John Wilson talks to actor, comedian, broadcaster and writer Sir Michael Palin. A founding member of the hugely influential comedy troupe Monty Python’s Flying Circus, he wrote and performed in its five television series and three feature films including The Life Of Brian. Other big screen credits include A Fish Called Wanda, Brazil, The Missionary and The Death of Stalin. Michael is also a globetrotting documentary presenter and bestselling author.Michael recalls the early influence of listening to radio comedy as a child, especially the absurdist humour of The Goon Show devised by Spike Milligan. Meeting Terry Jones at Oxford University in 1962 proved to be a life-changing event as the two soon started working on sketches together and after graduating were hired for David Frost's satirical television show The Frost Report. It was on this programme that the duo first worked with future Python members John Cleese, Graham Chapman and Eric Idle. Starring in Alan Bleasdale's 1991 ground breaking television drama GBH allowed Michael a departure from comedy but also set the bar high for future acting roles which he increasingly forwent in favour of writing and presenting documentaries, including a particular favourite about the Danish Painter Vilhelm Hammershøi.Archive used:Film clip: A Fish Called Wanda, Charles Crichton, 1988
Archive: Take It From Here, BBC Light Programme, 30 December 1954
Archive: The Goon Show, The Man Who Never Was, BBC Light Programme, 17 February 1958
Archive: Comic Roots, BBC1, 12 Aug 1983
Archive: That Was The Week That Was, BBC, 2 February 1963
Archive: The Frost Report, BBC1, 7 April 1966
Archive: Do Not Adjust Your Set, ITV, 26 December 1967
Archive: Monty Python’s Flying Circus, titles
Archive: Monty Python’s Flying Circus, BBC1, 7 December 1969 (Dead Parrot)
Archive: Monty Python’s Flying Circus, BBC1, 22 September 1970 (Spanish Inquisition)
Film clip: The Meaning of Life, Terry Jones, 1983
Archive: Friday Night, Saturday Morning, BBC2, 9 November 1979
Film clip: The Life of Brian, Terry Jones, 1979
Archive: Friday Night, Saturday Morning, BBC2, 9 November 1979
Music: Always Look On The Bright Side of Life, Eric Idle
Archive: Monty Python’s Flying Circus, BBC2, 1971 (Fish-slapping)
Archive: GBH, Alan Bleasdale, Channel 4, 1991
Archive: GBH, Alan Bleasdale, Channel 4, 1991
Film clip: The Death of Stalin, Armando Iannucci, 2017
Archive: Michael Palin and the Mystery of Hammershoi, BBC4, 29 June 2008Producer: Edwina Pitman