Michael Palin has said that Monty Python’s religious satire film Life of Brian wouldn’t get made today because he believes comedy is being watered down.
Palin, 82, who co-founded the comedy troupe alongside his Oxbridge friends in 1969, said that the fear of cancel culture has meant that modern comedy has “no feelings, no passions, no crossness, no lust, no surreal humour” and was “becoming how it was after the war”.
He told The Telegraph that the divisive 1979 film Life of Brian – which followed a fictional character named Brian who is mistaken for a Messiah by the masses – would have been even more controversial if it were made today.
When the film was released, it provoked a storm of controversy due to its religious references and several councils in Britain banned it from being shown. But Palin says it would be “much more of a battle” to get the show made in 2025.
“Back then, it was acknowledged that some people had old-fashioned views, and that was that. Whereas now there would be much more of a battle. Sides would be taken and people would be influencing others over whether to see it.”
He said that in the present day, everything is “very adversarial and everyone flies off the handle much more quickly”.
When asked whether he fears for the future of comedy, he claimed that more subversive material will be shared in private forums.
“Well, I also think people get around that sort of thing,” he said. “They tell stories in pubs in the way they would never be able to do publicly. And I gather stand-up is thriving, although I don’t know much about that.”
Palin co-founded Monty Python alongside Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle and Terry Jones. The group rose to prominence for their sketch show Monty Python’s Flying Circus, which aired on the BBC from 1969 to 1974.
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In a recent interview, Gilliam argued that the return of US president Donald Trump has significantly affected the state of humour by challenging “woke” ideals.
“He’s turned the world upside down,” Gilliam claimed. “I don’t know if people are going to be laughing more, but they’re probably less frightened to laugh.
Gilliam added: “There have been woke activists with a very narrow, self-righteous point of view. That’s frightened so many people, and so many people have been very timid about telling jokes, making fun of things, because if you tell a joke, these people say you’re punching down at somebody. No, you’re finding humour in humanity!”
He continued: “And humour, to me, is probably one of the most essential things in life. You’ve got six senses, and the seventh sense is humour, and if you don’t have that, life is going to be miserable.”
