Apparently Two Of Monty Python’s Members Have ‘Always Loathed And Despised Each Other’ Amidst An Apparent Inter-Python War [Update: Or Maybe Not!]

Update: Welllllll, John Cleese is now saying his “loathing and despising each other” a) “Referred to all the members of the group” and b) “Was a joke.” Given that he once delivered this eulogy at fellow Python-er Graham Chapman’s funeral, some of us should have seen that one coming.

Original post: It’s long been known that the members of the legendary British comedy troupe Monty Python haven’t always gotten along. Some very much have: Watch Michael Palin’s heartbreaking ode to his close friend Terry Jones, who died from complications of dementia in 2020. But it seems others really don’t see eye to eye. A social media spat recently blew up between Eric Idle and John Cleese, which got so bad that the latter claimed the two have always hated each other’s guts.

Per Deadline, over the weekend Idle took to Twitter/X to complain about the Python brand’s dwindling fortunes. “We own everything we ever made in Python and I never dreamed that at this age the income streams would tail off so disastrously,” Idle wrote. He blamed Holly Gilliam, daughter of fellow Python-er Terry, who took over as manager a while back. “But I guess if you put a Gilliam child in as your manager you should not be so surprised. One Gilliam is bad enough. Two can take out any company.”

Idle also claimed Python hasn’t made him fabulously wealthy, especially now. “I don’t know why people always assume we’re loaded. Python is a disaster,” he wrote. “Spamalot made money 20 years ago. I have to work for my living. Not easy at this age.”

Later Idle claimed that their former manager, Jim Beach, was fired by Cleese “peremptorily and foolishly, without coming to the Board, when he discovered Jim was to be Executive Producer of Spamalot the Movie.” (Note: The Spamalot movie has never been made, though the show’s back on Broadway.)

On Tuesday, Cleese responded to Idle’s accusations against Holly Gilliam.

“I have worked with Holly for the last ten years, and I find her very efficient, clear-minded, hard-working, and pleasant to have dealings with,” Cleese wrote. “Michael Palin has asked me to to make it clear that he shares this opinion. Terry Gilliam is also in agreement with this.”

When someone asked Cleese directly if all’s okay between he and Idle, he didn’t mince words: “We always loathed and despised each other, but it’s only recently that the truth has begun to emerge.”

Uh, is this a gag? Maybe? But seemingly not. On Sunday, Idle mentioned he hadn’t seen Cleese in seven years. When someone said that makes them “sad,” he responded, “Why. It makes me happy.”

When someone suggested that someone make a documentary about the “rise and fall” of the group and how money “really can destroy friendships,” Idle responded bluntly: “F*ck Netflix and f*ck documentaries.” (It’s worth noting that much of Python’s output, including two of their movies and their original show, can currently be streamed on Netflix.)

Idle also claimed the group was never as close as fans may think. “I still love and am proud of what we did as Python. It was a very unique group,” he wrote. “I think of us as an ex Liverpool team. We played together well. Way back in the day. But it was never very supportive of people’s feelings and emotions. Not Brothers. Colleagues.”

Idle also told fans not to expect any more Python reunions, as they last did in 2015. “I’m doing no more Python,” he wrote. “I gave already. Ungrateful bastards.”

Always look on the bright side of life, right? Let’s end this kind of sad saga with a joke Idle made amidst this apparent inter-Python war. When asked if the thinked another contentious team, Simon and Garfunkel, would get back together, he wrote, “With whom?”

Hey, it’s something. A good chunk of Python, including Holy Grail, can be streamed on Netflix. Hopefully they’re paying them well, unless that “F*ck Netflix” had deeper connotations.

(Via Deadline)