On October 5, 1969 the people of England had the opportunity to see a show quite unlike any other. That show was Monty Python's Flying Circus. It would run for a total of four seasons and go on to make millions of people all over the world laugh.
The group was made up of five Englishmen (Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin) and one American (Terry Gilliam). Cleese and Chapman knew each other from Cambridge University, where Idle also attended. Palin and Jones were friends and collaborators from Oxford University. Gilliam was an artist with an eye for the surreal. Through their work on The Frost Report and other shows, they came to admire each other's talents.
When they decided to start working together, Barry Took, a comedy consultant for BBC Television, helped them get their own show. The BBC were a little reluctant at first, so they only committed to 13 episodes. Theirs wasn't the first sketch comedy show in history, but it had a decidedly different take on the format. Instead of punch lines or conclusions, the sketches would often end with the actors (the writers playing most of the parts) simply walking away, ending in the middle or just flowing right into the next bit. Interspersed between sketches were crazy and wacky animations from the mind of Terry Gilliam.
It took awhile for the show to reach America, but when it did their popularity spread. I'm not sure when I was introduced to this brilliant show, but it was probably some time while I was in high school in the 1980s. I've been a fan ever since!
The internet is full of websites with lists of the best Python sketches, but most fans have their own favorites. Here are mine, in no particular order. I would try to explain them, but it's not easy and that would take the fun out of it. Enjoy!
-- Argument Clinic (1972)
-- The Dead Parrot (1969)
-- The Lumberjack Song (1969)
-- Spam (1970)
-- The Philosopher's Football Match (1972)
-- Post by Tracy
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