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Michael Palin: "The Pythons Will Rally Round Terry Jones"


Michael Palin Terry Jones Monty Python John Cleese Eric Idle

Michael Palin has said that Terry Jones can count on his fellow Pythons to rally around him following his diagnosis with dementia and speech-limiting aphasia.

Last month Jones revealed he had been diagnosed with the devastating disease and on Sunday he appeared at Bafta Cymru to accept a lifetime achievement award for his contribution to film and television.

Terry Jones and Michael PalinTerry Jones and Michael Palin

Continue reading: Michael Palin: "The Pythons Will Rally Round Terry Jones"

Michael Palin Writes Moving Post After Terry Jones Reveals Dementia Diagnosis


Michael Palin Terry Jones Monty Python

Monty Python star Michael Palin has penned a moving post about his friend and colleague Terry Jones’ dementia diagnosis. Jones’ diagnosis was revealed earlier this week, with a spokesperson for the actor and writer saying he was no longer able to give interviews.

Terry Jones and Michael PalinMichael Palin has written about his friend Terry Jones’ dementia diagnosis

In a Facebook post Palin shared a recent photo of the pair together and wrote: “Terry J has been my close friend and workmate for over fifty years. The progress of his dementia has been painful to watch and the news announced yesterday that he has a type of aphasia which is gradually depriving him of the ability to speak is about the cruellest thing that could befall someone to whom words, ideas, arguments, jokes and stories were once the stuff of life. Not that Terry is out of circulation."

Continue reading: Michael Palin Writes Moving Post After Terry Jones Reveals Dementia Diagnosis

Terry Gilliam Confirms 'Don Quixote' Movie Will Finally Be Made This Year - With Adam Driver To Thank


Terry Gilliam Adam Driver Michael Palin

After nearly twenty years of trying to get it off the ground, director Terry Gilliam claims that he’s finally getting the chance to make his Don Quixote movie – and apparently, the success of the Star Wars movie is to thank for it.

His latest proposal for the project, which has reportedly been unsuccessfully launched on seven separate occasions going back nearly two decades, involves Adam Driver portraying a character based on the Spanish adventurer’s loyal servant Sancho Panza, while Gilliam’s old ‘Monty Python’ colleague Michael Palin is to play Don Quixote himself.

Terry GilliamTerry Gilliam at the Cannes Film Festival 2016

Continue reading: Terry Gilliam Confirms 'Don Quixote' Movie Will Finally Be Made This Year - With Adam Driver To Thank

Monty Python And The Holy Grail - 40th Anniversary Trailer


The comedians behind Monty Python have turned into household names and The Holy Grail is potentially their most loved piece. Having been commissioned by the BBC in 1969 Terry Gilliam, John Cleese, Michael Palin, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Graham Chapman began shooting scenes for a sketch show under the name of Monty Python's Flying Circus. The 45 episodes were full of surreal comedy which each and every one soon became cult classics.

Continue: Monty Python And The Holy Grail - 40th Anniversary Trailer

They're Very Naughty Boys: Ofcom Probes Monty Python Swearing


John Cleese Michael Palin Terry Gilliam

Communications watchdog Ofcom is investigating the Monty Python live show after bad language was broadcast before the watershed. Many of the complaints about the farewell show on 'Gold' concerned offensive language though some fans had aired their dismay that other areas of swearing were cut.

Monty PythonThe Monty Python live show has come in for criticism

An Ofcom spokesman said: "After receiving complaints about the broadcast of the most offensive language before the watershed, Ofcom is investigating a live performance of Monty Python on Gold."

Continue reading: They're Very Naughty Boys: Ofcom Probes Monty Python Swearing

'The Last Night Of Monty Python' Stage Show To Be Shown In Cinemas


John Cleese Michael Palin Terry Jones Eric Idle Terry Gilliam

This latest announcement will see Monty Python fans simultaneously rejoice and mourn. The bizarre band of innovative comedians will regroup for the final time to perform at London’s O2 arena in July.

Monty Python final tour The five remaining Pythons will perform at London's O2 arena in July

The group, who last performed together in 1980 at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, will be a man down. Original Monty Python member Graham Chapman passed away in 1989, leaving just five out of the initial six person line up.

Continue reading: 'The Last Night Of Monty Python' Stage Show To Be Shown In Cinemas

Michael Palin: "A Lot Of Monty Python Was Crap, It Really Was"


Michael Palin Monty Python John Cleese

Michael Palin, 70, has claimed that much of his pioneering comedy show Monty Python's Flying Circus was "crap". The comedian, writer and broadcaster conceded there had been some "gleaming moments" such as the Dead Parrot and Spanish Inquisition sketches but ultimately admitted that a lot of other material was "not really that good."

Michael PalinMichael Palin Has Called Much of Monty Python "Crap"

"People forgive you the things that don't work. A lot of Python was crap, it really was," he told The Daily Telegraph. "We put stuff in there that was not really that good, but fortunately there were a couple of gleaming things that everyone remembers while they've forgotten the dross."

Continue reading: Michael Palin: "A Lot Of Monty Python Was Crap, It Really Was"

Michael Palin Calls Monty Python "Crap" As Reunion Shows Loom


Michael Palin

Last November (2013) the famed British comedy group announced that they will be reuniting for a series of stage performances to take place this coming July.

Each performance will be held at London's O2 Arena, and will be the very last chance to see all the surviving members together as they have vowed to go their separate ways once it is over.

Even though they are considered one of Britain's most favourable comedy acts, with a career beginning in the 1960's, one of their key members isn't that fond of their own work.

Continue reading: Michael Palin Calls Monty Python "Crap" As Reunion Shows Loom

Monty Python Live Tickets Sell Out In Just 43 Seconds, More Shows Announced


John Cleese Michael Palin Eric Idle Terry Jones Terry Gilliam

The eagerly-awaited Monty Python stage show has been extended from one to five days, scheduled for early July next year. The move to add more live dates to the list came as organisers announced that the first show at London's O2 Arena sold out in 43.5 seconds, according to Sky News, giving modern pop bands a run for their money.

Monty Python Photocall
Tickets For The Monty Python One-Off Show Sold Out Almost Instantly.

However, it's easy to see why there was so much clamouring for tickets when they went on sale early this morning; the shows at the O2 will be the first time the comedy unit have performed together since 2009 when they celebrated their 40th anniversary with a special show in New York.

Continue reading: Monty Python Live Tickets Sell Out In Just 43 Seconds, More Shows Announced

Monty Python Tickets From £25. Showing The Stones How To Do It.


Monty Python John Cleese Eric Idle Michael Palin

News that the surviving members of Monty Python are to reunite for a one-off show at London's O2 Arena in July was met with universal delight in the comedy world this week, though there was an undertone of worry when Eric Idle and John Cleese started throwing the "doing it for the money" jokes around. Would the Monty Python tickets be too expensive for the true fans?

Monty Python reunionThe Monty Python Reunion

"We're getting together and putting on a show - it's real," Terry Jones told the BBC, "I'm quite excited about it. I hope it makes us a lot of money. I hope to be able to pay off my mortgage!"

Continue reading: Monty Python Tickets From £25. Showing The Stones How To Do It.

Monty Python Will Be Back With New Stage Show! Press Conference Scheduled For Today!


Terry Jones Eric Idle John Cleese Michael Palin Terry Gilliam

Earlier this week, Terry Jones announced that he and the surviving Monty Python members will all return to the stage, marking the first time in decades since they were all reunited. Jones' initial statement was followed up by confirmation from Eric Idle, who added that a press conference will be held today (21 Nov.), in which the remaining members - Jones, Idle, John Cleese, Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam - will give further details on the planned stage show.

Monty Python
The group haven't performed together since the 80's

"We're getting together and putting on a show - it's real," Jones told the BBC earlier this week. "I'm quite excited about it. I hope it makes us a lot of money. I hope to be able to pay off my mortgage!"

Continue reading: Monty Python Will Be Back With New Stage Show! Press Conference Scheduled For Today!

Monty Python Reunion Sees Bookies Cutting Odds On New Feature Film


John Cleese Monty Python Eric Idle Michael Palin

News of the Monty Python reunion ripped through the entertainment world on Tuesday (August 19, 2013), with the surviving members of the Flying Circus, John Cleese, 74, Terry Gilliam, 72, Terry Jones, 71, Eric Idle, 70 and Michael Palin, 70, announcing that they are to re-form for stage show after a quarter of a century apart.

"Monty Python is set to be a flying circus all over again", John Cleese posted on Twitter. The news echoed David Bowie's return to music in that it was essentially a great big surprise. 

On Thursday, the original team will reunite on stage at the Playhouse Theatre in London where Spamalot - one of the Python's most successful movies - has delighted audiences for years.

Continue reading: Monty Python Reunion Sees Bookies Cutting Odds On New Feature Film

Monty Python Back Together For Stage Show - Just In Time For Christmas


Michael Palin John Cleese Eric Idle Terry Gilliam Terry Jones

They say timing is everything when it comes to comedy, although that logic applies to more then a well-delivered joke, it would seem. The cast of Monty Python, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones, Eric Idle, and Michael Palin, 70 – otherwise known as Monty Python – are reuniting for a stage show, The Sun reports.

The announcement comes just before Christmas, with tickets no doubt going on sale in time for many dads to see an envelope under the tree come December 25th, but Jones isn’t coy about why he wants to get the gang back together for the show.

"We're getting together and putting on a show - it's real," Jones told the BBC. "I'm quite excited about it. I hope it makes us a lot of money. I hope to be able to pay off my mortgage!"

Continue reading: Monty Python Back Together For Stage Show - Just In Time For Christmas

Producer Of "Monty Python And The Holy Grail" Wins Royalty Lawsuit Against The Comedians


Monty Python Michael Palin Graham Chapman Eric Idle Terry Gilliam Terry Jones

The producer behind Monty Python and the Holy Grail has won the lawsuit against the comedy team, entitling him to one seventh of the profits from Spamalot – a musical, based on the film. Mark Forstater – one of the people behind Monty Python’s 1975 movie, claimed that he was entitled to an equal share of the Spamalot royalties, while the comedians had only paid him half of that – one fourteenth. While those fractions might not sound too profitable, the musical achieved great success on Broadway in 2005 and entitles Forstater to a hefty sum of money.

Monty Python, Spamalot Curtain Call, Broadway
Forstater was entitled to twice the amount he was paid for Spamalot.

The agreement, which was under dispute, was created in 1975 between the producer and Python Pictures. It stated that Forstater was entitled to one seventh of the 50% royalties off any merchandise and spinoff income that the team might receive. Since the musical falls under spinoffs… well that means that there’s a lot more cash in it for Forstater. Justice Norris at the high court ruled that this agreement was valid and that in this case, Forstater should be treated like a full member of the comedy team – or at least be entitled to the respective salary. According to Forstater’s own calculations, said salary amounts to £220,000 plus interest. However, despite the monetary reward, the 69-year-old producer regretted that the lawsuit had cost him his friendship with the comedians.

Continue reading: Producer Of "Monty Python And The Holy Grail" Wins Royalty Lawsuit Against The Comedians

Mark Forstater Wins In Monty Python Royalty Court Case


Michael Palin

Mark Forstater - the producer of the 1975 film Monty Python And The Holy Grail has – has triumphed over the Monty Python team in a battle over royalties. According to Forstater, he was entitled to more than £200,000 since a stage show version of the film kicked off in 2005.

Monty PythonThe musical is still going strong

Python stars Eric Idle, Michael Palin and Terry Jones all gave evidence in the trial, which surrounded the multi Tony Award-winning musical. For "financial purposes" Forstater argued that he should be treated as "the seventh Python" – as per an agreement in 1975, the seventh Python is entitled to 50% of merchandise revenues and spin-off income. And considering the musical was described as "lovingly ripped off" from the 1975 film Holy Grail, it certainly falls under the latter category.

Continue reading: Mark Forstater Wins In Monty Python Royalty Court Case

Michael Palin To Star In WW1 Drama, His First Television Role In 22 Years


Michael Palin Ian Hislop Robert Lindsay Emilia Fox Steve Oram Ben Chaplin

Michael Palin will make his first television acting appearance in over two decades when he lines up alongside Ben Chaplin, Emilia Fox and Steve Oram in BBC Two's World War 1 drama The Wiper Times. The drama is based on the true story of a satirical newspaper produced by soldiers in the trenches.

Michael PalinMichael Palin Will Make His First Dramatic Television Role For 22 Years

The project appears in good hands, with Private Eye editor and Have I Got News For You captain Ian Hislop teaming up with his My Dad's The Prime Minister writing partner Nick Newman on the script. Clearly, Palin is the real coup here and it represents the Monty Python star's first television role since Alan Bleasdale's GBH in 1991, in which he played a school headmaster intimidated by a newly-elected city council leader, played by Robert Lindsay

Continue reading: Michael Palin To Star In WW1 Drama, His First Television Role In 22 Years

A Liar's Autobiography Review


Good

Subtitled "The Untrue Story of Monty Python's Graham Chapman", this outrageously colourful animated movie certainly can't be pigeonholed as a documentary or a biopic, even though there are elements of each. The filmmakers use recordings of Chapman reading the book about his life, then hire teams of animators to create a stream-of-consciousness 3D tribute. It's not particularly easy to follow, and the absurdly Pythonesque approach isn't always successful. But the film is such an oddity that fans won't want to miss it.

Whatever it is, this isn't a straightforward retelling of Chapman's life story, although it does loosely fill in the details, with each chapter animated in a distinctly different style. It begins with his rather odd childhood, followed by his years at Cambridge, where he met Cleese, Palin, Gilliam and Jones and formed Monty Python. Their TV sketch show was launched in 1969, an unexpected hit that propelled them to stardom. Along the way, Chapman determines that he's 70 percent gay, and indulges in all the alcohol and sex he could find. He died at age 48 of throat cancer in 1989.

The film is a riotous collection of animation styles, from stop-motion to paper cut-outs. Woven into these segments are TV clips, movie scenes and interviews from the archives, and the surviving Pythons supply the voices along with special guests like Stephen Fry and, yes, Cameron Diaz. It feels oddly rambling, going down random sideroads and indulging in moments that cross lines of taste and propriety. Some segments are sharp and pointed, while others take too long to get to their punchlines. But maybe these are inside jokes we simply don't understand.

Continue reading: A Liar's Autobiography Review

Arthur Christmas Review


Very Good

This lively holiday romp has a steady stream of sharp verbal and visual gags that hold our interest. Even when the plot stalls in the middle, it's difficult to stop chuckling at the filmmakers' deranged sense of humour.

At the North Pole, Santa (Broadbent) is a bit complacent after 70 years on the job, letting his heir-apparent son Steve (Laurie) convert Christmas Eve into a high-tech black-ops style mission executed with military precision. To Steve, missing one child is an insignificant statistic. But Steve's younger brother Arthur (McAvoy) disagrees, and teams up with his feisty Grandsanta (Nighy) to make sure the last gift is delivered the old fashioned way.

Yes, the film is a riot of clashes between tradition and progress, the wisdom of the years and youthful vigour. Fortunately, the serious themes are subverted, hilariously playing with our expectations and never turning into a nostalgic paean to the olden days. That said, this British production does feel eerily co-opted by Hollywood, from the use of the American "Santa Claus" (no one ever calls him "Father Christmas", which might have made sense of the film's odd title) to the somewhat feeble attempts to ramp up the action and suspense. Not to mention a massive wave of sentimentality at the end.

But even this is undermined by Baynham (Borat) and director Smith's script, which maintains a dry British sense of humour and gives the strong vocal cast plenty of snappy material to play with. While most of the characters are a bit unmemorable, Nighy gets the best lines: Grandsanta as an old coot full of surprises, including some terrific rude jokes and an amusingly animated hound-style old reindeer sidekick. Staunton also has some terrific dialog as the underestimated Mrs Santa.

Visually the film is brightly colourful, amusingly designed with small sight gags and continual Christmas imagery. While the characters look a little plasticky, the settings are gorgeously rendered, and the flying sleigh sequences almost make it worth seeing in 3D. The problem is that the film feels stretched out by random antics and underdeveloped plot-threads along the way that add nothing to the overall story. So we get tired of the bumbling chaos, mainly because we know exactly where it's got to end up.

Brazil Review


Essential
Sam Lowry (Jonathan Pryce) is a civil servant Dilbert at the Ministry of Information. He's a low level office grunt typing his way through a lifetime of meaningless papers in a retro-future totalitarian state. His one escape from his dreary life is his dreams. Bursting with vivid colors, Sam's visions see him with armored wings rising into the bright sky above the cold city. There, in the firmament, Sam battles with Darkness to free a blonde beauty (Kim Greist) imprisoned in a floating cage.

Unfortunately, there are no happy endings for dreamers in this alternate world. Sam always awakens to his mind-numbing existence, only plugging away in a system that rewards only blandness, appeasing his socialite mother (addicted to face lifts) whose only wish is to see her meek son move his way up a corporate ladder to nowhere.

Continue reading: Brazil Review

Time Bandits Review


Extraordinary
History belongs to the victors, and Terry Gilliam takes his rightful ownership of Western history in this timeless romp through the ages. Writer and director of some of Monty Python's most enduring and foolish productions, Gilliam reaches the top of his form with Time Bandits.

Young Kevin (Craig Warnock) is a history buff trapped in the household of his shallow, materialistic parents. While they sit mindlessly in front of the television, absorbed in an insanely morbid game show, Kevin explores his history books enthusiastically, fantasizing about a more meaningful world than the one in which he lives. But when his parents finally send him to bed, his world gets a lot more interesting.

Continue reading: Time Bandits Review

Michael Palin

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Michael Palin

Date of birth

5th May, 1943

Occupation

Comedian

Sex

Male

Height

1.78


Michael Palin Movies

The Death of Stalin Movie Review

The Death of Stalin Movie Review

Fans of the film In the Loop and the TV series Veep will definitely not...

The Death Of Stalin Trailer

The Death Of Stalin Trailer

It's 1953 and our story takes place in Russia - then known as the Soviet...

Monty Python And The Holy Grail - 40th Anniversary Trailer

Monty Python And The Holy Grail - 40th Anniversary Trailer

The comedians behind Monty Python have turned into household names and The Holy Grail is...

Absolutely Anything Movie Review

Absolutely Anything Movie Review

Simon Pegg continues his rollercoaster career, alternating between superior blockbuster franchises (Mission: Impossible and Star...

Absolutely Anything Trailer

Absolutely Anything Trailer

If you could change absolutely anything in the world, what would it be? This is...

A Liar's Autobiography Movie Review

A Liar's Autobiography Movie Review

Subtitled "The Untrue Story of Monty Python's Graham Chapman", this outrageously colourful animated movie certainly...

A Liar's Autobiography Trailer

A Liar's Autobiography Trailer

The 'Monty Python' group are returning to our screens once more with 'A Liar's Autobiography:...

Arthur Christmas Movie Review

Arthur Christmas Movie Review

This lively holiday romp has a steady stream of sharp verbal and visual gags that...

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