'''Монти Пайтон''' () — Великобритании, состоящая из шести человек, работавшая в жанре "alternative comedy".

==История==
Их первая совместная работа — комедийное шоу «Летающий цирк Монти Пайтона» (Monty Python’s Flying Circus) — выходила в эфир в 1969—1974 годах на телеканале сюрреалистических анимаций Терри Гиллиама, объединённых не общим сюжетом, а некой идеей, чаще абсурдистской. «Летающий цирк» не только сделал знаменитыми участников Монти Пайтон, но и оказал серьезное вляние на дальнейшее развитие комедийного жанра.

После завершения шоу «Летающий цирк» группой были сняты четыре полнометражных фильма. Многие участники труппы сделали по отдельности успешную карьеру. В частности, Терри Гиллиам работает как режиссёр, снял ряд известных фильмов.

==Дополнительные факты==
По одной из версий, термин Летающий цирк Монти Пайтона» (1969). Смысл скетча сводится к тому, что в одном кафе все блюда в меню содержат «SPAM», некоторые даже по нескольку раз. Когда главный герой скетча, пришедший в это кафе вместе с женой, просит принести ему блюдо без «SPAM», официантка предлагает ему блюдо с «небольшим количеством SPAMа». Посетитель возмущается, и хор викингов, сидящих за соседними столиками, начинает петь хвалебную песню «SPAMу», после чего скетч погружается в хаос. В конце скетча жена героя восклицает: «I don’t like spam!» («Я не люблю «SPAM»!). В титрах к именам действующих лиц также было добавлено слово «SPAM». В общей сложности это слово упоминается в скетче более ста раз.<ref>[http://www.spamterminator.it/orig_en.asp Текст скетча]</ref><ref>[http://video.google.de/videoplay?docid=5627694446211716271&q=Spam Monty Python - Скетч на Google Video]</ref>

== Участники ==
* Грэхэм Чэпмен (''Graham Chapman'')
* Джон Клиз (''John Cleese'')
* Терри Гилльям (''Terry Gilliam'')
* Эрик Айдл (''Eric Idle'')
* Терри Джонс (''Terry Jones'')
* Майкл Палин (''Michael Palin'')

== Фильмы ==
<!--* 1968 — Как раздражать людей-->
* 1971 — Монти Пайтон: a теперь нечто совсем иное / ''And Now for Something Completely Different''
* 1975 — Монти Пайтон и Священный Грааль / ''Monty Python And The Holy Grail''
* 1976 — Монти Пайтон встречаются на окраине / ''Pleasure at Her Majesty's''
* 1979 — Житие Брайана по Монти Пайтону / ''Monty Python’s Life of Brian''
* 1982 — Монти Пайтон в Голливуде / ''Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl''
* 1983 — Смысл жизни по Монти Пайтону / ''Monty Python’s The Meaning Of Life''

== См. также ==
Питер Кук

{{Infobox Comedian
| name        = Monty Python
| image       = Flyingcircus 2.jpg
| imagesize   = 300px
| caption     = '''The Python team'''<br />Back row: Graham Chapman, Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam. <br>Front row: Terry Jones, John Cleese, Michael Palin
| medium      = Audio Recordings, Books
| nationality = British (5 members) <br>British, formerly American (1 member)<ref>Gilliam was born American and additionally obtained British citizenship in 1968. In protest to George W. Bush, he renounced his American citizenship in January 2006 and is now only a British citizen. [http://www.tagesspiegel.de/kultur/;art772,2004101 oew/dpa/ddp (10 February 2006). Kopflos am Potsdamer Platz. ''tagesspiegel''] (German, retrieved 15 September 2007)</ref>
| active      = 1969–1983
| genre       = Sketch comedy, satire
| subject     = 
| influences  = The Goons, Spike Milligan
| influenced  = Douglas Adams and Eddie Izzard
| notable_work= ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' (1969–1974)<br>''And Now for Something Completely Different'' (1971)<br>''Monty Python and the Holy Grail'' (1975)<br>''Monty Python's Life of Brian'' (1979)<br>''Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl'' (1982)<br>''Monty Python's The Meaning of Life'' (1983)<br> 
| Current_members= Graham Chapman <br> John Cleese <br> Terry Gilliam <br>Eric Idle <br>Terry Jones <br>Michael Palin
| website     =  [http://www.pythonline.com/ PythOnline]
| footnotes   = 
}}
'''Monty Python''', or '''The Pythons''',<ref>Wilmut (1980), p.250.</ref><ref>''The Pythons'' by 'The Pythons' IBSN 0752852930</ref> is the collective name of the six creators of ''British series (seasons). The Python phenomenon developed from the original television series into something much larger in scope and impact, spawning touring stage shows, five theatrically-released films, numerous albums, several books and a spin-off stage musical, and launching the members on to individual stardom. 

The television series, broadcast by the sketch show but with an innovative stream-of-consciousness approach (aided by Terry Gilliam's animations), it pushed the boundaries of what was then considered acceptable, both in terms of style and content.

The group's influence on comedy has often been compared to one of their films). A self-contained comedy team responsible for both writing and performing their work, they changed the way performers entertained audiences. The Pythons' creative control allowed them to experiment with form and content, discarding the established rules of television comedy. Their influence on British comedy of all kinds has been apparent for many years, while in America it has coloured the work of many cult performers from the early editions of ''absurdist trends in television comedy. "Pythonesque" has entered the English lexicon as a result.

There are differing accounts of the origins of the Python name although the members agree that its only "significance" was that they thought it sounded funny. In the 1998 documentary ''Live At Aspen'' the group implied that "Monty" was selected as a gently-mocking tribute to Lord Montgomery, a legendary British general of World War II; requiring a "slippery-sounding" surname, they settled on "Python". On other occasions Idle has claimed that the name "Monty" was that of a popular and rotund fellow who drank in his local pub; people would often walk in and ask the barman, "Has Monty been in yet?", forcing the name to become stuck in his mind. 

In a 2005 poll to find ''The Comedian's Comedian'', three of the six members were voted among the top 50 greatest comedians ever, by fellow comedians and comedy insiders. Palin was at number 30, Idle was voted 21st and Cleese was at two, just beaten to the top by Peter Cook. <ref>http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/tv_and_radio/4141019.stm</ref>

==Before Monty Python==
<!-- Unsourced image removed: thumb|right|200px|Cleese (front row) with [[Bill Oddie, Graeme Garden, Tim Brooke-Taylor, David Hatch and Jo Kendall <br>in ''I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again''.]] -->
thumb|right|200px|Cleese and Chapman in <br>''[[At Last the 1948 Show''.]]
<!-- Deleted image removed: thumb|right|200px|Jones, Palin, Idle (back row) with [[Denise Coffey and David Jason <br>in ''Do Not Adjust Your Set''.]] -->
Palin and Jones first met at Oxford University, while Cleese and Chapman met at Cambridge. Idle was also at Cambridge, but started a year after Cleese and Chapman. Cleese met Gilliam in Cambridge University Footlights Cambridge Circus'' (originally entitled ''A Clump of Plinths'').

Chapman, Cleese and Idle were all members of the Footlights, which at that time also included the future ''Goodies''&mdash;Yes, Prime Minister''). During the time of Idle's presidency of the Club, feminist writer Pembroke College include sketches and performances by Idle and Cleese. They are currently kept in the archives of the Pembroke Players, along with tapes of Idle's performances in some of the college drama society's theatrical productions.  

Variously, the Python members appeared in or wrote, or both, for the following shows before being united for ''Monty Python's Flying Circus''. In particular, ''The Frost Report'' is credited as first uniting the British Pythons and providing an environment in which they could develop their particular styles:
*''I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again'' (radio) (1964&ndash;1973) [Cleese: cast member & writer <br>&mdash; Idle and Chapman: writers]
*''The Frost Report'' (1966&ndash;1967) [Cleese: cast member & writer <br>&mdash; Idle: writer of Frost's monologues &mdash; Chapman, Palin & Jones: writers]
*''At Last the 1948 Show'' (1967) [Chapman & Cleese: writers & cast members &mdash; Idle: writer] 
*''Twice a Fortnight'' (1967) [Palin & Jones: cast members & writers]
*''Do Not Adjust Your Set'' (1967&ndash;1969) [Palin, Jones & Idle: cast members & writers <br>&mdash; Gilliam: animation &mdash; Bonzo Dog Band: musical interludes]
*''We Have Ways of Making You Laugh'' (1968) [Idle: cast member & writer &mdash; Gilliam: animation]
*''How to Irritate People'' (1968) [Cleese & Chapman: cast members & writers &mdash; Palin: cast member]
*''The Complete and Utter History of Britain'' (1969) [Palin & Jones: cast members & writers]
*''Doctor in the House'' (1969) [Cleese & Chapman: writers]

Several of these also featured other important British comedy writers and/or performers of the future, including David Frost, as well as members of other significant upcoming comedy teams, Ronnie Corbett and Ronnie Barker (a.k.a. the Two Ronnies), and Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graeme Garden and Bill Oddie (a.k.a. the Goodies). 

Following the success of ''Do Not Adjust Your Set'' (originally intended to be a children's programme) with the adult two-man show for various reasons, including Chapman's supposedly difficult personality. Cleese had fond memories of working with Palin and invited him to join the team. With the ITV series still in pre-production Palin agreed and suggested the involvement of his writing partner Jones and colleague Idle&mdash;who in turn suggested that Gilliam could provide animations for the projected series. Much has been made of the fact that the Monty Python troupe is the result of Cleese's desire to work with Palin and the chance circumstances that brought the other four members into the fold.<ref>''The Pythons Autobiography By The Pythons''&mdash;Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, John Chapman, David Sherlock, Bob McCabe&mdash;Thomas Dunne Books; Orion, 2003</ref>

==Monty Python's Flying Circus==

===Development of the series===
thumb|right|200px|Terry Gilliam's ''Beware of the Elephants'' animation
The Pythons had a very definite idea about what they wanted to do with the series. They were all great admirers of the work of punchline funny enough to end on, and this would detract from the overall quality of the sketch. They decided that they would simply not bother to 'cap' their sketches in the traditional manner, and early episodes of the Flying Circus series make great play of this abandonment of the punchline (one scene has Cleese turn to Idle, as the sketch descends into chaos, and remark that "This is the silliest sketch I've ever been in" - they all resolve not to carry on and simply walk off the set). However, as they began assembling material for the show, the Pythons watched one of their collective heroes, Q5'' (1969). Not only was the programme more irreverent and anarchic than any previous television comedy, Milligan would often "give up" on sketches halfway through and wander off set (often muttering "did I write this?"). It was clear that their new series would now seem somewhat less original, and Jones in particular became determined the Pythons should innovate further.

After much debate, Jones remembered an animation Gilliam had created for ''Do Not Adjust Your Set'' called "Beware of the Elephants", which had intrigued him with its stream-of-consciousness style. Jones felt it would be a good concept to apply to the series: allowing sketches to blend into one another. Palin had been equally fascinated by another of Gilliam's efforts, entitled "Christmas Cards", and agreed that it represented "a way of doing things differently." Since Cleese, Chapman and Idle were less concerned with the overall flow of the programme, it was Jones, Palin and Gilliam who became largely responsible for the presentation style of the ''Flying Circus'' series, in which disparate sketches are linked to give each episode the appearance of a single stream-of-consciousness (often using a Gilliam animation to move from the closing image of one sketch to the opening scene of another).

Each day of writing started at 9am and finished at 5pm. Typically, Cleese and Chapman worked as one pair of writers isolated from the others, as did Jones and Palin, while Idle wrote alone. After a few days of working in this configuration, they would all join together with Gilliam, critique their scripts and exchange ideas. Their approach to writing was democratic. If the majority found the idea to be humorous, it would be included in the show. The casting of carte blanche to decide how to bridge them with animations, armed with his camera, scissors, and airbrush. 

While the show was a collaborative process, different factions within Python were clearly responsible for different elements of the team's humour. In general, the work of the Oxford-educated members was more visual, and more fanciful conceptually (e.g. the arrival of the Spanish Inquisition in a suburban front room), while the Cambridge graduates' sketches tended to be more verbal and more aggressive (for example, Cleese and Chapman's many "confrontation" sketches, where one character ends up intimidating or hurling abuse at another, or Idle's characters with bizarre verbal quirks, such as The Man Who Speaks In Anagrams). Asked about this, Cleese has confirmed that "most of the sketches with ''heavy'' abuse were Graham's and mine, anything that started with a slow pan across countryside and impressive music was Mike and Terry's, and anything that got utterly involved with words and disappeared up any personal orifice was Eric's."<ref>Wilmut (1980), p.211</ref> Gilliam's animations, meanwhile, ranged from the whimsical to the savage (the cartoon format allowing him to create some astonishingly violent scenes without fear of censorship).

Several names for the show were bandied about before the title ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' was settled upon. Some of the more memorable were ''"Owl Stretching Time"'', ''"The Toad Elevating Moment"'', ''"Vaseline Review"'' and ''"Bun, Wackett, Buzzard, Stubble and Boot"''. "Flying Circus" stuck when the BBC explained to the group that it had already printed that name in its schedules and was not prepared to amend it, leaving the Pythons no choice in that matter. Many variations on the name in front of this title then came and went. ''Gwen Dibley's Flying Circus'' was named after a woman Palin had read about in the newspaper, thinking it would be amusing if she were to discover she had her own TV show. ''Baron Von Took's Flying Circus'' was considered as an affectionate tribute to the man who had brought them together. ''Arthur Megapode's Flying Circus'' was also suggested, then discarded. Cleese then added "Python", liking the image of a slippery, sly individual that it conjured up. The specific origin of "Monty" is somewhat confused (''see above'').

==Style of the show==
''Flying Circus'' pioneered some innovative formal techniques, such as the theme song. On several occasions the cold open would last until mid show, after which the regular opening titles would run. Occasionally the Pythons would attempt to trick viewers by rolling the globe logo used for BBC continuity, over which Cleese would parody the clipped tones of a BBC announcer. On one occasion the credits ran directly after the opening titles. They also experimented with ending segments by cutting abruptly to another scene or animation, walking offstage, addressing the camera (breaking the fourth wall), or introducing a totally unrelated event or character. A classic example of this approach was the use of Chapman's "Colonel" character, who walked into several sketches and ordered them to be stopped because things were becoming "far too silly." Another favourite way of ending sketches was to drop a cartoonish "16-ton weight" prop on one of the characters when the sketch seemed to be losing momentum, or a knight in full armour (played by Terry Gilliam) would wander on-set and hit characters over the head with a raw chicken<ref>''Monty Python's Flying Circus Just The Words'' Volume 1, p33. Methuen, 1990</ref>, before cutting to the next scene. Another innovative way of changing scenes was when John Cleese would come in as a radio commentator and say "And now for something completely different". This line has come to be thought of as the troupe's 'catchphrase'.

The Monty Python theme music is ''The Liberty Bell'', a march composed by John Philip Sousa, which was chosen among other reasons because the recording was in the public domain.<ref name=MBC_piece>x</ref>

The use of Gilliam's surreal, Victorian illustrations and Renaissance masterpiece ''Venus, Cupid, Folly, and Time'' by Bronzino. This foot, and Gilliam's style in general, have come to be considered the visual trademarks of the series.

The Pythons built on and extended the great British tradition of cross-dressing comedy. Rather than dressing a man as a woman purely for comic effect, the (entirely male) Python team would write humorous parts for women, then don frocks and makeup and play the roles themselves.  Thus a scene requiring a housewife would feature one of the male Pythons wearing a housecoat and apron, speaking in falsetto. These women were referred to as pepperpots. While this accentuated the humour, it was not, in itself, the joke (had a woman played the role, the lines would have had the same comic effect). Generally speaking, female roles were only played by a real woman (usually Carol Cleveland) when the scene specifically required that the character be sexually attractive (although sometimes they used Eric Idle for this). In some episodes and later ''Monty Python's Life of Brian'' they took the idea one step further by playing women who impersonated men (in the stoning scene).

Many of the sketches have become extremely well-known outside the hardcore of Python fans, and are still widely quoted to this day. "Spam", "The Spanish Inquisition", "Cheese Shop" and "The Ministry of Silly Walks" are just a few examples.

===The end of ''Flying Circus''===
Having considered the possibility at the end of the second series, Cleese finally left the ''Flying Circus'' at the end of the third. He later explained that he felt he no longer had anything fresh to offer the show. He furthered this with the claim that only two Cleese-and-Chapman-penned sketches in the third series ("Dennis Moore" and the "Cheese Shop") were truly original, and that the others were bits and pieces from previous work cobbled together in slightly different contexts. He was also finding Chapman, who was at that point in the full throes of alcoholism, increasingly difficult to work with. According to an interview with Eric Idle, "It was on an Air Canada flight on the way to Vancouver, when John (Cleese) turned to all of us and said 'I want out.' Why? I don't know. He gets bored more easily than the rest of us. He's a difficult man, not easy to be friendly with. He's so funny because he never wanted to be liked. That gives him a certain fascinating, arrogant freedom."<ref>Richard Ouzounian, "[http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&call_pageid=971358637177&c=Article&cid=1152963371205 Python still has legs]", ''Toronto Star'', July 16, 2006</ref>

The rest of the group carried on for one more "half" series before calling a halt to the programme in 1974. The name "Monty Python's Flying Circus" appears in the opening animation for series 4, but in the end credits the show is listed as simply "Monty Python". Despite his official departure from the group, Cleese supposedly made a (non-speaking) cameo appearance in the fourth series, but never appeared in the credits as a performer. Several episodes do credit him as a co-writer since some sketches were recycled from scenes cut from the ''Holy Grail'' script. While the first three series contained 13 episodes each, the fourth ended after only six.

In 1975 the series was first broadcast in the United States and soon gained a cult following. Ron Deveiller, an executive from PBS television station KERA in Dallas, Texas, found some of the episodes on a shelf when searching for programming for his station. He watched one, then another, and before he was done he had acquired the entire series to put on the air. The series was eventually aired on PBS stations across the country, and by this chance event Python invaded America. A couple of sketches ("Bicycle Repairman" and "The Dull Life of a Stockbroker") aired in 1974 on the NBC series ''ComedyWorld'', a summer replacement series for ''The Dean Martin Show''.

==Life after the ''Flying Circus''==
===Filmography===
====''And Now For Something Completely Different'' (1971)====
 
The Pythons' first feature film (directed by Ian MacNaughton, reprising his role from the television series) did not really live up to its title, composed as it was, of what were considered the best sketches from the first two series of the ''Flying Circus'', re-shot on an extremely low budget (and often slightly edited) for cinema release. Material selected for the film includes: "Dead Parrot", "The Lumberjack Song", "Upper Class Twit of the Year", "Hell's Grannies", "Self-Defence Class", "How Not To Be Seen" and "Nudge Nudge". Financed by Playboy's UK executive Victor Lowndes, it was intended as a way of breaking Monty Python into America, and although it was ultimately unsuccessful in this, the film did good business in the UK (this still being in the era before home video would make it much more accessible to view the material again). The group did not consider the film a success, but it enjoys a cult following today.

====''Monty Python and the Holy Grail'' (1975)====

In 1974, between production on the third and fourth series (which Cleese declined to take part in for a variety of reasons), the group decided that the time was now right to embark on their first 'proper' feature film, containing entirely new material. ''Arthurian Legend and was directed by both Terrys, Jones and Gilliam. Again, the latter also contributed linking animations (and put together the opening credits). Along with the rest of the Pythons, Jones and Gilliam performed several roles in the film, but it was Chapman, considered by far the best straight actor of the bunch, who took the lead as King Arthur. ''Holy Grail'' was filmed on location, throughout several picturesque rural areas of Scotland, with a tiny budget of nearly £150,000; the money was raised in part with investments from rock groups such as Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin - and UK music industry entrepreneur Tony Stratton-Smith (founder/owner of the Charisma Records label, for which the Pythons recorded their song albums).

====''Monty Python's Life of Brian'' (1979)====

Following the success of ''Holy Grail'', many reporters asked them for the title of the next Python film, despite the fact that the team had not even begun to consider a second movie. Eventually, Eric Idle once flippantly replied "Jesus Christ - Lust for Glory", which became the group's stock answer once they realised that it shut reporters up. However, they soon began to seriously consider a film lampooning the New Testament era in the same way ''Holy Grail'' had lampooned Arthurian legend. Despite being non-believers, they agreed that Jesus was "definitely a good guy" and found nothing to mock in his actual teachings; on the other hand, they shared a distrust of organised religion, and decided to write a satire on credulity and hypocrisy among the followers of someone mistaken for the "Messiah", but who had no desire to be followed as such.

The focus therefore shifted to a separate individual born at the same time, in a neighbouring stable. When Jesus does appear in the film (first, as a baby in the stable, and then later on the Mount, speaking the Beatitudes), he is played straight (by actor Kenneth Colley) and portrayed with respect. The comedy begins when members of the crowd mishear his statements of peace, love and tolerance ("I think he said, 'blessed are the cheesemakers'").

Directing duties were handled solely by Terry Jones on this project, having amicably agreed with Gilliam that Jones' approach to film-making was better suited for Python's general performing style. ''Holy Grail'''s production had often been stilted by their differences behind the camera. Gilliam again contributed two animated sequences (one being the opening credits) and took charge of set design. The film was shot on location in Tunisia, the finances being provided this time by former Beatle George Harrison, who formed the production company Handmade Films especially for the movie. He was rewarded with a cameo role as the 'owner of the Mount'.

Despite its subject matter attracting much controversy, particularly upon its initial release, it has (together with its predecessor) often been ranked amongst the very greatest comedy films of all time. A Channel 4 poll in 2005 ranked ''Holy Grail'' in 6th place, with ''Life of Brian'' at the very top. [http://www.channel4.com/film/newsfeatures/microsites/G/greatest-comedyfilms/index.html]

====''Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl'' (1982)====

Filmed at the  Terry Hughes) in which the Pythons performed sketches from the television series in front of an audience. The released film also incorporated footage from the German television specials (the inclusion of which gives Ian MacNaughton his first on-screen credit for Python since the end of ''Flying Circus'') and live performances of several songs from the troupe's then-current ''Monty Python's Contractual Obligation Album''.

====''Monty Python's The Meaning of Life'' (1983)====

right|150px|thumb|Poster for ''Monty Python's The Meaning of Life''
Python's final film returned to something structurally closer to the style of ''Flying Circus''. A series of sketches loosely follows the ages of man from black humour, garnished by some spectacular violence (including an operation to remove a liver without anaesthetic and the morbidly obese Mr. Creosote exploding over several restaurant patrons). At the time of its release, the Pythons confessed their aim was to offend "absolutely everyone".

Besides the opening credits and the fish sequence, Gilliam, by now an established live action director, no longer wanted to produce any linking cartoons, offering instead to direct one sketch - Parrot Sketch Not Included'' where they are all seen sitting in a closet for four seconds. This would be the last time Chapman was filmed on screen with the rest of the gang.

===The ''Secret Policeman's Ball'' benefit shows===
Various members of Monty Python have contributed their services to multiple charitable endeavors and causes over the years - sometimes as an ensemble, at other times as individual members.  The cause that has been the most frequent and consistent beneficiary has been the fund-raisers for Amnesty - known collectively as the ''Secret Policeman's Ball'' shows - which were turned into multiple films, TV shows, videos, record albums and books.  These benefit shows and their many spin-offs raised considerable sums of money for Amnesty, raised public and media awareness of the human rights cause and influenced many other members of the entertainment community (especially rock musicians) to become involved in political and social issues. Among the many musicians who have publicly attributed their activism - and the organisation of their own benefit events - to the inspiration of the work in this field of Monty Python are Sting. The shows are also credited by Amnesty with helping the organisation develop public awareness in the USA where one of the spin-off films was a major success.  

Two of the six Pythons - Cleese and Jones - had an involvement (as performer, writer and/or director) in all four Amnesty benefit shows. Palin was involved in three, Chapman in two and Gilliam in one.  Eric Idle did not participate in any of the Amnesty shows.  Notwithstanding Idle's lack of participation - the other five members (together with two "Associate Pythons" - Carol Cleveland and Neil Innes - all appeared together in the first ''Secret Policeman's Ball'' benefit - the 1976 ''A Poke In The Eye (With A Sharp Stick)'' performing several Python sketches and in this first show, they were collectively billed as ''Monty Python''. (Peter Cook deputised for the errant Eric Idle in one major sketch ''The Courtroom''). In the next three shows, the participating Python members performed many Python sketches - but were billed under their individual names rather than under the collective Python banner.  After a six-year break, Amnesty resumed producing ''Secret Policeman's Ball'' benefit shows in 1987 (sometimes with, and sometimes without variants of the iconic title) and by 2006 had presented a total of twelve such shows.  The shows since 1987 have featured newer generations of British comedic performers - including many who have attributed their participation in the show to their desire to emulate the Python's pioneering work for Amnesty. (Cleese and Palin made a brief cameo appearance in the 1989 Amnesty show, but apart from that, the Pythons have not appeared in any of the shows after the legendary first four.)

===Going solo===
Each member has pursued various film, television and stage projects since the break-up of the group, but often continued to work with one another. Many of these collaborations were very successful, most notably '' Brazil'' (1985) and ''The Adventures of Baron Munchausen'' (1988), which featured Palin and Idle respectively. The success of these films, all of which contain many unusual visual elements, earmarked Gilliam as one of cinema's most popular independent film-makers.

Elsewhere, Palin and Jones wrote the comedic film series ''Ripping Yarns'', starring Palin with an assortment of British actors. Palin subsequently joined the establishment of British documentarians with his popular travel series for the BBC. Jones embarked on a similar career path with historical documentaries, also putting his love of the subject to use when writing, directing and acting in Erik the Viking, which also has Cleese playing a small part.

In terms of numbers of productions, John Cleese has had the most prolific solo career, having appeared in 59 theatrical films, 22 TV shows or series (including '' list of the greatest British TV shows, topping the whole poll. The first series of it was made while the rest of the troupe were concerning themselves with the last series of ''Flying Circus''.

Idle enjoyed critical success with ''Rutland Weekend Television'' in the mid-70s, out of which came the Beatles parody The Rutles (responsible for the cult mockumentary ''All You Need Is Cash''), and as an actor in ''Nuns on the Run'' (1990) with Robbie Coltrane.  However, his greatest success has come when returning to Python material, including taking their most famous song, Always Look on the Bright Side of Life, to no. 3 in the UK singles chart in 1991. The song had been revived by Simon Mayo on BBC Radio 1, and was consequently released as a single that year. The theatrical phenomenon of the Python musical ''Spamalot'' has made Idle the most financially successful of the troupe post-Python. Spamalot "lovingly ripped off" from the ''Holy Grail'' film. Written by Idle, it has proved an enormous hit on Broadway, London's West End and also Las Vegas. This was followed by ''Not the Messiah'', which applies the same treatment to ''The Life of Brian''.

===Post-Python reunions===
<!-- Unsourced image removed: thumb|right|300px|Python reunion, complete with Chapman's urn, in Aspen, Colorado (from left: Terry Jones, John Cleese, Graham Chapman, Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam, Michael Palin). -->
Since ''The Meaning of Life'', their last project as a team, the Pythons have often been the subject of reunion rumours. The final reunion of all six members occurred during the Parrot Sketch Not Included - 20 Years of Monty Python special. The death of Chapman in 1989 (on the eve of their 20th anniversary) seemed to put an end to the speculation of any further reunions. However there have been several occasions since 1989 when the surviving five members have gathered together for appearances - albeit not formal reunions.