The strange thing about comedy is that there’s no predicting what will endure and remain funny and what will become dated so quickly that people wonder what, exactly, people found funny about it at the time. That is part of what makes something like Monty Python and its various television and film iterations so wonderful.
Somehow, a surprisingly large number of the jokes, gags, and sketches remain as uproariously funny now as they did when they first appeared, a reminder that some humor is, truly, timeless. Here are 10 of Monty Python’s most immortal gags and sketches from their many, many hilarious works.
The BBC Announcer’s Introduction
“We interrupt this program to annoy you and make things generally more irritating” are the words that announced that Monty Python’s shenanigans were about to begin.
Two things have always stood out about Monty Python: its self-reflexivity and its refusal to take itself too seriously. In this instance, the joke relies on both of them at once. It’s hard not to laugh at the thought that anyone could be enough of a philistine to find the antics of these top-notch comedians irritating rather than absolutely hilarious.
But then, perhaps there really are people who find them annoying. If so, they are missing out.
Women, Their Strange Swords & Governance
“Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government!”
This line from Monty Python and the Holy Grail has gone down as one of the most enduringly funny and adaptable bits of dialogue in a film that is known for its incisive humor. One can see evidence of this everywhere on the internet, and the ways in which the peasant’s biting commentary has been used to comment on almost every political moment and event. Admittedly, it’s a rather brilliant statement, highlighting the absurdity of one of the most well-known myths in Western literature.
“Help, I’m Being Repressed!”
There’s a reason that Holy Grail is regarded by many as the apotheosis of Monty Python. Somehow, it manages to be genuinely hilarious while also being full of biting political commentary. There’s something particularly striking about this moment and the way that it lampoons the idea of a eureka moment of recognizing one’s own oppression.
The peasants, which are in some ways the film’s Greek chorus, are a reminder not to take any sort of politics too seriously.
The Dead Parrot Sketch
The Dead Parrot sketch is one of those things in Monty Python that one either gets or doesn’t mostly because this comes from the absurdity of this particular moment.
If, like some, one has the sensibility that really gets the sort of humor on offer, then this will certainly prove to be one of the funniest things in the world. Of course, the fact that it is such an accurate satire of the pitfalls of customer service makes it relatable as well as hilarious.
“What Have The Romans Ever Done For Us?”
What, indeed, have the Romans ever done? Apart, of course, from sanitation, medicine, education, win, public order, irrigation, roads, the fresh water system and public health? Nothing, of course! Somehow, Life of Brian manages to be incredibly funny despite (or perhaps, come to think of it, because of) the fact that it is so sacrilegious. More accurately, it lampoons the many Biblical epic films that were such a key part of Hollywood in the ’50s and ’60s.
In this case, a group of dissatisfied citizens wonder what, exactly, the Romans have done, even as they implicitly acknowledge that their imperial overlords have done quite a lot. As always, Monty Python manages to combine humor with a sly bit of political philosophy.
Complaining About Complaining
“I’d like to complain about people who constantly hold things up by complaining about people who complain. It’s high time something was done about it!”
Monty Python has always specialized in employing the type of humor that is, not to put too fine a point on it, quite barbed. In this case, it’s hard not to get the sense that sometimes it might be making fun of its own audience. However, it is precisely the troupe’s ability to do so and yet also make the viewer feel as if they are in on the joke that makes their signature brand of humor so constantly appealing.
The People’s Front of Judea (Or The Judean People’s Front)
One of the funniest parts of The Life of Brian is when a group of malcontents squabble about what, exactly they are, with each name being a slight variant on the others. It’s one of the most sophisticated bits of the entire film.
Not only does it capture the dizzying array of political groups that were, in fact, active in 1st Century Judea; it also pokes fun at the numerous political groups that were active throughout the ’60s and ’70s, many of which quickly grew mired in internecine strife that outsiders found (and find) bewildering.
Those Nasty Taunting French Insults
“Your mother was a hamster and your father smelled of elderberries!”
This famous taunt, uttered by the French soldiers who have occupied the castle that Arthur and his knights wish to gain access to, is one of those that has entered into the popular lexicon. One need only utter something about hamsters and farting in a general direction for everyone to understand where it came from (even if they haven’t actually seen the film).
There’s just so much to love about this line, but the best part it is that it is such an absolutely ridiculous and incongruous thing for a knight, and a French one at that, to say to a group of invaders.
“Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life”
Anyone who has seen Life of Brian knows that it ends on a tragic-comic note. The titular character, who has been mistaken for Jesus Christ throughout the film, ultimately finds himself crucified, just like Christ himself.
Lest anyone think that this is cause for mourning he, along with all of the other crucified criminals, begins to sing, proclaiming the necessity of always looking on the bright side of life. It’s a bleakly funny moment and a perfect way to end this off-beat film.
The Knights Of Ni
The Knights of Ni are, to put it mildly, one of the most iconic and recognizable bits of the entire Holy Grail. Though the audience sees nothing frightening about them, their signature screeching of the word “Ni!” clearly terrifies Arthur and his fellow knights.
Their demand for a shrubbery (and another shrubbery after that) is absolutely absurd, and it delightfully sends up the classic idea of the knight who must procure some precious object in order to appease a creature that stands in his way.
