By Ogunbayi Beedee Adeyemi October 28, 2025
adeyemi@ddnewsonline.com
British actress Prunella Scales, beloved for her iconic role as the imperious Sybil Fawlty in the classic sitcom Fawlty Towers, has died peacefully at her London home aged 93, her family confirmed Tuesday.
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“Our darling mother Prunella Scales died peacefully at home in London yesterday,” her sons, actors Samuel and Joseph West, said in a statement shared with the PA news agency. They added poignantly that she had been watching episodes of Fawlty Towers the day before her passing, a fitting tribute to the show that defined much of her career.
Scales, born Prunella Margaret Rumney Illingworth on June 22, 1932, in Sutton Abinger, Surrey, rose to international fame in the 1970s as the snobbish, gossip-loving wife of the hapless hotelier Basil Fawlty (played by John Cleese) in the BBC’s Fawlty Towers. The series, which ran for just two seasons from 1975 to 1979, is widely regarded as one of the greatest British comedies, with its 12 episodes still drawing millions of viewers worldwide. Scales’ portrayal of Sybil delivered with impeccable comic timing and a signature nasal whine earned her enduring acclaim as a “national treasure.”
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Scales’ professional journey began in the 1950s after training at the Old Vic Theatre School. She made her TV debut in a 1952 BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice as Lydia Bennet and gained early prominence in the 1960s sitcom Marriage Lines opposite Richard Briers. Her theatre credits were equally illustrious, including a standout performance as Ermengarde in the 1955 London premiere of Thornton Wilder’s The Matchmaker and a BAFTA-nominated turn as Queen Elizabeth II in Alan Bennett’s 1991 drama A Question of Attribution.
Later roles showcased her versatility: she starred as Miss Elizabeth Mapp in the 1985-86 BBC adaptation of E.F. Benson’s Mapp & Lucia, voiced characters in radio comedies, and even portrayed Queen Victoria in a one-woman stage show. Scales received numerous honors, including a CBE in 1992, the Freedom of the City of London in 1999, and honorary doctorates from the universities of Bradford and East Anglia.
In her later years, Scales became an advocate for dementia awareness after her 2013 diagnosis with vascular dementia. Alongside her husband of 61 years, actor Timothy West who passed away in November 2024 at 90 she co-hosted the Channel 4 travel series Great Canal Journeys from 2014 to 2019. The show, which explored Britain’s waterways and beyond, offered an intimate glimpse into their enduring love and her health struggles, earning praise for its honesty. At the time of West’s death, Samuel West revealed his mother was “not well enough to take it all in,” highlighting the disease’s toll.
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The news prompted an outpouring of grief from the entertainment world. John Cleese, her Fawlty Towers co-star, shared an emotional tribute on X (formerly Twitter): “Prunella was a really wonderful comic actress. Scene after scene she was absolutely perfect.” BBC comedy director Jon Petrie called her “a national treasure whose brilliance as Sybil Fawlty lit up screens and still makes us laugh today.”
Broadcaster Gyles Brandreth remembered her as “a funny, intelligent, interesting, gifted human being,” sharing photos from a 2024 event with Queen Camilla. Alzheimer’s Society interim CEO Corinne Mills praised Scales’ openness: “Prunella was an inspiration… shining an important light on the UK’s biggest killer. We are profoundly grateful for the awareness she helped to raise.”
Fans echoed the sentiment online, with #RIPPrunellaScales trending. “Forever Sybil. A true legend of British stage and screen,” one wrote, while another lamented, “West & Scales reunited. Why was she not made a dame?”
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Scales is survived by her sons Samuel (known for Howard’s End) and Joseph, as well as a stepdaughter from West’s first marriage, seven grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. Her family requested privacy, noting her love for the arts endured to the end.
As tributes continue, Scales’ legacy rooted in laughter, resilience, and quiet advocacy ensures Fawlty Towers will forever echo with her unforgettable voice.
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