s good at that.”

SEE IT
Faulty Towers The Dining Experience with a three-course lunch or dinner is at The Beacon in Wantage on Saturday June 14. Tickets are £40 per person, eight per table.
See cornerstone-arts.org or call 01235 515144.