"Candid Photography", better known as "Nudge Nudge", is a sketch from the third Monty Python's Flying Circus episode, "How to Recognise Different Types of Trees From Quite a Long Way Away" (series 1, ep. 3) featuring Eric Idle (author of the sketch) and Terry Jones as two strangers who meet in a pub.
Idle (playing a character sometimes referred to as "Arthur Nudge") sits too close to an unassuming pub patron played by Terry Jones. Idle asks Jones a series of questions about his romantic relationships that seem odd and cryptic, but that are eventually revealed to be complex double entendres. Jones becomes irritated by the line of questioning and asks Idle, directly, what he is implying. Idle forwardly admits that he really wants to know whether Jones has ever "slept with a lady." When Jones directly answers "Yes," Idle curiously asks him, "What's it like?" This conclusion makes it one of the few Monty Python sketches to end on a clear punch line.
The sketch appears in the 1971 spin-off feature film, And Now for Something Completely Different and the 1982 concert film Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl . It was also performed when the Pythons appeared on The Midnight Special and was recorded for the 1976 concert album Monty Python Live at City Center .
In its original airing on Monty Python's Flying Circus, the sketch was preceded by a short link in which Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin portray schoolboys being interviewed for television by John Cleese. During the interview, Palin and Jones say they would like to see the sketch that Idle has written.
In And Now for Something Completely Different, the sketch is followed by a cut to a scene in a gym, where Terry Gilliam dressed as a nun on an ergometer replies (dubbed by a female voice), "I think it's overrated." Then, the "Self-Defence Against Fresh Fruit" sketch is played in the setting.
Idle's character in the pub makes several cameo appearances in later episodes, referred to as "Arthur Name".
In Monty Python Live (Mostly) , the sketch segues from "Albatross". In the background, a piano version of "Never Be Rude to an Arab" is heard. Eventually the sketch segues into a new opening title song for Blackmail which incorporates samples of Idle's Nudge, Nudge dialogue.
Originally written by Eric Idle for Ronnie Barker in another comedy show, [1] the sketch was then rejected as a script. [2] Eric Idle openly admits the script is confusing, the joke being mostly in the delivery.[ citation needed ]
The phrases, "nudge nudge" and "wink wink", are part of the English lexicon as idiomatic phrases implying sexual innuendo. [3] [4]
Idle says he learned that Elvis Presley was a fan of the sketch, [5] and would call his friends "squire" in reference to it. [6]
Idle reprised the sketch in TV advertisements for the Breakaway chocolate bar. [7] A reference to this is clearly heard on Monty Python Live at Drury Lane , where Idle mentions the product. Idle and Cleese also both advertised the Cadbury Nudge chocolate bar in Australia from 1976. [7]
Monty Python were a British comedy troupe formed in 1969 consisting of Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin. The group came to prominence for the sketch comedy series Monty Python's Flying Circus, which aired on the BBC from 1969 to 1974. Their work then developed into a larger collection that included live shows, films, albums, books, and musicals; their influence on comedy has been compared to the Beatles' influence on music. Their sketch show has been called "an important moment in the evolution of television comedy".
"Crunchy Frog" is the common name for a Monty Python sketch officially titled "Trade Description Act", inspired by the Trade Descriptions Act 1968 in British law. It features two health inspectors interrogating the owner of a sweet shop about the increasingly bizarre ingredients in his confections, including the titular crunchy frog. Written by John Cleese and Graham Chapman, it originally appeared in episode 6 of the first series of Monty Python's Flying Circus, and later appeared in several Monty Python stage shows. In the original sketch, Cleese and Chapman play the inspectors, while Terry Jones plays the sweet shop owner. In later versions, the second inspector is played by Terry Gilliam or left out of the sketch entirely.
Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl is a 1982 concert comedy film directed by Terry Hughes and starring the Monty Python comedy troupe as they perform many of their sketches at the Hollywood Bowl. The film also features Carol Cleveland in numerous supporting roles and Neil Innes performing songs. Also present for the shows and participating as an 'extra' was Python superfan Kim "Howard" Johnson.
The Dirty Fork, also known simply as Restaurant Sketch, is a Monty Python sketch that appeared in episode 3 of the first series of the television series Monty Python's Flying Circus, and later in the film, And Now For Something Completely Different. It is notable for being the first Monty Python sketch wherein the characters react to the audience "booing" them.
Monty Python's Flying Circus is the first album produced by the Monty Python troupe, released in both the UK and US in 1970, with the US version featuring a back cover slightly different from the original UK version. It features newly recorded versions of sketches from the first Monty Python's Flying Circus television series.
"Argument Clinic" is a sketch from Monty Python's Flying Circus, written by John Cleese and Graham Chapman. The sketch was originally broadcast as part of the television series and has subsequently been performed live by the group. It relies heavily on wordplay and dialogue, and has been used as an example of how language works.
Monty Python Live at Drury Lane is a live album released by Monty Python in 1974. It was recorded on the final night of their four-week run at the Drury Lane Theatre in London earlier that year and edited onto disc with new studio linking material by Eric Idle and Michael Palin. The majority of the sketches are from Flying Circus and vary slightly from their television counterparts, although "Cocktail Bar" was written for the third series but not used. The team also revived sketches from At Last The 1948 Show, including "Secret Service", "Wrestling" and "Four Yorkshiremen" - the latter on its way to being adopted as a Python standard. Neil Innes provided the musical interludes, while Eric Idle's then wife Lyn Ashley replaced regular Python actress Carol Cleveland in supporting roles.
Monty Python's Contractual Obligation Album is the final studio album by Monty Python, released in 1980. As the title suggests, the album was put together to complete a contract with Charisma Records. Besides newly written songs and sketches, the sessions saw re-recordings of material that dated back to the 1960s pre-Python shows I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again, The Frost Report, At Last The 1948 Show and How To Irritate People. One track, "Bells", dates from the sessions for Monty Python's Previous Record, while further material was adapted from Eric Idle's post-Python series Rutland Weekend Television. The group also reworked material written but discarded from early drafts of Life Of Brian, as well as the initial scripts for what would eventually become The Meaning Of Life.
Monty Python's Personal Best is a miniseries of six one-hour specials, each showcasing the contributions of a particular Monty Python member. Produced by Python (Monty) Pictures Ltd., the series first aired on PBS stations between 22 February and 8 March 2006, although the Eric Idle and Michael Palin episodes were initially released by A&E on two Region 1 DVDs in 2005; the remaining episodes were released in late February 2006.
The Fish Licence is a sketch from Series 2 Episode 10 of the popular British television series, Monty Python's Flying Circus. It first aired on 1 December 1970.
"Dirty Hungarian Phrasebook" is a Monty Python sketch. It first aired in 1970 on Monty Python's Flying Circus as part of Episode 25, and also appears in the film And Now for Something Completely Different. Atlas Obscura has noted that it may have been inspired by English as She Is Spoke, a 19th-century Portuguese–English phrase book regarded as a classic source of unintentional humour, as the given English translations are generally completely incoherent.
Python Night was an evening of Monty Python-related programmes broadcast on BBC2 on 9 October 1999, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the first broadcast of Monty Python's Flying Circus. It featured newly written sketches, three documentaries and a screening of Monty Python's Life of Brian.
Monty Python Live at Aspen was a reunion show featuring the surviving members of the Monty Python team: John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin, appearing on stage together for the first time since their Hollywood Bowl shows in 1980. Filmed on 7 March 1998 at the Wheeler Opera House in Colorado as part of The US Comedy Arts Festival, it featured the five Pythons in an interview with host Robert Klein. The late Graham Chapman was also allegedly in attendance as his "ashes" were brought out in an urn with his portrait attached to the front, only to be knocked over by Terry Gilliam.
Monty Python's Flying Circus is a British surreal sketch comedy series created by and starring Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, and Terry Gilliam, who became known collectively as "Monty Python", or the "Pythons". The first episode was recorded at the BBC on 7 September 1969 and premiered on 5 October on BBC1, with 45 episodes airing over four series from 1969 to 1974, plus two episodes for German TV. A feature film adaptation of several sketches, And Now for Something Completely Different, was released in 1971.
"The Mouse Problem" is a Monty Python sketch, first aired on 12 October 1969 as part of "Sex and Violence", the second episode of the first series of Monty Python's Flying Circus.
"Albatross" is a sketch from Monty Python's Flying Circus. It is particularly known for its opening lines: "Albatross! Albatross! Albatross!"
"World Forum/Communist Quiz" is a Monty Python sketch, which first aired in the 12th episode of the second season of Monty Python's Flying Circus on 15 December 1970. It featured four icons of Communist thought, namely Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin, Ché Guevara and Mao Zedong being asked quiz questions.
The Pythons Autobiography by The Pythons is the official autobiography of the Monty Python team, released in 2003. It covers the whole of Python history, from their childhoods all the way through to the 30th anniversary celebrations in 1999.
Monty Python Live! is a book detailing the various live performances of the Monty Python team between 1971 and 1980.
