John Cleese webchat 17 October

My time at Gransnet has come to an end. Thanks for all your questions and I hoped you enjoyed reading my responses.

May I also add that I'm visiting a lot of cities in December talking about the book and reading extracts and doing Q&A's. Do come, I love really rude questions!

Best wishes to all,

John Cleese

grannyactivist

Hello John and thank you for calling in. I haven't yet read your autobiography so forgive me if you've answered this question in your book, but I wondered if you felt you had a good/significant relationship with your grandparents as you were growing up? And would you have changed your name if your father hadn't done so (from Cheese)?

I only remember my Dad's Dad, and he was very quiet- a real Victorian. No, I would have kept my name as Cheese. Incidentally I used to live near Cheddar!

Lilygran

I really enjoyed 'A Fish called Wanda' and 'Clockwise'. You've been in quite a lot of films apart from the Python ones. Any plans for another feature film? And which is more rewarding, comedy shows or films?

I like movies now and again although they take over your life. The trouble is, the only really good part I ever got that I didn't write myself was in Clockwise, which was written by Michael Frayn who is a great writer. All the other good films I have done I had to write myself or with my friends.

Same with television except for the American shows I did, like Cheers and Will and Grace and Third Rock From the Son.

However most of the stuff about the films will be in the next volume, So Anyway is more about working with the two Ronnies, Marty Feldman, Peter Sellers and David Frost and also about my affair with Sophia Loren.

JackyB

Hi John - as a sixth form girl, I loved watching Monty Python (when I was allowed to) and we all had great fun re-enacting the sketches in school the next day.

But looking back on them now, they are awfully embarrassing with respect to their attitude to women. Have you, or any other of the Python team ever been asked to comment on that, and if so, what is the 21st Century feeling on this, seen from the Monty Python viewpoint?

You are right, they are awfully embarrassing with respect to their attitude to women. However, as I pointed out to my wife, they were also awfully embarrassing with respect to their attitude to men. In fact we were very rude about every type of human being, which is why it was funny. If we had been nice about everyone it would have been about as funny as the weather forecast.

Hermionesnan

My eldest grandaughter is a huge Harry Potter fan - what was it like on set with so many amazing actors and also do you know yet if will you be in the new Harry Potter spin off movies that were just announced?

Dear Hermionesnan

I was only in the first two films; the first for 32 seconds and then the second for 17 seconds. It was very boring because it was special effects with lots of wind machines and having to sit high off the ground on a sort-off bicycle seat while a huge camera zoomed towards me on rails and only just missed each time. There were no other actors there and nobody knew whether I had done a good take or not as the only one who understood what was going on was the special effects supervisor who spoke no known language.

However being in the Bond films was wonderful except I could never understand the plot or remember the name of the film I was in. Like "Never Kill Anyone Tomorrow" or "Quantum of Solace".

biggusdickus

Hello john huge fan of Python and your films (i was lucky enough to get a ticket with my wife and loved it - thank you).

I read that terry Jones described the relationship you all have like an old married couple. And as someone with nearlyforty years of marriage behind me, I wondered what you most bickered about. My wife and I still argue about who should drive. Although I nearly always win.

Yes, we do bicker all of the time but most of it is funny stuff. A bit like the sports changing room- everyone trying to come up with a better put down. We don't bicker about anything in particular- it's just entertainment.

In the old days we used to bicker about the script, but funnily enough never about who was going to play what part.

There is quite a lot about the first Python series, especially the extraordinary unsuccessful meeting when we went to pitch the idea. No one in television these days would believe this story. TV was so different then. And in the book I have written about why it was more creative then.

Fid

Can you still do a Silly Walk?

No I'm 74! But I have a great silly walk app which my friend Chris Curd invented. There's a link on my website if you want to take a look!

nananew

Hi John,

I read somewhere recently that you would rather not do anymore work. . So, with that in mind, what would your non-working day look like. Sort of a 'day in the life' of John…

I'm the opposite you see, worried about retiring because I have no idea what an earth I will do with all of the hours in the day!

I think what I said was that I would like to do work I find interesting, rather than work that is well-paid. I had to do a lot of the latter while I was paying $20 million alimony to one of my ex-wives. I hear she is having difficulty managing on it.

Kennedy

Question for John Cleese

Hi John, great to have you here on Gransnet. Thanks for all the
wonderful years of Faulty Towers. We used to look forward to it and laugh,
omG, it was a tonic.

Is there a chance that you might consider doing any more of these, or even something similar. We are sadly in need of a good TV show that is entertaining and funny.

Cathy (Kennedy)

The trouble about doing more TV is that everyone would say 'yes it's quite good but it's not as good as Fawlty Towers'. I personally think my real skill is writing and that is what I enjoy best. I enjoyed writing my book so much I am going to be doing much more of it. I actually make myself laugh as I was writing it.

Incidentally I wrote it in pencil in an exercise book using a new piece of technology called an India rubber.

GrannyCaz1

Loved the Episode of Fawlty Towers with the dead body in the room was absolutely hilarious

That is one of my three most favourite episodes!

guardianreader

Hello John you have said that you had a difficult relationship with your mother. Do you think this impacted on your relationships with women later in your life? I am thinking of your three marriages that failed.

Hello Guardianreader,

Yes, the book contains a lot and very funny stuff about my mother. She was a one-off. And I think our parents always affect our choice of partner later. We either choose somebody like one of them or someone who seems to be the opposite but usually turns out not to be.

msmaple

How on earth do you manage to come up with such good jokes? I'm not particularly gifted with conversation and I just can't imagine deliberately saying something funny!

I used to be able to write funny dialogue but I never thought I was very good at writing jokes. However, I think I got better at it. Being funny is about being relaxed, and playful, the difference between creative people and less creative people is that the former know how to play- how to get into a more playful mood. It's nothing to do with IQ.

granamia

Hi John,

I did a bit of digging and discovered that you're also a grandpa - do your grandchildren watch Fawlty Towers? My granddaughter is 11 and it's one of the programmes we love to watch together when she comes round (she's showing me how to watch it online). It's such a funny, good natured show and I think it's lovely having something to enjoy with my granddaughter.

I love the fact that children enjoy Fawlty Towers so much. The only worrying thing is that they all identify with Manuel. Do all parents behave like Manuel and Sybil?

Doreen2

Is it true that the actor that played Manuel was regularly injured during filming of Fawlty Towers? If it is - did he mind?

When you are doing physical comedy you're always going to pick up a knock or two, especially if you have as little rehearsal time as we did.

rose314

Is it true that your father's name was originally Cheese not Cleese. Cleese is obvioulsy a very nice name but I would have though Cheese would have had more comedic potential. Do you like cheese?

Yes, when Dad was born in Bristol in 1893 his name was Reggie Cheese but he changed it when he went into the army in 1915. It's a good story in the book. I wish he hadn't changed it. Then I could be Jack Cheese.

ninkynonk

I just saw this on twitter and am so excited to have the chance to ask you a question.

Do you think your comedy career has benefitted from your being tall?

No, but I think that being tall has benefited from my comedy career.

joytotheworld

have you ever thought of running for parliament? Looking at what's going on these days we could do a lot worse than being governed by the ministry of silly walks

I think MPs' have absolutely miserable jobs and I can't imagine why anyone would want to be one. I would be interested if parliament became a proper democracy but there is no hope for that.

chocaddict

Do you still have a hamster?

Yes I still have the hamster that I write about in the book. I bought it in the autumn of 1960, and it's not as lively as it was.

Elderflower1

You have done so much in your career it was really tricky to think of just one question but I do wonder what one moment would you say you were most proud of in your career or is there one line or joke you wrote which to this day you're most proud of?
Thank you for answering (in advance )

My favourite joke was at the end of the O2 show when I told Michael Palin that I had heard that Paul Dacre (Editor of Daily Mail) had had an arsehole transplant. But Michael said he'd just heard that the arsehole had rejected him. The Pythons despise the Daily Mail!

Fawltyfilly

Hello John,

I'm a huge fan (as is my mother aged 96!)
I once read you were a teacher for a while and I wondered if at any point in your career you had regretted leaving teaching. Or if you expected to return to it some day?
FFx

Tell your mother that mine got to 101! Yes, in the book I write about being a teacher for two years and it's the funniest chapter in the book! Since then I did a kind-of teaching with the management training films. Also, I am sort-of phoney professor at Cornel University in the States- one of the Ivy League ones. I do like understanding something and then being able to explain it interestingly and that's why enjoy writing more than I do acting.

pat66

I loved Fawlty Towers (actually I love it still)

It's so funny - I wondered how did you keep a straight face when you were filming? Or did there have to be a lot of takes because you all kept laughing?

Hi Pat,

Most of the time we kept a straight face because when we were doing the TV shows (FT and MP) we had very little recording time so we were always terrified we would get to the end of the recording without having taped the whole show. So we couldn't afford to fool around.

But when we got on stage we did a lot of breaking up especially Michael and me and Eric and me, because the atmosphere was so relaxed.

ladybird9

would love to have you for a dinner party, no, no not to eat you but, for the hilarious conversation that I am sure you would generate !!!! my little "shoobox" of a flat would, I am sure come alive, if you decide to take up my invite, maybe you could invite Colin Firth to make up a 3some, dinner and conversation ..... only X

many thanks for you wonderful sense of humour over the years, let us have some more.......please Mr Cleese

meemee

Hello John I would also like to thank you for many years of wonderful entertainment.

I was lucky enough to see one of the live Monty Python shows at the O2 recently. Was this something you were keen to do or did you take some persuading? And did it feel like you'd never been away once you all got together to perform the classic material?

We all thoroughly enjoyed getting together for the O2, mainly because Eric Idle did the hard work of producing the show after we had all suggested material. But it became much more ambitious because of Eric's use of song and dance (and filth) so it took more rehearsal than expected. But the audience were the best ever and that made it lovely to do.