Happy Birthday Python.

[si]

Forty Years! And they’re still not all dead.

I was lucky enough to meet the nice one (Michael Palin – he’s a Sheffield United fan, you know) at a book signing in Cardiff, where, bizarrely, I saw Neville Southall was wondering round the bookshop.

So – I know it was forty years ago today that the first episode was broadcast, but has anyone got any idea of an exact time? Cause I can’t find one.

Topic

[Steve Harris]

Just before 11pm according to the BBC site…

[si]

I know. I went to the BBC site not long ago, saw that, and felt a little foolish for not looking there first.

[redhead85]

ALBATROSS!

[Alex]

What flavour is it?

[redhead85]

It’s a bird, innit? It’s a bloody sea bird, it hasn’t got a bloody flavour…

[Alex]

Do you get wafers with it?

[ori-STUDFARM]

Suspenders and a braaaaaa……

Shit! Wrong line. Sorry!

[hummingbird]

No.1 The Larch

[Alex]

This is becoming a great thread for spam. Lovely spam, wonderful spam.

[ori-STUDFARM]

Our chief weapon is surprise……surprise and fear

[Danny Stephenson]

For those who are attending Dj this year. Expect a singalong session during the piss-up on Saturday evening. Camera phones at the ready!

[Blisschick]

>Our chief weapon is surprise??surprise and fear

But what if he comes at me with a banana?

[ori-STUDFARM]

First of all you force him to drop the banana, then you eat the banana, thus disarming him. You have now rendered him ‘elpless!!

[Danny Stephenson]

Suppose he comes at you with a pointed stick?

[Jonsmad]

Dinsdale!

[clem]

What, the curtains?

[Ben Paddon]

Suicide Sqvaaaaaad… att’c’!

[hummingbird]

A nod’s as good as a wink to a blind bat. Know what I mean, nudge, nudge?

[Prue]

This parrot is dead…..

[si]

Because I’m sad, I sat down and watched the first episode at just before 11pm last night. Was quietly satisfied when my 14 year old brother came in for five minutes or so, and had a good chortle at everything he saw.

[Dave]

Fetchez la vache

[Phil]

Manuel, there is too much butter ON THOSE TRAYS

[Pete Part Three]

I think I love Fawlty Towers as much as I hate Monty Python.

How queer.

[Dave]

My Grandmother hated John Cleese. She’s dead now.

[si]

My Grandmather dated John Cleese*. She’s dead now**

*This is a lie.
**So is this.

[Phil]

My grandmother loved John Cleese, but she knew him as “the guy on PBS who yells.”

[ori-STUDFARM]

My grandmother loved John’s cheese, her husband was called John and he’s not dead

[hummingbird]

> My Grandmother hated John Cleese. She?s dead now.

She’s passed on. She is no more. She has ceased to be. She’s expired and gone to meet her maker … etc, etc, ad nauseum

[The PerformingMonkey]

Name 10 good sketches. I dare ya.

[ChrisM]

1. Bicycle repair man.

There’s another bigger screen version without the subtitles but it is cuts out the accident bit…

[ChrisM]

Sigh. Hopefully second time lucky.

1. Bicycle repair man.

[ChrisM]

1. Bicycle repair man.

I did post the link but the filter system isn’t having it. If you do a search yourself it comes up quickly enough. First one seems best as it’s bigger and keeps in the accident footage. It also comes with subtitles but they’re easy enough to ignore.

2. Climbing the North face of Uxbridge Road.

So very silly but it makes me chuckle.

EDIT- Would you Adam and believe it, the second link works!

[ChrisM]

1. Bicycle Repair Man.

2.Climbing the North face of Uxbridge Road

[Blisschick]

I’m a lumberjack…and I’m okay.

Spam,anyone? Spam with spam?

[Danny Stephenson]

Sorry ChrisM, seems our Spam filter has indeed wanted to think these were spam. HOW IRONIC!!!

I’ve published the posts accordingly…

[ChrisM]

Um, thanks. Sorry for the repetition everyone!

[Ian Symes]

I watched the documentary last night. What a massive pile of shit. The framing devices of the tinny-sounding tellies were annoying, and the lawyer shit at the beginning was an embarrassment. Plus, I was mouthing along to some of the anecdotes. “You can have thirteen shows, but no more!” and “so I said ‘Jesus Christ: Lust For Glory'” and all that. How about a Python documentary that tries to cover more finer details rather than covering the same potted history that everyone already knows?

As for naming ten good sketches:
The Cheese Shop
Denis Moore
Scott of the Sahara
The Bishop
Bruces Sketch
Exploding Penguin
Deja Vu
Dirty Fork
Lumberjack Song
The Funniest Joke In The World

Do you need more?

[redhead85]

Nudge Nudge Wink Wink
Dinsdale
Spanish Inquisition
Ministry of Silly Walks
Dead Parrot Sketch
How to Identify Trees from a Medium Distance

….

[Pete Part Three]

I don’t think I’ve ever given anything as much chances as I’ve given Monty Python. I’ve seen all the movies, seen a huge amount of sketches…and nothing. Not a smile. And it pisses me off because people quote it to me, expecting me to be a fan. But, no, give me NTNOCN any day.

The Cheese Shop and Deja Vu are just examples of dragging something feeble out to extreme lengths…which in turn is supposed to make it funnier.

I can appreciate the intelligence behind a lot of the stuff (particularly The Life of Brian which is such an awesome idea) but I just don’t find any of it overly amusing.

MP fans: Did you grow up watching this? I don’t think I saw anything of it until I was about 18 so maybe I’m just late to the party.

[Arlene Rimmer BSc SSc]

What about Anne Elk, and her Theory about the Brontosaurus? One of my personal favorites.

>MP fans: Did you grow up watching this? I don?t think I saw anything of it until I was about 18 so maybe I?m just late to the party.

I didn’t really start watching Python until about the time I entered high school. Took to it really quickly, too.

[Jonathan Capps]

> MP fans: Did you grow up watching this? I don?t think I saw anything of it until I was about 18 so maybe I?m just late to the party.

Alternatively, you’re just broken.

[Dave]

I was probably about 12 when I first saw an episode but I was aware of the Dead Parrot sketch long before that and had played the Cheese Shop game. The films hold more significance for me than the series.

[si]

I’m a fan of The Cycling Tour. I know that’s not strictly a sketch, more, well, an episode, but what the hell.

Oh, and Bicycle Repairman is probably my favourite, too.

What is it with me and bikes…?

(Yes, I’m perfectly aware what I’m setting myself up for.)

[Andrew]

> I watched the documentary last night. What a massive pile of shit.

I do wonder if some of the more interesting stuff was hacked out to it down to the hour the Beeb wanted. But it certainly didn’t seem to be doing anything special.

Still, every time I see another bit of the Friday Night, Saturday Morning clash I get giddy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqAHHhr7vmU

[Blisschick]

>MP fans: Did you grow up watching this? I don?t think I saw anything of it until I was about 18 so maybe I?m just late to the party.

I was about 8 when I started watching it late night in 1975. Damn, I’m old. :(

[si]

I was underwhelmed by the documentary, as well.

[hummingbird]

I was disappointed by the Douggie Adams documentary the other night, as well.
Most of that was rehashed, too.

[Alex]

I was disappointed by the Douggie Adams documentary the other night, as well.
Most of that was rehashed, too.

It also suffered a bit from the same problem that a lot of programs on him do which is concentrating on Hitchhikers to too great a degree. Dirk Gently only received the most fleeting on mentions, and although there was at least some time dedicated to the Last Chance To See project there was disappointingly little on Adam’s work for Infocom for example. Hopefully one day we will see someone make a definitive Douglas Adam’s documentary. Now could have been a great opportunity what with the new Hitchhikers book out on Monday so it’s just a shame they instead just repeated the documentary from 2001.

[si]

The book is serialised on Radio 4 next week, monday-friday, 10.45pm. Read by Stephen Mangan with Peter Serafinowicz.

[Alex]

So i’ve seen. Probibly as close as we’ll get too having a radio series for this book considering the ending added to the quintessential and all.

[Author]

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