Major Gowen
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Major Gowen was a fictional character played by veteran actor Ballard Berkeley in the hit BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers.
Major Gowen is an old, somewhat senile ex-soldier who holds a permanent residence in the hotel. He enjoys talking about the world outside (especially the cricket scores and bemoaning workers' strikes) and is always on the lookout for the newspaper. He seems to have trouble forgiving the Germans due to the World Wars. In the episode "The Germans," he distinguishes at length between West Indians, who he refers to as "niggers", and Indians, who he refers to as "wogs".
The Major often hangs around the bar, as Basil said rather viciously, he is a drunken old sod. Despite this, most staff and residents tend to think of him in a fond manner. The Major's tendency to forget, confuse and muddle situations often leads Basil into a deeper farce. His eccentricity tends to lead him to astronomically preposterous ideas, including believing that Basil's moose could talk (Manuel was dusting behind it), and losing Basil's money, which he won from a bet on a horse.
Major Gowen has one memorable catchphrase: Have the papers arrived yet, Fawlty? - which he says often (including, on one occasion, with his newspaper folded under his arm). However, popular culture often remembers Basil's line "Ah, morning Major" as the most quotable epithet. John Cleese said that the Major was based on his old Latin teacher at school, whom he recollects with fond rose-tinted nostalgia.
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