Frightening creature seen if Mr Fawlty is king? (8)
I believe the answer is:
basilisk
'frightening creature seen' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this definition defines the answer.
'mr fawlty is king?' is the wordplay.
'mr fawlty' becomes 'basil' (I've seen this before).
'king?' becomes 'K' (abbreviation for king in chess).
'basil'+'is'+'k'='BASILISK'
'if' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for basilisk that I've seen before include "By the look of it, killer" , "Cockatrice" , "Mythic serpent able to kill with its breath or glance" , "Lethal snake of mythology" , "Mythical monster" .)