The first two episodes released did not feature him at all, as the dialogue was edited and a short burst of piano music would indicate a change of scene.

[citation needed] Manuel is a well-meaning but dim, disorganised, and constantly confused Spanish waiter from Barcelona with a limited grasp of the English language and customs.

Sybil also appears to hold Manuel in low esteem, dryly remarking, "It'd be quicker to train a monkey."

He is known for his passionate patriotism, amplified in "The Anniversary" when he tries to make Terry the chef let him cook a seafood paella to his mother's recipe.

The episode also highlights the fact that Manuel is rather dim even without the language barrier, as he lets the rat out of its cage for some exercise (which leads to the rat ending up loose in the hotel), manages to spell "Spleep" from S-L-E-E-P, and pronounces cholesterol as "costellorol", even though the two words are quite similar in English and Spanish (colesterol).

In the Catalan TV3 channel (based in Barcelona), Manuel's origin was changed to Mexico City and the character has a Mexican accent.

In scenes in which Manuel appears there are several references to Spain, and to General Franco, who was still alive when the first six episodes of the show were broadcast.

Since the Catalan version was broadcast in 1986, eleven years after Francisco Franco's death, the dubbing of Manuel says "Dead!"