OMG I forgot how funny this stuff was. Jones interviewing Chapman and pointing the mic away from him. It's just gags layered on absurdities on top of an insane premise. God love them.
"Ethel the Frog" is such a nice title for a TV show, even if the contents of the show are completely unrelated. More TV shows should be called "Ethel the Frog"
This is the sketch that hooked me. I knew nothing about the Kray twins, but I knew that this was the funniest bit that I had ever seen. Long live Spiney Norman.
When I was in high school, Python played on WTTW in Chicago 11:30 on Sunday night. I spent about a month prowling the halls between classes, poking around corners and saying "Dinsdale... Dinnnssssdal?!?" in a pretty good imitation. The vast herds around us thought we were crazy.
Did you understand all of the references - like this one on Billy Bremner - or did you try and look them up. Easy nowadays with Google. Tough if not impossible in those days.
Same here! In high school back then and laughing about the naughty bits! Of course keen on discussing the philosopher references, too! Then there was Carol Cleveland...
This is comic gold, the height of nonsense/hilarity blended together with such style as only the British could do. There are wonderful examples of human comedy across the world--it's part of the nature of the all humans to have a sense of humor. The hominids who wandered into Britain and settled just happened to come up with a uniquely wacky way of expressing humor.
I remember watching Monty Python with my sister after we had worked late in a restaurant and laughing our asses off and our dad would come downstairs in his underwear and watch for a few minutes before stating “I don’t get it” which made it even funnier.
Many references to corrupt politicians, gaydom and the coppers are very close to the truth. The Krays were still alive at the time this was broadcast. I wonder what their reaction was when they saw this.
This was probably his best moment as a Python, in perhaps their best sketch. This sketch might have also been one of Palin's finest moments. Pure comedy gold.
My father was from E. London and I heard stories about the "wide boys" and out and gangsters he knew of and this skit certainly resonates with me in the most hilarious way. I had relatives and met people when I was there who had accents like that. Funniest people I have ever met.
Watched these from 1969 as a 20 year old in England. Reminded me after reading this anecdote from Bob Hope, years later. Bob Hope reminisced that he was playing a theatre in Chicago in the 30s when Capone ruled the city. Hope was already quite famous by then. During the show his straight man said, 'My brother slapped Al Capone's face last week'. Hope said, 'He's a brave man, where is he? I'd like to shake his hand'.The straight man replied, 'I'm not gonna have him dug up just for that!' It got a big laugh in the theatre.. Later, Hope said he was relaxing in his hotel room with a drink before bed, and the phone rang. A classic gangster voice on the line (not Capone, obviously one of his lieutenants) said, 'Are youse Bob Hope de comedian?' Hope cautiously said, 'Yes'. 'I believe youse told a joke about Mr Capone last night, and Mr Capone would prefer you didn't tell dat joke again'. Hope said, 'Yes sir, no problem, sorry sir, never, again'. And he never did, of course. I wonder if a Kray brother rang Python from prison? 😂 Only joking. They were doing 30 years then and died in prison. Superb sketch as 99% of Python sketches are. 'He was a cruel man, but fair'. Always remember that line as other people have commented that it was their favourite.
I learned about the Krays years after I first saw this sketch. At first, I just thought it was a brilliant bit of nonsense - and I watched and listened to it over and over, had the TV episode on video tape and I also had the album. After hearing about the Kray Twins and their careers, everything kind of came together.
Ooh, never noticed that the Pythons used a clip from Jean Sibelius' work (however short!), at 0:17 here. It's Intermezzo from _Karelia Suite_ (composed in 1893.) It's one of my favorites too!
"I've been told Dinsdale Piranha nailed your head to the floor" "No, never! He was a smashing bloke, used to buy his mother flowers and that. He was like a brother to me." "But police actually have film of Dinsdale nailing your head to the floor." "Well, yeah, he did that." "Why?" " Well, I 'ad transgressed the unwritten law" " What had you done?" "Er, he didn't tell me that, but he said their was a case and that's good enough for me with old Dinsie. I 'ad to insist! He wanted to let me off!"
That's my favourite part, because that's exactly how certain people talked about the krays 😂 As though they were really nice blokes, and not homicidal gangsters 😂
ICYDK "Ethel The Frog" is actually a parody of a real British public affairs show called This Week that aired on the Pythons previous employer Associated Rediffusion.
The best parts are the school interview at 2:14 and the line "and tv quiz master". i lmfao at those. i have this on a dvd called "Micheal Palin's Personal Best", i also own "Eric Idle's Personal Best", "Life of Brian", "Holy Grail", "And now for something completly different", "Almost the truth", "At last the 1948 show". and this christmas, i hope to find the flying circus box set.
First they began to operate what they called The Operation. In it, they would select a victim and then threaten to beat him up if he paid them the so-called protection money. Four months later, they started another operation which they called The Other Operation. In this racket they selected another victim and threatened not to beat him up if he didn't pay them. One month later, they hit upon The Other Other Operation. In this, the victim was threatened that if he didn't pay them they would beat him up.
It was a huge joke that the Piranha Brothers were 'sentenced to 400 years'. In the USA that happens routinely. I always wonder how long they really keep the corpse in the cell.
