A tribute piece dedicated to the 'late' funnyman was posted on the website of entertainment industry publication Variety on Tuesday (08Sep15) with the headline "Monty Python's Terry Gilliam, Director Of Brazil, Dies At XXX."

The obituary was later removed from the site and Variety bosses tweeted an apology, writing, "Correction: Variety incorrectly published an article stating that director Terry Gilliam passed away. We're deeply sorry for the mistake."

Gilliam, 74, has now addressed the blunder in a comedic post on his Facebook.com page, uploading a mocked up picture of himself on his death bed under a sign which reads, "He was only 30! Bad reviews from Variety aged him!"

He captioned the picture, "I apologise for being dead especially to those who have already bought tickets to the upcoming talks, but, Variety has announced my demise. Don't believe their retraction and apology!"