Content deleted Content added
No edit summary Tag: Reverted |
No edit summary |
||
| (31 intermediate revisions by 21 users not shown) | |||
Line 5:
{{Infobox television
| image = Monty Python's Flying Circus Title Card.png
| genre = {{Plain list|
* [[Sketch comedy]] * * * }}
| animator = Terry Gilliam
| runtime = approx. 25–30 minutes
| company = [[BBC]]
| creator = {{Plain list|
* [[Graham Chapman]] * * * * * }}
| writer = {{
* [[Monty Python]]
* [[Neil Innes]]
* [[Douglas Adams]]
}}
| director = {{
* [[Ian MacNaughton]]
* [[John Howard Davies]]
}}
| starring = {{Plain list|
* Graham Chapman * * * * * * }}
| theme_music_composer = [[John Philip Sousa]]▼
| opentheme = "[[The Liberty Bell (march)|The Liberty Bell]]"
| composer = {{Plain list|
* Neil Innes
}}
| country = United Kingdom
| network = {{Plain list|
* [[BBC One|BBC1]] (1969–1973) * }}
| first_aired = {{Start date|1969|10|5|df=y}}
| last_aired = {{End date|1974|12|5|df=y}}
Line 27 ⟶ 56:
| num_episodes = 45
| list_episodes = List of Monty Python's Flying Circus episodes
| producer = {{Plain list|
* John Howard Davies (series 1) * }}
|
* James Balfour
| related = ''[[Monty Python's Fliegender Zirkus]]''<br />▼
* Alan Featherstone
''[[And Now for Something Completely Different]]''▼
}}
▲| theme_music_composer = [[John Philip Sousa]]
| editor = {{Plain list|
▲| opentheme = "[[The Liberty Bell (march)|The Liberty Bell]]"<br /> recorded by [[Band of the Grenadier Guards]]
* Ray Millichope
▲| composer = Neil Innes<br />[[Fred Tomlinson (singer)|Fred Tomlinson Singers]]
* Robert C. Dearberg
}}
| related = {{Plain list|
▲* ''[[And Now for Something Completely Different]]''
}}
}}
'''''Monty Python's Flying Circus''''' (also known as simply '''''Monty Python''''') is a British [[surreal humour|surreal]] [[sketch comedy]] series created by and starring [[Graham Chapman]], [[John Cleese]], [[Eric Idle]], [[Terry Jones]], [[Michael Palin]], and [[Terry Gilliam]], who became known collectively as "[[Monty Python]]
The series stands out for its use of [[Surreal humour|absurd situations]], mixed with risqué and innuendo-laden humour, [[Visual gag|sight gags]], and observational sketches without [[punch line|punchlines]]. Live-action segments were broken up with animations by Gilliam, often merging with the live action to form [[Segue#In film or broadcast news production|segues]]. The overall format used for the series followed and elaborated upon the style used by [[Spike Milligan]] in his groundbreaking series ''[[Q... (TV series)|Q...]]'', rather than the traditional sketch show format. The Pythons play the majority of the series's characters, along with supporting cast members including [[Carol Cleveland]] (referred to by the team as the unofficial "Seventh Python"), [[Connie Booth]] (Cleese's first wife), series producer [[Ian MacNaughton]], [[Ian Davidson (scriptwriter)|Ian Davidson]], musician [[Neil Innes]], and [[Fred Tomlinson (singer)|Fred Tomlinson]] and the Fred Tomlinson Singers for musical numbers.<ref name=telegraph>{{cite news|title=Fred Tomlinson, singer on Monty Python – obituary |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2016/08/02/fred-tomlinson-singer-on-monty-python--obituary/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2016/08/02/fred-tomlinson-singer-on-monty-python--obituary/ |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |date=2016-08-02 |access-date=2016-08-15}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref name=nytimes>{{cite news |first=Daniel E. |last=Slotnik |title=Fred Tomlinson, Singer Who Led a 'Monty Python' Troupe, Dies at 88 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/05/arts/television/fred-tomlinson-monty-python-singer-dies-at-88.html?_r=0 |work=[[New York Times]] |date=2016-08-04 |access-date=2016-08-15 |archive-date=8 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160808223957/http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/05/arts/television/fred-tomlinson-monty-python-singer-dies-at-88.html?_r=0 |url-status=live }}</ref>
Line 43 ⟶ 80:
The programme came about as the six Pythons, having met each other through university and in various radio and television programmes in the 1960s, sought to make a new sketch comedy show unlike anything else on British television. Much of the humour in the series targeted the idiosyncrasies of [[Culture of the United Kingdom|British life]], especially that of professionals, as well as aspects of politics. Their comedy is often pointedly [[intellectualism|intellectual]], with numerous erudite references to philosophers and literary figures and their works. The team intended their humour to be impossible to categorise, and succeeded so completely that the adjective "[[wikt:Pythonesque|Pythonesque]]" was invented to define it and, later, similar material. Their humour was not always seen as appropriate for television by the BBC, leading to some censorship during the third series. Cleese left the show following that series, and the remaining Pythons completed a final, shortened fourth series before ending the show.
The show became very popular in the [[Television in the United Kingdom|United Kingdom]], and after initially failing to draw an audience in the United States, gained American popularity after [[PBS]] member stations began airing it in 1974. The programme's success on both sides of the Atlantic led to the Pythons going on live tours and creating three additional films, while the individual Pythons flourished in solo careers. ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' has become an influential work on comedy as well as in popular culture. The programming language [[Python (programming language)|Python]] was named by [[Guido van Rossum]] after the show, and the word [[Spamming|spam]], for junk email, took its name from a word used in [[Spam (Monty Python sketch)|a Monty Python sketch]].
== Premise ==
''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' is a sketch comedy show, though it does not adhere to any regular format. The sketches include live-action skits performed by [[Graham Chapman]], [[John Cleese]], [[Eric Idle]], [[Terry Jones]], [[Michael Palin]], and [[Terry Gilliam]], along with animations created by Gilliam, frequently used as linking devices or interstitial between skits. During the first three series, Cleese would be dressed in a tuxedo and introduce the show with the phrase "And Now for Something Completely Different
===Title===
The title ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' was partly the result of the group's reputation at the BBC. [[Michael Mills (British producer)|Michael Mills]], the BBC's Head of Comedy, wanted their name to include the word "circus" because the BBC referred to the six members wandering around the building as a circus, in particular, "Baron Von Took's Circus
The words "Monty Python" were added because they claimed it sounded like a really bad theatrical agent, the sort of person who would have brought them together, with [[John Cleese]] suggesting "[[Pythonidae|Python]]" as something slimy and slithery, and [[Eric Idle]] suggesting "Monty
=== Recurring characters ===
Line 58 ⟶ 95:
The most frequently returning characters on the show include:
* '''The "It's" Man''' (Palin), a [[Robinson Crusoe]]-type castaway with torn clothes and a long, unkempt beard who would appear at the beginning of the programme. Often he is seen performing a long or dangerous task, such as falling off a tall, jagged cliff or running through a mine field a long distance towards the camera before introducing the show by just saying, "It's..." before being abruptly cut off by the opening titles and Terry Gilliam's animation sprouting the words 'Monty Python's Flying Circus'. ''It's'' was an early candidate for the title of the series.
* '''A BBC [[continuity announcer]] in a [[dinner jacket]]''' (Cleese), seated at a desk, often in highly incongruous locations, such as a forest or a beach. His line, "[[And Now for Something Completely Different|And now for something completely different]]
* '''The [[Gumbys]]''', a dim-witted group of identically attired people all wearing [[gumboot]]s (from which they take their name), high-water trousers, [[Braces (clothing)|braces]], [[Fair Isle (technique)|Fair Isle]] [[Sweater vest|tank top]]s, white shirts with rolled up sleeves, round wire-rimmed glasses, [[toothbrush mustache|toothbrush moustache]]s and knotted handkerchiefs worn on their heads (a stereotype of the English [[working class culture|working-class]] holidaymaker). Gumbys always stand in a hunched, square posture, holding their arms stiffly at their sides with their balled hands curled inwards. They speak slowly in loud, throaty voices punctuated by frequent grunts and groans, display a poor understanding of everything they encounter, and have a fondness for pointless violence. All of them are surnamed Gumby: D.P. Gumby, R.S. Gumby, etc. Even though all Pythons played Gumbys in the show's run, the character is most closely associated with Michael Palin.
* [[File:Gumbys-present-architects-sketch.jpg|thumb|Gumbys on parade]]'''The Knight with a Raw Chicken''' (Gilliam), who would hit characters over the head with the chicken when they said something particularly silly. The knight was a regular during the first series and made another appearance in the third.
* '''A nude [[organist]]''' (played in his first two appearances by Gilliam, later by Jones) who provided a brief fanfare to punctuate certain sketches, most notably on a sketch poking fun at ''[[Sale of the Century (
* '''The "Pepper Pots"''' are screeching middle-aged, [[lower-middle class]] housewives, played by the Pythons in frocks and frumpy hats, and engage in surreal and inconsequential conversation. "The Pepper Pots" was the in-house name that the Pythons used to identify these characters, who were never identified as such on-screen. On the rare occasion these women were named, it was often for comic effect, featuring such names as Mrs. Scum, Mrs. Non-Gorilla, Mrs. Thing, Mrs. Entity, or the duo Mrs. Premise and Mrs. Conclusion. "Pepper pot" refers to what the Pythons believed was the typical body shape of middle-class, British housewives, as explained by John Cleese in ''[[How to Irritate People]]''.{{sfn|Larsen|2008|p=13}} [[Terry Jones]] is perhaps most closely associated with the Pepper Pots, but all the Pythons were frequent in performing the drag characters.
* Brief black-and-white [[stock footage]], lasting only two or three seconds, of '''middle-aged women sitting in an audience and applauding'''. The film was taken from a [[Women's Institutes (British)|Women's Institute]] meeting and was sometimes presented with a colour tint.{{sfn|Larsen|2008|p=292}}
Other recurring characters include:
* "[[The Colonel (Monty Python)|The Colonel]]" (Chapman), a British Army officer who interrupts sketches that are "too silly" or that contain material he finds offensive. The Colonel also appears when non-BBC broadcast repeats need to be cut off for time constraints in [[broadcast syndication|syndication]].
* Arthur Pewtey (Palin), a socially inept, extremely dull man who appears most notably in the "[[Marriage Guidance Counsellor]]" and "[[Ministry of Silly Walks]]" sketches. His sketches all take the form of an office appointment with an authority figure (usually played by Cleese), which are used to parody the officious side of the British establishment by having the professional employed in the most bizarre field of expertise. The spelling of Pewtey's surname is changed, sometimes being spelled "Putey
* The Reverend Arthur Belling is the [[vicar]] of St Loony-Up-The-Cream-Bun-and-Jam, known for his deranged behaviour. In one sketch (within Series 2, played by Chapman), he makes an appeal to the insane people of the world to drive sane people insane. In another sketch (within Series 3, played by Palin), which is among the pantheon of fan favourites,{{citation needed|date=January 2019}}
* A somewhat disreputable shopkeeper, played by Palin, is a staple of many a two-person sketch (notably "Dead Parrot Sketch" and "Cheese Shop"). He often speaks with a strong Cockney accent, and has no consistent name.
* Mr. Badger (Idle), a Scotsman whose specialty was interrupting sketches ('I won't ruin your sketch, for a pound'). He was once interviewed, in a sketch opposite Cleese, regarding his interpretation of [[Magna Carta]], which Badger believes was actually a piece of chewing gum on a bedspread in [[Dorset]]. He has also been seen as an [[Aircraft hijacking|aeroplane hijacker]] whose demands grow increasingly strange.
* [[Mr. Praline|Mr. Eric Praline]], a disgruntled man, played by Cleese and who often wears a [[Cagoule (raincoat)#The roll-up-able cagoule|Pac-a-Mac]]. His most famous appearance is in the "[[Dead Parrot sketch]]
* Arthur Nudge, a well-dressed mustachioed man, referred to in the published scripts as "Mr. Nudge" (Idle), who pointedly annoys uptight characters (usually Jones). He is characterised by his constant nudging gestures and cheeky innuendo. His most famous appearance is in his initial sketch, "[[Nudge Nudge]]
* [[Biggles]] (Chapman, and [[The Spanish Inquisition (Monty Python)|in one instance]] Jones), a World War I pilot. Derived from the famous series of fiction stories by [[W. E. Johns]].
* <span id="Luigi_Vercotti">Luigi Vercotti</span> (Palin), a [[Mafioso (criminal)|mafioso entrepreneur]] and [[pimp]] featured during the first series, accompanied in his first appearance by his brother Dino (Jones). He appears as the manager for [[Ron Obvious (Monty Python)|Ron Obvious]], as the owner of La Gondola restaurant and as a victim of the [[Piranha Brothers]]. With his brother, he attempts to talk the Colonel into paying for [[Pizzo (extortion)|protection of his Army base]].
* [[The Spanish Inquisition (Monty Python)|The Spanish Inquisition]] would burst into a previously unrelated sketch whenever their name was mentioned. Their catchphrase was 'Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition!' They consist of Cardinal Ximinez (Palin), Cardinal Fang (Gilliam), and Cardinal Biggles (Jones). They premiered in series two and Ximinez had a cameo in "The Buzz Aldrin Show
* Frenchmen: Cleese and Palin would sometimes dress in stereotypical French garb, e.g. striped shirt, tight pants, [[beret]], and speak in garbled French, with incomprehensible accents. They had one fake moustache between them, and each would stick it onto the other's lip when it was his turn to speak. They appear giving a demonstration of the technical aspects of the flying sheep in episode 2 ("Sex and Violence"), and appear in the [[Ministry of Silly Walks]] sketch as the developers of "La Marche Futile
* The Compère (Palin), a sleazy nightclub emcee in a red jacket. He linked sketches by introducing them as nightclub acts, and was occasionally seen after the sketch, passing comment on it. In one link, he was the victim of the Knight with a Raw Chicken.
* [[Piranha Brothers|Spiny Norman]], a Gilliam animation of a giant hedgehog. He is introduced in Episode 1 of Series 2 in "Piranha Brothers" as an hallucination experienced by Dinsdale Piranha when he is depressed. Later, Spiny Norman appears randomly in the background of animated cityscapes, shouting 'Dinsdale!'
Line 83 ⟶ 122:
* Ken Shabby (Palin), an unkempt, disgusting man who cleaned public lavatories, appeared in his own sketch in the first series, attempting to get approval from another man (Chapman) to marry his daughter (Booth). In the second series, he appeared in several ''[[vox populi]]'' segments. He later founded his own religion (as part of the "Crackpot Religions" sketch) and called himself Archbishop Shabby.
* Raymond Luxury-Yacht (Chapman) is described as one of Britain's leading skin specialists. He wears an enormous fake nose made of [[polystyrene]]. He proudly proclaims that his name "is spelled 'Raymond Luxury-Yach-t', but it is pronounced 'Throat-Wobbler Mangrove{{'"}}.
* A Madman (Chapman) Often appears in vox pops segments. He wears a [[bowler hat]] and has a bushy [[moustache]]. He will always rant and ramble about his life whenever he appears and will occasionally foam at the mouth and fall over backwards. He appears in "The Naked Ant
Other returning characters include a married couple, often mentioned but never seen, [[Ann Haydon-Jones]] and her husband Pip. In "[[Election Night Special]]
Some of the Pythons' real-life targets recurred more frequently than others. [[Reginald Maudling]], a contemporary [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]] politician, was singled out for perhaps the most consistent ridicule.{{sfn|Larsen|2008|p=288}} Then-[[Secretary of State for Education and Science]], and (well after the programme had ended) Prime Minister [[Margaret Thatcher]], was occasionally mentioned
== Series overview ==
Line 113 ⟶ 152:
=== Chapman ===
[[Graham Chapman]] often portrayed straight-laced men, of any age or class, frequently authority figures such as military officers, policemen or doctors. His characters could, at any moment, engage in "Pythonesque" [[mania]]cal behaviour and then return to their former sobriety.<ref>Sketches "An Appeal from the Vicar of St. Loony-up-the-Cream-Bun-and-Jam
=== Cleese ===
[[John Cleese]] played
Cleese often played foreigners with ridiculous accents, especially Frenchmen, most of the time with Palin. Sometimes this extended to the use of actual French or German (such as "The Funniest Joke in the World
=== Gilliam ===
[[File:Angelo Bronzino - Venus, Cupid, Folly and Time - National Gallery, London.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.1|The famous Python Foot can here be seen in its original context in the bottom-left corner of ''[[Venus, Cupid, Folly and Time]]'' by [[Bronzino|Agnolo Bronzino]], in the [[National Gallery, London]].]]
[[File:Foot detail from Venus, Cupid, Folly and Time by Agnolo Bronzino.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.1|Close-up of the foot]]
Many Python sketches were linked together by the [[Cutout animation|cut-out animations]] of [[Terry Gilliam]], including the opening titles featuring the iconic giant foot that became a symbol of all that was 'Pythonesque'.<ref>{{cite book |title= The Designer's Dictionary of Color |author= Sean Adams |publisher= Abrams |year= 2017 |isbn= 9781683350026 |page= 104}}</ref> Gilliam's unique visual style was characterised by sudden, dramatic movements and deliberate mismatches of scale, set in [[surrealism|surrealist]] landscapes populated by [[engraving]]s of large buildings with elaborate architecture, grotesque [[Victorian era#Technology and engineering|Victorian]] gadgets, machinery, and people cut from old [[Sears Roebuck]] catalogues. Gilliam added [[airbrush]] illustrations and many familiar pieces of art. All of these elements were combined in incongruous ways to obtain new and humorous meanings.
The surreal nature of the series allowed Gilliam's animation to go off on bizarre, imaginative tangents, features that were impossible to produce live-action at the time. Some running gags derived from these animations were a giant [[hedgehog]] named Spiny Norman who appeared over the tops of buildings shouting, "Dinsdale!
Notable Gilliam sequences for the show include Conrad Poohs and his Dancing Teeth, the rampage of the cancerous black spot, The Killer Cars and a giant cat that stomps its way through London, destroying everything in its path.
Line 139 ⟶ 178:
* [[Percy Bysshe Shelley]] in the "Michael Ellis" episode
Gilliam soon became distinguished as the go-to member for the most obscenely grotesque characters. This carried over into the ''Holy Grail'' film, where Gilliam played King Arthur's hunchbacked page 'Patsy' and the bridgekeeper at the Bridge of Death as well as the 'deaf and mad' jailer in ''Life of Brian''.
===Idle===
[[Eric Idle]] is known for his roles as a cheeky, suggestive playboy ("[[Nudge Nudge]]"), a variety of pretentious television presenters (such as his over-the-top portrayal of [[Philip Jenkinson]] in the segments connecting the "[[Cheese Shop sketch|Cheese Shop]]" and "[[Sam Peckinpah's "Salad Days"|Salad Days]]" sketches), a crafty, slick salesman ("Door-to-Door Joke Salesman
Because he was not from an already-established writing partnership prior to Python, Idle wrote his sketches alone.<ref>{{cite book |title= Dictionary of Atheism, Skepticism, and Humanism |first= Bill|last=Cooke |publisher=[[Prometheus Books]]|___location=Amherst, New York|year= 2006 |isbn= 9781615923656 |page= 349}}</ref>
=== Jones ===
Although all of the Pythons played women, [[Terry Jones]] is renowned by the rest to be 'the best Rat-Bag woman in the business'.{{citation needed|date=March 2012}} His portrayal of a middle-aged housewife was louder, shriller, and more dishevelled than that of any of the other Pythons. Examples of this are the "[[Dead Bishop]]" sketch, his role as Brian's mother Mandy in ''[[Life of Brian]]'', Mrs Linda S-C-U-M in "Mr Neutron" and the café proprietor in "[[Spam (Monty Python)|Spam]]
=== Palin ===
[[Michael Palin]] was regarded by the other members of the troupe as the one with the widest range, equally adept as a [[wikt:Straight man|straight man]] or wildly over the top character.{{citation needed|date=March 2012}} He portrayed many working-class northerners, often portrayed in a disgusting light: "[[The Funniest Joke in the World]]" sketch and the "[[Every Sperm Is Sacred]]" segment of ''[[Monty Python's The Meaning of Life]]''. In contrast, Palin also played weak-willed, put-upon men such as the husband in the "[[Marriage Guidance Counsellor]]" sketch, the boring accountant in the "[[Vocational Guidance Counsellor]]" sketch, and the hapless client in the "[[Argument Clinic]]
Palin also often plays heavy-accented foreigners, mostly French ("La marche futile") or German ("Hitler in Minehead"), usually alongside Cleese. In one of the last episodes, he delivers a full speech, first in English, then in French, then in heavily accented German.
Line 157 ⟶ 196:
== Production ==
The first five episodes of the series were produced by [[John Howard Davies]], with Davies serving as studio director, and [[Ian MacNaughton]] acting as ___location director. From the sixth episode onwards, MacNaughton became the producer and sole director on the series. Other regular team members included [[Hazel Pethig]] (costumes), Madelaine Gaffney (makeup) and John Horton (video effects designer). Maggie Weston, who worked on both makeup and design, married Gilliam in 1973 and they remain together. The series was primarily filmed in London studios and nearby locations, although ___location shooting to take in beaches and villages included filming in [[Somerset]], [[Norwich]] and the island of [[Jersey]].
Pre-production of the series had started by April 1969. Documents from the BBC showed that the viability of the show had been threatened around this time when Cleese reminded the BBC that he was still under contract from David Frost's [[David Paradine Productions]], who wanted to co-produce the show. The BBC memos indicated the potential of holding off the show until 1971, when Cleese's contract with Paradine expired, but ultimately the situation was resolved, though the details of these negotiations have been lost.<ref name="irish times 50th"/>
Line 163 ⟶ 202:
==Broadcast==
=== Original broadcast ===
The first episode aired on the BBC on Sunday, 5 October 1969, at 10:55 p.m.<ref name="irish times 50th"/> The BBC had to reassure some of its workers (who were considering going on strike and who thought the show was replacing a late-night, religious/devotional programme) by asserting that it was using the alternative programming to give clergymen time off on their busiest day.<ref name="irish times 50th"/> The first episode did not fare well in terms of audience, capturing only about 3% of the total UK population, roughly 1.5 million, compared to ''[[Dad's Army]]'' that had 22% on the Thursday of that same week. In addition to the lowest audience figures for shows during that week, the first episode has had the lowest [[Appreciation Index]] for any of the BBC's light entertainment programmes.<ref name="independent BBC">{{cite web | url = https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/bbc-bosses-almost-lost-faith-in-disgusting-monty-python-1693829.html | title = BBC bosses almost lost faith in 'disgusting' Monty Python | first = Robert | last = Verkaik | date = 1 June 2009 | access-date = 7 October 2019 | work = [[The Independent]] | archive-date = 7 October 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20191007145926/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/bbc-bosses-almost-lost-faith-in-disgusting-monty-python-1693829.html | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="irish times 50th">{{cite news | url = https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/tv-radio-web/monty-python-bbc-archive-reveals-the-secrets-behind-the-sketches-1.4042455 | title = Monty Python: BBC archive reveals the secrets behind the sketches | first = Mark | last = Lawson | date = 7 October 2019 | access-date = 7 October 2019 | newspaper = [[The Irish Times]] | archive-date = 7 October 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20191007122423/https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/tv-radio-web/monty-python-bbc-archive-reveals-the-secrets-behind-the-sketches-1.4042455 | url-status = live }}</ref> While public reception improved over the course of the first series, certain BBC executives had already conceived a dislike for the show, with some BBC documents describing the show as "disgusting and [[nihilism|nihilistic]]
The second series, while more popular than the first, further strained relations between the troupe and the BBC. Two of the sketches from the series finale "Royal Episode 13" were called out by BBC executives in a December 1970 meeting: "The Queen Will Be Watching" in which the troupe mocks [[God Save the Queen|the UK national anthem]], and the "[[Undertakers sketch]]" which took a comedic turn on how to dispose of the body of a loved one.<ref name="independent BBC"/><ref name="telegraph bbc">{{cite web | url = https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1536448/What-the-BBC-really-thought-of-Monty-Python.html | title = What the BBC really thought of Monty Python | first = Chris | last = Hastings | date = 10 December 2006 | access-date = 7 October 2019 | work = [[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]] | archive-date = 7 October 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20191007145052/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1536448/What-the-BBC-really-thought-of-Monty-Python.html | url-status = live }}</ref> The BBC executives criticised producer MacNaughton for not alerting them to the content prior to airing.<ref name="telegraph bbc"/> According to Palin, via his published diary, the BBC started to censor the programme within the third series following this.<ref name="telegraph bbc"/>
Line 170 ⟶ 209:
=== Lost sketches ===
The first cut that the BBC forced on the show was the removal of David Frost's phone number from re-airings of the second episode of the first season, "Sex and Violence
Some material originally recorded went missing later, such as the use of the word "masturbating" in the "Summarize Proust" sketch (which was muted during the first airing, and later cut out entirely) or "What a silly bunt" in the Travel Agent sketch (which featured a character [Idle] who has a speech impediment that makes him pronounce "C"s as "B"s),<ref>
Line 183 ⟶ 222:
|df = dmy-all
}}
</ref> which was cut before the sketch ever went to air. However, when this sketch was included in the album ''[[Monty Python's Previous Record]]'' and the ''[[Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl|Live at the Hollywood Bowl]]'' film, the line remained intact. Both sketches were included in the Danish [[DR K]] re-airing of all episodes ("Episode 31
Some sketches were deleted in their entirety and later recovered. One such sketch is the "Party Political Broadcast (Choreographed)
Another lost sketch is the "Satan" animation following the "Crackpot Religion" piece and the "Cartoon Religion Ltd" animation, and preceding the "[[How Not To Be Seen]]" sketch: this had been edited out of the official tape. Six frames of the animation can be seen at the end of the episode, wherein that particular episode is repeated in fast-forward. {{cns|date=January 2025|A black and white 16 mm film print has since turned up (found by a private film collector in the US) showing the animation in its entirety.}}
At least two references to cancer were censored, both during the second series. In the sixth episode ("It's A Living" or "School Prizes"), [[Carol Cleveland]]'s narration of a Gilliam cartoon suddenly has a male voice dub '[[gangrene]]' over the word cancer (although this word was used unedited when the animation appeared in the movie ''[[And Now for Something Completely Different]]''; the 2006 special ''[[Monty Python's Personal Best|Terry Gilliam's Personal Best]]'' uses this audio to restore the censored line). Another reference was removed from the sketch "Conquistador Coffee Campaign
A sketch from Episode 7 of Series 2 (subtitled 'The Attila the Hun Show') featured a parody of [[Michael Miles]], the 1960s TV [[game show]] host (played by Cleese), and was introduced as 'Spot The Braincell'. This sketch was deleted shortly afterwards from a repeat broadcast as a mark of respect following Miles' death in February 1971. Also, the controversial "Undertaker" sketch from Episode 13 of the same series, with its references to [[Human cannibalism|necro-cannibalism]] ({{nowrap|"[...] are}} you suggesting we should eat my [dead] mother?"), was removed by the BBC after negative reviewer response. Both of these sketches have been restored to the official tapes, although the only source for the Undertaker sketch was an NTSC copy of the episode, duplicated before the cut had been made.
Animation in episode 9 of series 3 was cut out following the initial broadcast. The animation was a parody of a German commercial, and the original owners complained about the music use, so the BBC simply removed part of the animation, and replaced the music with a song from a Python album. Terry Gilliam later complained about the cut, thinking it was because producer Ian McNaughton "just didn't get what it was and he cut it. That was a big mistake."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sotcaa.org/history/ukonline/python_frame.html?/history/ukonline/python/python_tv_03.html|title=Edit News: Monty Python's Flying Circus|website=Some Of The Corpses Are Amusing|access-date=1 May 2019|archive-date=2 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190702003938/http://sotcaa.org/history/ukonline/python_frame.html?/history/ukonline/python/python_tv_03.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
Music copyright issues have resulted in at least two cuts. In season 2 episode
A Region 2 DVD release of Series 1–4 was released by [[Sony Pictures Home Entertainment]] in 2007. This included certain things which had been cut from the US A&E releases, including the "masturbation" line, but failed to reinstate most of the long-lost sketches and edits. A Blu-ray release of the series featuring every episode restored to its original uncut broadcast length was released by Network for the show's 50th anniversary in 2019.<ref>{{Cite web | url=https://montypython.networkonair.com/flyingcircushd | title=Monty Python's Flying Circus | access-date=23 July 2019 | archive-date=23 July 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190723131156/https://montypython.networkonair.com/flyingcircushd | url-status=live }}</ref>
Rediscovered sketch Ursula Hitler, once deemed impossible to find, was re-released with the 50th anniversary sets in 2019. Also some of the extra American broadcast {{nowrap|material
=== American television ===
At the time of the original broadcasting of ''Monty Python'' in the United Kingdom, the BBC used [[Time-Life Television]] to distribute its shows in the United States. For ''Monty Python'', Time-Life had been concerned that the show was "too British" in its humour to reach American audiences, and did not opt to bring the programme across.<ref name="new yorker 1976">{{cite magazine |last1=Hertzberg |first1=Hendrik |title=Naughty Bits |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1976/03/29/naughty-bits |access-date=2020-03-17 |magazine=[[The New Yorker]] |date=March 29, 1976 |archive-date=21 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190921070417/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1976/03/29/naughty-bits |url-status=live }}</ref> However, the show became a fixture on the [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]] beginning in the fall of 1970, and hence was also seen in some American markets.<ref name="FlyingCircusCanada">{{cite web|url=http://torontoist.com/2011/09/vintage-toronto-ads-jack-of-hearts-flying-circus/|title=Vintage Toronto Ads: Jack of Hearts' Flying Circus|author=Jamie Bradburn, with reference to a ''[[Toronto Star]]'' article of 2 February 1971|publisher=St. Joseph Media|date=20 September 2011|access-date=2 April 2020|archive-date=27 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201027041055/https://torontoist.com/2011/09/vintage-toronto-ads-jack-of-hearts-flying-circus/|url-status=live}}</ref>
The
Despite the poor reception on their live appearances on American television, the Pythons' American manager, Nancy Lewis, began to push the show herself into the States. In 1974, the [[PBS]] member station [[KERA-TV|KERA]] in [[Dallas]] was the first television station in the United States to broadcast episodes of ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'', and is often credited with introducing the programme to American audiences.<ref name="dallas_news">{{cite news|url=http://www.dallasnews.com/entertainment/columnists/alan-peppard/20110825-alan-peppard-bob-wilson-hailed-in-kera-documentary.ece|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140519004645/http://www.dallasnews.com/entertainment/columnists/alan-peppard/20110825-alan-peppard-bob-wilson-hailed-in-kera-documentary.ece|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 May 2014|title=Alan Peppard: Bob Wilson hailed in KERA documentary |author=Peppard, Alan |newspaper=The Dallas Morning News |date=25 August 2011 |access-date=25 January 2013}}</ref> Many other PBS stations acquired the show, and by 1975, it was often the most popular show on these stations.<ref name="new yorker 1976"/> ''And Now for Something Completely Different'' was re-released to American theaters in 1974 and had a much better box office take that time. That would also set the stage for the Pythons' next film, ''[[Monty Python and the Holy Grail]]'', released near simultaneously in the UK and the United States in April 1975, to also perform well in American theaters.<ref name="Teod"/><ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.cnn.com/2015/04/09/entertainment/feat-monty-python-holy-grail-40-years/index.html|title = 40 years of 'Holy Grail': The best of Monty Python|website = [[CNN]]|date = 9 April 2015|access-date = 7 October 2019|archive-date = 7 October 2019|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20191007060005/https://www.cnn.com/2015/04/09/entertainment/feat-monty-python-holy-grail-40-years/index.html|url-status = live}}</ref> The popularity of ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' helped to open the door for other British television series to make their way into the United States via PBS and its member stations.<ref name="StewartStewart1999">{{cite book|author1=David Stewart|author2=David C. Stewart|title=The PBS companion: a history of public television|url=https://archive.org/details/pbscompanionhis00stew|url-access=registration|access-date=29 September 2010|date=May 1999|publisher=TV Books|isbn=978-1-57500-050-3|page=[https://archive.org/details/pbscompanionhis00stew/page/n211 216]}}</ref> One notable American fan of ''Monty Python'' was singer [[Elvis Presley]]. Billy Smith, Presley's cousin noted that during the last few months of Elvis' life in 1977, when Elvis was addicted to prescription drugs and mainly confined to his bedroom at his mansion [[Graceland]], Elvis would sit at his room and chat with Smith for hours about various topics including among other things, Presley's favourite ''Monty Python'' sketches.<ref>{{cite book|last=Guralnick|first=Peter|year=1999|title=Careless Love: The Unmaking of Elvis Presley|publisher=Back Bay Books |isbn=978-0-316-33297-2 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780316332972 |pages=212, 642}}</ref>
With the rise in American popularity, the [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] network acquired rights to show select episodes of ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' in their ''[[Wide World of Entertainment]]'' showcase in mid 1975. However, ABC re-edited the episodes, thus losing the continuity and flow intended in the originals. When ABC refused to stop treating the series in this way, the Pythons took them to court. Initially the court ruled that their artistic rights had indeed been violated, but it refused to stop the ABC broadcasts. However, on appeal the team gained control over all subsequent US broadcasts of its programmes.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://openjurist.org/538/f2d/14 |title=Gilliam v. American Broadcasting Companies, Inc., 538 F.2d 14 (2d Cir. 1976) |date=1976 |volume=F2d |issue=538 |page=14 |access-date=18 March 2020 |archive-date=12 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210512183303/https://openjurist.org/538/f2d/14 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="new yorker 1976"/> The case also led to their gaining the master tapes of the series from the BBC, once their original contracts ended at the end of 1980.
The show also aired on [[MTV]] in 1988.<ref>{{cite AV media|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cHoAoaVBz0 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211220/2cHoAoaVBz0 |archive-date=2021-12-20 |url-status=live|title=MTV Monty Python Warning|date=31 May 2007|work=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}</ref> ''Monty Python'' was part of a two-hour comedy block on Sunday nights that also included another BBC series, ''[[The Young Ones (TV series)|The Young Ones]]''.
Line 221 ⟶ 260:
Recordings of four of these stage shows have subsequently appeared as separate works:
# [[Monty Python Live at Drury Lane]] (aka Monty Python Live at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane), released in the UK in 1974 as their fifth record album
# [[Monty Python Live at City Center]], performed in New York City and released as a record in 1976 in the US
# [[Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl]], recorded in Los Angeles in 1980 and released as a film in 1982
# [[Monty Python Live (Mostly)|Monty Python Live (Mostly): One Down, Five to Go]], the troupe's reunion
Graham Chapman and Michael Palin also performed on stage at the [[Concerts at Knebworth House|Knebworth Festival]] in 1975 with [[Pink Floyd]].<ref>[https://vintagerock.wordpress.com/category/monty-pythons-flying-circus Monty Pythons Flying Circus.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204062908/https://vintagerock.wordpress.com/category/monty-pythons-flying-circus/ |date=4 February 2016 }} | Vintagerock's Weblog.</ref>
Line 249 ⟶ 289:
| archive-date = 4 May 2024
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240504070043/https://www.the-tls.co.uk/
| url-status =
}}</ref>
Language differences also occur in the lyrics of several songs. For example, "[[Sit on My Face]]" (which translated into French would be "Asseyez-vous sur mon visage") becomes "cum in my mouth
== Reception ==
=== Initial reviews ===
After the broadcast of the first episode, British newspapers printed brief reviews of the new
As the series continued, reviews became more positive. After the third episode, the Guardian's television columnist described the show as "undoubtedly the high spot of a lot of viewers' weekend
=== Awards and honours ===
Line 293 ⟶ 332:
In a list of the 50 Greatest British Sketches released by [[Channel 4]] in 2005, five Monty Python sketches made the list:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/G/greatest/comedy_sketches/results.html |title=Channel 4's 50 Greatest Comedy Sketches |publisher=Channel4.com |access-date=14 July 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090627084038/http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/G/greatest/comedy_sketches/results.html |archive-date=27 June 2009 }}</ref>
*
* 12: "[[The Spanish Inquisition (Monty Python)|The Spanish Inquisition]]" *
*
*
In 2004<ref>{{cite news |title=25 Top Cult Shows Ever!|date=30 May 2004 |agency=TV Guide Magazine Group }}</ref> and 2007, ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' was ranked #5 and #6 on TV Guide's Top Cult Shows Ever.<ref>[http://www.tvguide.com/news/top-cult-shows-40239.aspx TV Guide Names the Top Cult Shows Ever – Today's News: Our Take] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120812080754/http://www.tvguide.com/news/top-cult-shows-40239.aspx |date=12 August 2012 }} [[TV Guide]]: 29 June 2007</ref>
''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine included the show on its 2007 list of the "100 Best TV Shows of All Time
In 2013, the programme was ranked #58 on TV Guide's list of the 60 Best Series of All Time,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tvguide.com/news/tv-guide-magazine-60-best-series-1074962/|title=TV Guide Magazine's 60 Best Series of All Time|work=TV Guide|date=23 December 2013|access-date=22 October 2015|archive-date=13 January 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150113171839/http://www.tvguide.com/news/tv-guide-magazine-60-best-series-1074962/|url-status=live}}</ref> while the [[Writers Guild of America]] ranked it #79 – along with ''[[Upstairs, Downstairs (1971 TV series)|Upstairs, Downstairs]]'', ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]]'' and ''[[Alfred Hitchcock Presents]]'' – on their list of the 101 Best Written TV Series.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.wga.org/writers-room/101-best-lists/101-best-written-tv-series/list|title=101 Best Written TV Series|website=Writers Guild of America West|date=June 2, 2013|access-date=13 June 2023|archive-date=29 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200429170702/https://www.wga.org/writers-room/101-best-lists/101-best-written-tv-series/list|url-status=live}}</ref>
Line 307 ⟶ 347:
=== Legacy ===
{{main|Monty Python#Cultural influence and legacy}}
[[Douglas Adams]], creator of ''[[The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy]]'' and co-writer of the "[[Patient Abuse]]" sketch, once said "I loved Monty Python's Flying Circus. For years I wanted to be John Cleese, I was most disappointed when I found out the job had been taken."<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0010930/bio?ref_=nm_dyk_qt_sm#quotes| title = Douglas Adams – Biography – IMdb| website = [[IMDb]]| access-date = 30 June 2018| archive-date = 8 April 2015| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150408152518/https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0010930/bio?ref_=nm_dyk_qt_sm#quotes| url-status = live}}</ref>
[[Lorne Michaels]] counts the show as a major influence on his ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' sketches.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0584427/bio?ref_=nm_ql_1| title = Lorne Michaels – Biography – IMDb| website = [[IMDb]]| access-date = 30 June 2018| archive-date = 28 January 2016| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160128112302/https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0584427/bio?ref_=nm_ql_1| url-status = live}}</ref> Cleese and Palin re-enacted the [[Dead Parrot sketch]] on ''SNL'' in 1997.
The show was a major influence on the Danish [[cult following|cult]] sketch show ''[[Casper & Mandrilaftalen]]'' (1999)<ref>{{cite news |last=Hansen |first=Helle Kastholm |url=http://ekstrabladet.dk/ekstra/ekstra-kendte/lars-hjortshoej-mine-boern-saetter-mig-paa-plads/6593764 |title=LARS HJORTSHØJ: Mine børn sætter mig på plads |language=da |work=[[Ekstra Bladet]] |publisher=[[JP/Politikens Hus]] |date=April 2, 2017 |page=16 (4th section) |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170501050649/http://ekstrabladet.dk/ekstra/ekstra-kendte/lars-hjortshoej-mine-boern-saetter-mig-paa-plads/6593764 |archive-date=May 1, 2017}}</ref> and Cleese starred in its 50th episode.<ref name="dfi-mandrillen">"[http://www.dfi.dk/faktaomfilm/film/da/77461.aspx?id=77461 Casper & mandrilaftalen]
In computing, the term [[Spam (electronic)|spam]] and the name of the [[Python (programming language)|Python programming language]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.python.org/doc/faq/general/|title=General Python FAQ — Python 2.7.10 documentation|work=python.org|access-date=15 August 2014|archive-date=18 May 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060518171158/https://www.python.org/doc/faq/general/|url-status=live}}</ref> are both derived from the series.
== See also ==
* ''[[At Last the 1948 Show]]''
* ''[[Do Not Adjust Your Set]]''
== References ==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist}}
=== General and cited references ===
{{Refbegin}}
* {{Cite book |
* {{Cite book |
** Larsen, Darl. ''Monty Python's Flying Circus: An Utterly Complete, Thoroughly Unillustrated, Absolutely Unauthorized Guide to Possibly All the References
{{
== External links ==
Line 334 ⟶ 376:
* {{Official website|http://www.montypython.com}}
* {{IMDb title|title=Monty Python's Flying Circus|id=0063929}}
* [http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/M/htmlM/montypython/montypython.htm Museum of Broadcast Television] ({{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060404194447/http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/M/htmlM/montypython/montypython.htm |date=4 April 2006 }})
* [http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/469243/index.html British Film Institute Screen Online]
* [https://nostalgiacentral.com/television/tv-by-decade/tv-shows-1960s/monty-pythons-flying-circus/ ''Monty Python's Flying Circus''] – Nostalgia Central
Line 341 ⟶ 383:
{{Graham Chapman}}
{{Terry Jones}}
▲{{Portal bar|Television}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:1969 British television series debuts]]▼
[[Category:1974 British television series endings]]▼
[[Category:1960s British satirical television series]]
[[Category:1970s British satirical television series]]▼
[[Category:1960s British television sketch shows]]
▲[[Category:1969 British television series debuts]]
[[Category:1970s British television sketch shows]]
[[Category:
[[Category:BBC black comedy television shows]]
[[Category:BBC television sketch shows]]
[[Category:British English-language television shows]]
[[Category:
[[Category:
[[Category:Monty Python]]▼
[[Category:Counterculture of the 1960s]]
[[Category:Counterculture of the 1970s]]
[[Category:
[[Category:
▲[[Category:Monty Python]]
[[Category:Self-reflexive television]]
[[Category:Television series about television]]
[[Category:Television shows adapted into films]]
[[Category:Television shows adapted into video games]]
▲[[Category:BAFTA winners (television series)]]
| |||