Sybil Fawlty
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Sybil Fawlty is a fictional character from the hit BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers. She is played by Prunella Scales.
Personality
As Basil's wife, she's the only character in the series who refers to him by his first name. She is often seen to be a more effective manager of the hotel, making sure Basil either gets certain jobs done or stays out of the way when handling difficult customers. Despite this, however, she rarely participates directly in the running of the hotel; during busy check-in sessions or meal-times, whilst everyone else is busy working around her she's frequently found talking on the phone to one of her friends (usually 'Audrey', who makes a rare on-camera appearance in The Anniversary) with her memorable "I knoooooooow", or chatting to customers.She is characterised by an unarguably annoying conversational tone and laugh, which her husband compares to 'someone machine-gunning a seal'. Basil also refers to her by a number of epithets, occasionally to her face: these include "the dragon", "toxic midget", "my little nest of vipers", "my little piranha fish", "my little commandant" and — memorably — "a rancorous, coiffured old sow".
Sybil and Basil never directly express love for one another, this is mostly of Basil's doing, as he never seems to be capable of courtesy towards his wife, as she often hints at in return, especially in the episode: The Anniversary, where she cries upon realising that Basil has forgotten their fifteenth wedding anniversary. They are incapable of expressing intimate love for one another, and therefore fail constantly.
Sybil is the archetypal nagging wife, getting in the way of Basil 'enjoying himself' when he squabbles with the guests, forcing him to do unnecessary chores (notable examples of this appear in the episodes A Touch of Class and The Germans). She will sometimes flirt with guests (notably Mr. Johnson (Nicky Henson) in The Psychiatrist).
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