The group includes Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle (the trio from Cambridge, who are all taller than all the other members of the group, and known as the more "aggressive" half of the group), Terry Jones (from Wales), Michael Palin (from Oxford) and Terry Gilliam (Minnesota in the United States). Chapman wrote the sketches with Cleese, Jones wrote with Palin, Idle wrote alone and Gilliam did the animations. Neil Innes and Carol Cleveland have both on occasion been mentioned as the "7th Python".
Graham Chapman, widely known as "The Dead One", died of cancer on October 4, 1989, the day before Python's 20th anniversary (thus being called "the greatest party pooper of all time" by Terry Jones), is tagged as the greatest actor among the group by his fellow Pythons. He had problems with alcohol and was a dedicated smoker of the pipe (he appears with a pipe in his hand in most of the Python sketches). He was known for his outstanding and abstract sense of humour; Cleese states that during their sketch-writing partnership Chapman did not say much, but when he said something it was often brilliant. The term "pepperpot" which is used to describe middle-aged ladies was found by Chapman.
John Cleese, probably the most famous Python on the other side of the Atlantic, is most widely known for his silly walk - the famous walk that he invented for Monty Python's Flying Circus, and repeated in one episode of Fawlty Towers, where he tries very hard not to remind his German visitors of the World War II by doing impersonations of Hitler. He lives in the USA. He played the lead as Basil Fawlty in "Fawlty Towers". He has been reported to be the first man to say "shit" on British TV and the first man to say "fuck" at a British memorial service.
Eric Idle is the composer of most Python songs (along with Neil Innes) such as the Python anthem "Always Look on the Bright Side Of Life" (which is also played after Iron Maiden's shows). His outstanding linguistic abilities have earned him the name "Master of the One-Liner". He created the Beatles parody "The Rutles" along with Neil Innes, and recently adapted the Python movie "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" as a Broadway musical called "Monty Python's Spamalot". His most famous Python role is the character he plays in the "Nudge Nudge" sketch. He is the self-acclaimed third tallest and sixth nicest Python.
Terry Gilliam was the only American in the group and has one of the most successful post-Python careers among the six, as he is the director of hugely popular movies like Brazil, 12 Monkeys, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and The Fisher King. His part was instrumental in helping Python gain their reputation as a unique comedy group, his animations helping them link sketches (which, of course, don't have punch lines) in an unprecedented manner. He has become a British citizen in early 2006 and renounced his American citizenship shortly afterwards. He acknowledges The Goon Show, a radio show aired in the 1950s on BBC radio, written by Spike Milligan and performed by Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe and Peter Sellers, as the main reason he chose Britain as his homeland.
Terry Jones is the most successful actor of the woman role (as demonstrated in the Spam sketch, which is only one of numerous occasions in which he has voiced the trademark of a high-pitched female impersonation). He is the director (or co-director) of all Python movies. He has also written, directed and appeared in a few more movies which featured some of his Python mates; despite the fact that these movies aren't quite a match for his work in the Flying Circus, they include some hilarious scenes, such as the singing scene in Erik the Viking. He is the writer of such excellent songs as "I'm So Worried" and "Traffic Lights". He has done a few historical documentaries, and in one of them he briefly acts the part of King Richard III (called "Ring Kichard the Thrid" by the Eric Idle character "the man who speaks entirely in anagrams", which prompts Michael Palin the interviewer to suggest that "Ring Kichard is surely a spoonerism and not an anagram", which results in Eric Idle's character leaving the studio, saying "If you are going to split hairs, I'm going to piss off" (which can serve as a pointer to the Eric Idle-John Cleese movie "Splitting Heirs")).
Michael Palin, known as the nicest python, and the favorite Python to work with for John Cleese, has done numerous travel documentaries during his post-Python career. His amazing sense of humour has inevitably permeated into what would otherwise be just ordinary documentaries (occasions like the Polushka Pole incident and thanking the goddess for her "nice mountain", to name a couple). This nice man, who finds it very difficult to say "no", is the only one who said "no" to a reunion in their 30th year. He is the inventor of the threat "If you don't cooperate, I will get nasty and start using some Dutch words".
As admitted on several occasions, the group likes to dress up as women.
Having said all that, Terry Jones is actually Welsh.
Bells
Monty Python Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Wife: Oh, it's quite nice dear, it's Sunday, it's the church.
Man: What about us atheists? Why should we 'ave to listen to that sectarian turmoil?
Wife: You're a lapsed atheist, dear.
Man: The principle's the same. Bleeding C-of-E. The Mohmedans don't come 'round here wavin' bells at us! We don't get Buddhists playing bagpipes in our bathroom! Or Hindus harmonizing in the hall! The Shintuists don't come here shattering sheet glass in the shithouse, shouting slogans...
Wife: All right, don't practice your alliteration on me.
Man: Anyway, when I get my membership card and blazer badge back from the League of Agnostics, I shall urge the executive to lodge a protest against that religious racket! Pass the butter knife!
Wife: WHAT??
Wife: 'OLD ON, I'LL CLOSE THE WINDOW.
(Sound: Window closing, bells get faint, but are still there)
Man: If only we had some kind of missile, we could take the steam out of those bells.
Wife: Well, you could always use the number 14-St. Joseph-the-somewhat- divine-on-the-hill ballistic missile. It's in the attic.
Man: What ballistic missile would this be, then?
(Sound: Bells begin to get increasingly louder)
Wife: I made it for you, it's your birthday present!
Man: Just what I wanted, 'ow nice of you to remember, my pet. 'EAR!
Wife: WHAT?
Man: THOSE BELLS ARE GETTING LOUDER!
Wife: WHAT?
Man: THOSE BELLS ARE GETTING LOUDER!!
Wife: THE BELLS ARE GETTING LOUDER! OOOH, LOOK!
Man: WHAT?
Wife: THE CHURCH, IT'S GETTING CLOSER! ITS COMING DOWN THE 'ILL!
Man: WHAT A LIBERTY!
Wife: IT'S TURNING INTO OUR LANE!
Man: STRAIGHT THROUGH THE LIGHTS, OF COURSE.
Wife: TYPICAL, YOU BETTER GO PUT IT OUT OF IT'S MISERY.
Man: WHERE'S THIS MISSILE, THEN?
Wife: IT'S IN THE AIRING CUPBOARD. PRESS THE BUTTON MARKED CHURCH!
Man: 'OW DO I AIM IT?
Wife: IT AUTOMATICALLY HOMES IN ON THE NEAREST PLACE OF WORSHIP!
Man: THAT'S ST. MARKS!
Wife: IT ISN'T NOW, LOOK!! OH, ITS OP'NING THE GATE.
Man: WHAT? USE THE MEGAPHONE!
Wife: IT'S OP'NING THE GATE!!
Man: I'LL POP UP THE AIRING CUPBOARD.
Wife: 'HURRY UP, ITS TRAMPLING OVER THE AZALIAS!
(Sound: Missle launch, explosion, bells diminish)
Man: Did I 'it it?
Wife: Yes, right up the aisle.
Man: Well I've always said, There's nothing an agnostic can't do if he really doesn't know whether he believes in anything or not.
The Monty Python song "Bells" is a satirical take on the relationship between religion and atheism. The lyrics center around a conversation between a man and his wife, who are disturbed by the sound of church bells on a Sunday morning. The man, who identifies as an atheist, sees the ringing of the church bells as a sectarian expression that he and his wife, as atheists, do not want to tolerate. He goes on to use a series of humorous examples to illustrate that other religions do not impose their religious fanfare on those who are not part of their congregation. In the end, the man and his wife decide to take extreme measures to stop the bells, resulting in a missile launch and an explosion that stops the ringing altogether.
The song "Bells" showcases Monty Python's signature humor and satire, which is often created through absurdity and exaggeration. The dialogue between the man and his wife highlights the clash between two opposing views and the extreme measures that they are willing to go to make their point. The song also touches on themes of religious tolerance and freedom of expression, as the man questions why those who do not share in religious beliefs should have to listen to the ringing of church bells. In the end, the satirical nature of the song underscores the absurdity of this kind of conflict and encourages dialogue and understanding between opposing viewpoints.
Line by Line Meaning
Man: I wish those bloody bells would stop.
The man is annoyed with hearing the church bells ringing.
Wife: Oh, it's quite nice dear, it's Sunday, it's the church.
The wife is enjoying the sound of church bells and acknowledging that it is a common occurrence on Sundays.
Man: What about us atheists? Why should we 'ave to listen to that sectarian turmoil?
The man is questioning why atheists have to listen to the sound of church bells.
Wife: You're a lapsed atheist, dear.
The wife is reminding the man that he is not a strong atheist, but rather a 'lapsed' one.
Man: The principle's the same. Bleeding C-of-E. The Mohmedans don't come 'round here wavin' bells at us! We don't get Buddhists playing bagpipes in our bathroom! Or Hindus harmonizing in the hall! The Shintuists don't come here shattering sheet glass in the shithouse, shouting slogans...
The man argues that it is unfair for church bells to be ringing when people of other religions don't make similar noises in their homes.
Wife: All right, don't practice your alliteration on me.
The wife doesn't want the husband to use alliteration as a way of arguing his point.
Man: Anyway, when I get my membership card and blazer badge back from the League of Agnostics, I shall urge the executive to lodge a protest against that religious racket! Pass the butter knife!
The man plans to lodge a protest against the church bells and requests the butter knife to be passed to him.
Wife: WHAT??
The wife is surprised by the man's request for a missile.
Man: PASS THE BUTTER KNIFE!! THANK YOU! IF ONLY WE HAD SOME KIND OF MISSILE!
The man is frustrated and wishes they had a missile to silence the church bells.
(Sound: Window closing, bells get faint, but are still there)
The wife closes the window but the sound of church bells is still audible.
Man: If only we had some kind of missile, we could take the steam out of those bells.
The man still wants a missile to silence the church bells.
Wife: Well, you could always use the number 14-St. Joseph-the-somewhat- divine-on-the-hill ballistic missile. It's in the attic.
The wife reveals that there is a missile that the man can use in the attic called 14-St. Joseph-the-somewhat- divine-on-the-hill.
Man: What ballistic missile would this be, then?
The man asks about the missile's specifications.
(Sound: Bells begin to get increasingly louder)
The church bells are getting louder.
Wife: I made it for you, it's your birthday present!
The wife reveals that she made the missile for the man's birthday present.
Man: Just what I wanted, 'ow nice of you to remember, my pet. 'EAR!
The man sarcastically thanks his wife and asks her to listen to the church bells.
Wife: WHAT?
The wife didn't understand what the man said.
Man: THOSE BELLS ARE GETTING LOUDER!
The man points out that the church bells are getting louder.
Wife: THE BELLS ARE GETTING LOUDER! OOOH, LOOK!
The wife agrees with the man and gets excited about something outside.
Man: WHAT?
The man asks what the wife is referring to.
Wife: THE CHURCH, IT'S GETTING CLOSER! ITS COMING DOWN THE 'ILL!
The wife realizes that the church is coming down the hill and towards their home.
Man: WHAT A LIBERTY!
The man is not happy that the church is coming towards their home.
Wife: IT'S TURNING INTO OUR LANE!
The church is turning into their lane.
Man: WHERE'S THIS MISSILE, THEN?
The man is asking where the missile is located.
Wife: IT'S IN THE AIRING CUPBOARD. PRESS THE BUTTON MARKED CHURCH!
The missile is located in the airing cupboard and the man needs to press the button marked 'church' to activate it.
Man: 'OW DO I AIM IT?
The man asks how he can aim the missile.
Wife: IT AUTOMATICALLY HOMES IN ON THE NEAREST PLACE OF WORSHIP!
The missile automatically homes in on the nearest place of worship.
Man: THAT'S ST. MARKS!
The man thinks that St. Mark's is the nearest place of worship.
Wife: IT ISN'T NOW, LOOK!! OH, ITS OP'NING THE GATE.
The wife corrects the man and points out that the church isn't St. Mark's but is instead opening a gate near their home.
Man: WHAT? USE THE MEGAPHONE!
The man tells his wife to use the megaphone so he can hear her better.
Wife: IT'S OP'NING THE GATE!!
The wife repeats that the church is opening a gate near their home.
Man: I'LL POP UP THE AIRING CUPBOARD.
The man heads to the airing cupboard to activate the missile.
Wife: 'HURRY UP, ITS TRAMPLING OVER THE AZALIAS!
The wife tells the man to hurry up as the church is causing damage to their garden.
(Sound: Missle launch, explosion, bells diminish)
The missile is launched, there is an explosion, and the church bells eventually stop ringing.
Man: Did I 'it it?
The man asks if the missile hit the church.
Wife: Yes, right up the aisle.
The missile hit the church and went straight up the aisle.
Man: Well I've always said, There's nothing an agnostic can't do if he really doesn't know whether he believes in anything or not.
The man reflects on his religious beliefs and makes a joke about agnostics being able to do anything if they don't know what they believe in.
Contributed by Colin D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.