Eric Idle criticizes Monty Python and its direction, John Cleese hits back

A quarrel breaks out between the founders of Monty Python as Eric Idle speaks out and John Cleese hits back. Originally established in 1969, the legendary British comedy troupe consisted of Cleese, Idle, Terry Gilliam, Graham Chapman, Terry Jones and Michael Palin. They first became known with their sketch show, Monthy Python’s Flying Circuswhich ran for four seasons on the BBC from 1969 to 1974 and was subsequently broadcast several times. Monty Python films, including the famous Monty Python and the Holy Grail And Brian’s life.

Recently, a feud broke out as Eric Idle took to Twitter/X to take shots at Monty Python’s direction – Holly, Terry Gilliam’s daughter, who manages the group’s finances. In response, John Cleese fired back and defended Holly Gilliam. Discover a selection of their articles below:

In response to a concerned fan, Inactive revealed he was struggling financially and blamed Holly Gilliam, “We own everything we’ve created in Python and I never imagined that at this age revenue streams would decline so disastrously. But I guess if you appoint a Gilliam kid as manager, you shouldn’t be that surprised. One Gilliam is bad enough. Two can take down any business“.

In response to another fan, Inactive says 2014 concert reunion The meaning of life was to help pay for his legal battle with Mark Forstater,”More specifically, it was to pay for the lawyers and the seven years this idiot spent suing us. Titled git“.

Inactive confirms, “I don’t do Python anymore. I have already given. Ungrateful bastards“.

Inactive also says he didn’t do it”seen Cleese for seven years“.

Cleese fired back and defended Holly Gilliam, “I have worked with Holly for ten years and I find her very efficient, lucid, hardworking and pleasant to work with. Michael Palin asked me to clarify that he shares this opinion. Terry Gilliam also agrees with this“.

Referring to idle, Cleese said, “We have always hated and despised each other, but only recently has the truth begun to emerge.“.

Breaking down the Monty Python feud

One of the biggest revelations of the feud is that Idle’s income streams have dried up and he mainly blames Holly Gilliam, who has managed Monty Python’s finances for 10 years. Idle also refers to a “titled git” And “jerk” who spent seven years pursuing him in court, referring to Monty Python and the Holy Grail producer Mark Forstater, who sued him for a portion of the profits from Spam, the musical comedy inspired by the film. Idle spent all his savings on legal fees and was ordered by the court to pay Forstater more than $1 million.

In response to Idle’s tirade, Cleese came to Holly Gilliam’s defense, which fellow co-founders Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam also agree with. Cleese clarified that he and Idle are separated and haven’t seen each other in seven years. Cleese is also no stranger to financial difficulties, having embarked on a child support tour in 2010 to pay for his costly divorce. Yet there’s no love lost between Idle and Cleese, with the latter admitting: “We have always hated and despised each other” Idle also ruled out the possibility of returning to Monty Pythoncalling them “ungrateful bastards“.

Source: Eric Idle, John Cleese/Twitter/X