Cleese was born inWeston-super-Mare,Somerset, England, the only child of Reginald Francis Cleese (1893–1972), an insurance salesman, and his wife Muriel Evelyn (née Cross, 1899–2000), the daughter of an auctioneer.[4] His family's surname was originally Cheese, but his father had thought it was embarrassing and used the name Cleese when he enlisted in theArmy during theFirst World War; he changed it officially bydeed poll in 1923.[5][6] As a child, Cleese supportedBristol City andSomerset County Cricket Club.[7][8] Cleese was educated at St Peter's Preparatory School,[9] paid for by money his mother had inherited,[10] where he received a prize forEnglish and did well atcricket andboxing. When he was 13, he was awarded anexhibition atClifton College, anEnglish public school in Bristol. By that age, he was more than 6 feet (1.83 m) tall.[11]
The biggest influence wasThe Goon Show. Kids were devoted to it. It was written bySpike Milligan. It also hadPeter Sellers in it, who of course is the greatest voice man of all time. In the morning, we'd be at school and we'd discuss the whole thing and rehash the jokes and talk about it. We were obsessed with it.
—Cleese on his greatest comedic influence growing up, 1950s BBC Radio comedyThe Goon Show.[12]
Cleese allegedly defaced the school grounds, as a prank, by painting footprints to suggest that the statue ofField MarshalEarl Haig had left its plinth and gone to the toilet.[13] Cleese played cricket in the First XI and did well academically, passing eightO-Levels and threeA-Levels in mathematics, physics and chemistry.[14][15] In his autobiographySo, Anyway, he says that discovering, aged 17, he had not been made a houseprefect by his housemaster affected his outlook: "It was not fair and therefore it was unworthy of my respect... I believe that this moment changed my perspective on the world."[16]
Cleese could not go straight to theUniversity of Cambridge, as the ending ofNational Service meant there were twice the usual number of applicants for places, so he returned to his prep school for two years[17] to teach science, English, geography, history, and Latin[18] (he drew on his Latin teaching experience later for a scene inLife of Brian, in which he corrects Brian's badly written Latingraffiti).[19] He then took up a place he had won atDowning College, Cambridge, to read law. He also joined theCambridge Footlights. He recalled that he went to theCambridge Guildhall, where each university society had a stall, and went up to the Footlights stall, where he was asked if he could sing or dance. He replied "no" as he was not allowed to sing at his school because he was so bad, and if there was anything worse than his singing, it was his dancing. He was then asked "Well, what do you do?" to which he replied, "I make people laugh."[17]
At the Footlights theatrical club, Cleese spent a lot of time withTim Brooke-Taylor andBill Oddie and met his future writing partnerGraham Chapman.[17] Cleese wrote extra material for the 1961 Footlights RevueI Thought I Saw It Move,[17][20] and was registrar for the Footlights Club during 1962. He was also in the cast of the 1962 Footlights RevueDouble Take![17][20] Cleese graduated from Cambridge in 1963 with anupper second. Despite his successes onThe Frost Report, his father sent him cuttings fromThe Daily Telegraph offering management jobs in places such asMarks & Spencer.[21]
Career
1963–1968: Pre-Python
Cleese was a scriptwriter, as well as a cast member, for the 1963Footlights RevueA Clump of Plinths.[17][20] The revue was so successful at theEdinburgh Festival Fringe that it was renamedCambridge Circus and taken to theWest End in London and then on a tour of New Zealand and Broadway, with the cast also appearing in some of the revue's sketches onThe Ed Sullivan Show in October 1964.[17]
AfterCambridge Circus, Cleese briefly stayed in America, performingon andoff-Broadway. While performing in the musicalHalf a Sixpence,[17] Cleese met future PythonTerry Gilliam as well as American actress Connie Booth, whom he married on 20 February 1968.[17] At their wedding at a Unitarian church in Manhattan, the couple attempted to ensure an absence of any theistic language. "The only moment of disappointment", Cleese recalled, "came at the very end of the service when I discovered that I'd failed to excise one particular mention of the word 'God'."[22] Later, Booth became a writing partner. Cleese was soon offered work as a writer withBBC Radio, where he worked on several programmes, most notably as a sketch writer forThe Dick Emery Show. The success of the Footlights Revue led to the recording of a short series of half-hour radio programmes, calledI'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again, which were so popular that the BBC commissioned a regular series with the same title that ran from 1965 to 1974. Cleese returned to Britain and joined the cast.[17] In many episodes, he is credited as "John Otto Cleese" (according to Jem Roberts, this may have been due to the embarrassment of his actual middle name, "Marwood").[23]
Also in 1965, Cleese and Chapman began writing onThe Frost Report. The writing staff chosen for the programme consisted of a number of writers and performers who went on to make names for themselves in comedy.[24] They included co-performers fromI'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again and futureGoodiesBill Oddie andTim Brooke-Taylor, and alsoFrank Muir,Barry Cryer,Marty Feldman,Ronnie Barker,Ronnie Corbett, andDick Vosburgh and future Python membersEric Idle,Terry Jones, andMichael Palin.[24][25][26] While working onThe Frost Report, the future Pythons developed the writing styles that would make their collaboration significant. Cleese's and Chapman's sketches often involved authority figures, some of whom were performed by Cleese, while Jones and Palin were both infatuated with filmed scenes that opened with idyllic countryside panoramas. Idle was one of those charged with writingDavid Frost's monologue. During this period Cleese met and befriended influential British comedianPeter Cook, eventually collaborating with Cook on several projects and forming a close friendship that lasted until Cook's death in 1995.[24][27]
It was as a performer onThe Frost Report that Cleese achieved his breakthrough on British television as a comedy actor, appearing as the tall,upper class patrician figure in the classic"Class" sketch (screened on 7 April 1966), contrasting comically in a line-up with the shorter,middle classRonnie Barker and the even shorter,working classRonnie Corbett. The British Film Institute commented, "Its twinning of height and social position, combined with a minimal script, created a classic TV moment."[28] The series was so popular that in 1966 Cleese and Chapman were invited to work as writers and performers with Brooke-Taylor and Feldman onAt Last the 1948 Show,[17] during which time the "Four Yorkshiremen sketch" was written by all four writers/performers (the "Four Yorkshiremen" sketch is now better known as aMonty Python sketch).[29]
Cleese and Chapman also wrote episodes for the first series ofDoctor in the House (and later Cleese wrote six episodes ofDoctor at Large on his own in 1971). These series were successful, and in 1969 Cleese and Chapman were offered their very own series. However, owing to Chapman's alcoholism, Cleese found himself bearing an increasing workload in the partnership and was, therefore, unenthusiastic about doing a series with just the two of them. He had found working with Palin onThe Frost Report an enjoyable experience and invited him to join the series. Palin had previously been working onDo Not Adjust Your Set with Idle and Jones, with Terry Gilliam creating the animations. The four of them had, on the back of the success ofDo Not Adjust Your Set, been offered a series forThames Television, which they were waiting to begin when Cleese's offer arrived. Palin agreed to work with Cleese and Chapman in the meantime, bringing with him Gilliam, Jones, and Idle.[30]
Monty Python's Flying Circus ran for four series from October 1969 to December 1974 onBBC Television, though Cleese quit the show after the third. Cleese's two primary characterisations were as a sophisticate and a loony. He portrayed the former as a series of announcers, TV show hosts, and government officials (for example, "The Ministry of Silly Walks"). The latter is perhaps best represented in the "Cheese Shop" and by Cleese'sMr Praline character, the man with adead Norwegian Blue parrot and a menagerie of other animals all named "Eric". He was also known for his working class "Sergeant Major" character, who worked as a Police Sergeant, Roman Centurion, etc. Cleese also appeared during some abrupt scene changes as a radio commentator (usually outfitted in a dinner suit) where, in a rather pompous manner, he would make the formal and determined announcement "And now for something completely different", which later became the title ofthe first Monty Python film.[31]
Partnership with Graham Chapman
He was the greatest sounding board I've ever had. If Graham thought something was funny, then it almost certainly was funny. You cannot believe how invaluable that is.
Along with Gilliam's animations, Cleese's work with Graham Chapman provided Python with its darkest and angriest moments, and many of his characters display the seething suppressed rage that later characterised his portrayal ofBasil Fawlty.
Unlike Palin and Jones, Cleese and Chapman wrote together in the same room; Cleese claims that their writing partnership involved him doing most of the work, while Chapman sat back, not speaking for long periods before suddenly coming out with an idea that often elevated the sketch to a new level. A classic example of this is the "Dead Parrot sketch", envisaged by Cleese as a satire on poor customer service, which was originally to have involved a broken toaster and later a broken car (this version was actually performed and broadcast on the pre-Python specialHow to Irritate People). It was Chapman's suggestion to change the faulty item into a dead parrot, and he also suggested that the parrot be specifically a "Norwegian Blue", giving the sketch asurreal air which made it far more memorable.[33]
Their humour often involvedordinary people in ordinary situations behaving absurdly for no obvious reason. Like Chapman, Cleese'spoker face, clipped middle class accent, and intimidating height allowed him to appear convincingly as a variety of authority figures, such as policemen, detectives, Nazi officers or government officials, which he then proceeded to undermine. In the "Ministry of Silly Walks" sketch (written by Palin and Jones), for example, Cleese exploits his stature as the crane-legged civil servant performing a grotesquely elaborate walk to his office. On the Silly Walks sketch, Ben Beaumont-Thomas inThe Guardian writes, "Cleese is utterly deadpan as he takes the stereotypicalbowler-hatted political drone and ruthlessly skewers him. All the self-importance, bureaucratic inefficiency and laughable circuitousness ofWhitehall is summed up in one balletic extension of his slender leg."[34]
Chapman and Cleese also specialised in sketches wherein two characters conducted highly articulate arguments over completely arbitrary subjects, such as in the "cheese shop", the "dead parrot" sketch and "Argument Clinic", where Cleese plays a stone-faced bureaucrat employed to sit behind a desk and engage people in pointless, trivial bickering.[35] All of these roles were opposite Palin (who Cleese often claims is his favourite Python to work with)—the comic contrast between the towering Cleese's crazed aggression and the shorter Palin's shuffling inoffensiveness is a common feature in the series. Occasionally, the typical Cleese–Palin dynamic is reversed, as in "Fish Licence", wherein Palin plays the bureaucrat with whom Cleese is trying to work.
ThoughFlying Circus lasted four series, by the start of series 3, Cleese was growing tired of dealing with Chapman's alcoholism. He felt, too, that the show's scripts had declined in quality. For these reasons, he became restless and decided to move on. Though he stayed for the third series, he officially left the group before the fourth season.[36] Cleese received a credit on three episodes of the fourth series which used material from these sessions, though he was officially unconnected with the fourth series. He remained friendly with the group, and all six began writingMonty Python and the Holy Grail. Much of his work onHoly Grail remains widely quoted, including theBlack Knight scene.[37] Cleese returned to the troupe to co-write and co-star in two further Monty Python films,Monty Python's Life of Brian andMonty Python's The Meaning of Life. His attack on Roman rule inLife of Brian–when he asks "What have the Romans ever done for us?", before being met with a string of benefits including sanitation, roads and public order–was ranked the seventh funniest line in film in a 2002 poll.[38] Since the last Python film (Meaning of Life in 1983) Cleese has participated in various live performances with the group over the years.[36]
1970–1979:Fawlty Towers
From 1970 to 1973, Cleese served asrector of the University of St Andrews.[39] His election proved a milestone for the university, revolutionising and modernising the post. For instance, the rector was traditionally entitled to appoint an "assessor", a deputy to sit in his place at important meetings in his absence. Cleese changed this into a position for a student, elected across campus by the student body, resulting in direct access and representation for the student body.[40]
Around this time, Cleese worked with comedianLes Dawson on his sketch/stand-up showSez Les. The differences between the two physically (the tall, lean Cleese and the short, stout Dawson) and socially (the public school and the Cambridge-educated Cleese vs. the working class, self-educatedMancunian Dawson) were marked, but both worked well together from series 8 onwards until the series ended in 1976.[41][42]
Cleese appeared on a single, "Superspike", withBill Oddie and a group of UK athletes, billed the "Superspike Squad", to fund the latter's attendance at the1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal.[43]
Cleese achieved greater prominence in the United Kingdom as the neurotic hotel managerBasil Fawlty in the two series ofFawlty Towers, first broadcast 1975 and 1979, which he co-wrote with his wifeConnie Booth. The series won threeBAFTA awards when produced, and in 2000 it topped theBritish Film Institute's list of the100 Greatest British Television Programmes. In a 2001 poll conducted byChannel 4 Basil Fawlty was ranked second (behindHomer Simpson) on their list of the100 Greatest TV Characters.[49][50] The series also featuredPrunella Scales as Basil's acerbic wifeSybil,Andrew Sachs as the much abused Spanish waiterManuel, and Booth as waitressPolly, the series' voice of sanity. Cleese based Basil Fawlty on a real person,Donald Sinclair, whom he had encountered in 1970 while the Monty Python team were staying at the Gleneagles Hotel inTorquay while filming inserts for their television series.[51] Reportedly, Cleese was inspired by Sinclair's mantra, "I could run this hotel just fine if it weren't for the guests." He later described Sinclair as "the most wonderfully rude man I have ever met," although Sinclair's widow has said her husband was totally misrepresented in the series. During the Pythons' stay, Sinclair allegedly threw Idle's briefcase out of the hotel "in case it contained a bomb," complained about Gilliam's "American" table manners, and threw a bus timetable at another guest after he dared to ask the time of the next bus to town.[51][52]
The first series was screened from 19 September 1975 onBBC 2, initially to poor reviews,[53] but gained momentum when repeated onBBC 1 the following year. Despite this, a second series did not air until 1979, by which time Cleese's marriage to Booth had ended, but they revived their collaboration for the second series.Fawlty Towers consisted of two seasons, each of only six episodes; Cleese and Booth both maintain that this was to avoid compromising the quality of the series. The popularity ofFawlty Towers has endured, and in addition to featuring high in greatest-ever television show polls it is often rebroadcast.[54] In a 2002 poll, Basil's "don't mention the war" comment (said to the waitress Polly about the German guests) was ranked the second funniest line in television.[38]
In 1988, Cleese wrote and starred inA Fish Called Wanda as the lead, Archie Leach, along withJamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Kline, and Michael Palin.Wanda was a commercial and critical success, becoming one of thetop ten films of the year at the US box office, and Cleese was nominated for anAcademy Award for his script. Kline won the Oscar for his portrayal of bumbling, violent, narcissistic ex-CIA agent Otto West in the film.
From 1988 to 1992, Cleese appeared in numerous television commercials for Schweppes Ginger Ale. Between 1992 and 1994, he also appeared in some television commercials for Magnavox.[56]
In 1989, Graham Chapman was diagnosed withthroat cancer; Cleese, Michael Palin, Peter Cook, and Chapman's partnerDavid Sherlock witnessed Chapman's death. Chapman's death occurred a day before the 20th anniversary of the first broadcast ofFlying Circus, with Jones commenting that it was "the worst case of party-pooping in all history." Cleese gave a eulogy at Chapman's memorial service.[57]
The follow-up toA Fish Called Wanda,Fierce Creatures—which again starred Cleese alongside Kevin Kline, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Michael Palin—was released in 1997, but was greeted with mixed reception by critics and audiences. Cleese has since often stated that making the second film had been a mistake. When asked by his friend, director and restaurant criticMichael Winner, what he would do differently if he could live his life again, Cleese responded, "I wouldn't have marriedAlyce Faye Eichelberger and I wouldn't have madeFierce Creatures."[58]
Cleese is Provost's visiting professor atCornell University, after having beenAndrew D. White Professor-at-Large from 1999 to 2006. He makes occasional well-received appearances on the Cornell campus. In 2001, Cleese was cast in the comedyRat Race as the eccentric hotel owner Donald P. Sinclair, the name of theTorquay hotel owner on whom he had based the character of Basil Fawlty. That year he appeared asNearly Headless Nick in the firstHarry Potter film:Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001), a role he would reprise inHarry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002).[61] In 2002, Cleese made a cameo appearance in the filmThe Adventures of Pluto Nash, in which he played "James", a computerised chauffeur of a hover car stolen by the title character (played byEddie Murphy). The vehicle is subsequently destroyed in a chase, leaving the chauffeur stranded in a remote place on the moon. In 2003, Cleese appeared as Lyle Finster on the American sitcomWill & Grace. His character's daughter, Lorraine, was played byMinnie Driver. In the series, Lyle Finster briefly marriesKaren Walker (Megan Mullally). In 2004, Cleese was credited as co-writer of aDC Comicsgraphic novel titledSuperman: True Brit.[62] Part of DC's "Elseworlds" line of imaginary stories,True Brit, mostly written byKim Howard Johnson, suggests what might have happened hadSuperman's rocket ship landed on a farm in Britain, not America.[62]
Cleese in 2008
From 10 November to 9 December 2005, Cleese toured New Zealand with his stage showJohn Cleese—His Life, Times and Current Medical Problems. Cleese described it as "aone-man show with several people in it, which pushes the envelope of acceptable behaviour in new and disgusting ways". The show was developed in New York City withWilliam Goldman and includes Cleese's daughter Camilla as a writer and actor (the shows were directed by AustralianBille Brown). His assistant of many years, Garry Scott-Irvine, also appeared and was listed as a co-producer. The show then played in universities in California andArizona from 10 January to 25 March 2006 under the titleSeven Ways to Skin an Ocelot.[63] His voice can be downloaded for directional guidance purposes as a downloadable option on some personalGPS-navigation device models by companyTomTom.
In a 2005 poll of comedians and comedy insiders,The Comedians' Comedian, Cleese was voted second toPeter Cook.[64][65] In 2006, Cleese hosted a television special of football's greatest kicks, goals, saves, bloopers, plays, and penalties, as well as football's influence on culture (including the Monty Python sketch "Philosophy Football"), featuring interviews with pop culture iconsDave Stewart,Dennis Hopper, andHenry Kissinger, as well as eminent footballers, includingPelé,Mia Hamm, andThierry Henry.The Art of Soccer with John Cleese was released in North America on DVD in January 2009 by BFS Entertainment & Multimedia.[66] Also in 2006, Cleese released the song "Don't Mention the World Cup".[67][68]
Cleese lent his voice to theBioWare video gameJade Empire. His role was that of an "outlander" named Sir Roderick Ponce von Fontlebottom the Magnificent Bastard, stranded in the Imperial City of the Jade Empire. His character is essentially aBritish colonialist stereotype who refers to the people of the Jade Empire as "savages in need of enlightenment". His armour has the design of a fork stuck in a piece of cheese. In 2007, Cleese appeared in ads forTitleist as a golf course designer named "Ian MacCallister", who represents "Golf Designers Against Distance". Also in 2007, he was involved in filming of the sequel toThe Pink Panther, titledThe Pink Panther 2, withSteve Martin andAishwarya Rai.
Cleese collaborated withLos Angeles Guitar Quartet memberWilliam Kanengiser in 2008 on the text to the performance piece "The Ingenious Gentleman of La Mancha". Cleese, as narrator, and the LAGQ premiered the work inSanta Barbara. The year 2008 also saw reports of Cleese working on a musical version ofA Fish Called Wanda with his daughter Camilla.
At the end of March 2009, Cleese published his first article as "Contributing Editor" toThe Spectator: "The real reason I had to joinThe Spectator".[69] Cleese has also hosted comedy galas at theMontrealJust for Laughs comedy festival in 2006, and again in 2009. Towards the end of 2009 and into 2010, Cleese appeared in a series of television adverts for the Norwegian electric goods shop chainElkjøp.[70] In March 2010 it was announced that Cleese would be playing Jasper in the video gameFable III.[71]
In 2009 and 2010, Cleese touredScandinavia and the US with his Alimony Tour Year One and Year Two. In May 2010, it was announced that this tour, set for May 2011, would extend to the UK (his first tour there). The show is dubbed the "Alimony Tour" in reference to the financial implications of Cleese's divorce. The UK tour started inCambridge on 3 May, visitingBirmingham,Nottingham,Salford,York, Liverpool,Leeds, Glasgow,Edinburgh,Oxford, Bristol andBath (the Alimony Tour DVD was recorded on 2 July, the final Bath date).[72] Later in 2011 John took his Alimony Tour to South Africa. He playedCape Town on the 21 & 22 October before moving over toJohannesburg, where he played from 25 to 30 October. In January 2012 he took his one-man show to Australia, starting in Perth on 22 January and throughout the next four months visitedAdelaide,Brisbane,Gold Coast,Newcastle, New South Wales,Melbourne, Sydney, and finished up during April inCanberra.
In 2012, Cleese was cast inHunting Elephants, aheist film comedy by Israeli filmmaker Reshef Levi. Cleese had to quit just prior to filming due to heart trouble and was replaced byPatrick Stewart.[76][77][78] Between September and October 2013, Cleese embarked on his first-ever cross-Canada comedy tour. Entitled "John Cleese: Last Time to See Me Before I Die tour", he visited Halifax,Ottawa, Toronto,Edmonton, Calgary,Victoria and finished inVancouver, performing to mostly sold-out venues.[79] Cleese returned to the stage inDubai in November 2013, where he performed to a sold-out theatre.[80]
Cleese (right) with the rest of Monty Python on stage atthe O2 Arena, London, in July 2014
Cleese was interviewed and appears as himself in filmmakerGracie Otto's 2013 documentary filmThe Last Impresario, about Cleese's longtime friend and colleagueMichael White. White producedMonty Python and the Holy Grail and Cleese's pre-Python comedy productionCambridge Circus.[81] At a comic press conference in November 2013, Cleese and other surviving members of the Monty Python comedy group announced a reuniting performance to be held in July 2014.[82]
Cleese joined with Eric Idle in 2015 and 2016 for a tour of North America, Canada and the ANZUS nations, "John Cleese & Eric Idle: Together Again At Last ... For The Very First Time", playing small theatres and including interaction with audiences as well as sketches and reminisces.[83] In aReddit Ask Me Anything interview, Cleese expressed regret that he had turned down the role played byRobin Williams inThe Birdcage, the butler played byAnthony Hopkins inThe Remains of the Day, and the bishop played byPeter Cook inThe Princess Bride.[84]
In 2021, Cleese cancelled an appearance at theCambridge Union Society after learning that art historianAndrew Graham-Dixon had been blacklisted by the union for impersonating Adolf Hitler. His visit to the university was intended to be part of a documentary onwokeism. Cleese said he was "blacklisting myself before someone else does".[86]
In 2023, he starred inRoman Polanski's drama filmThe Palace.[87] In October, Cleese starting presenting a new show onGB News calledThe Dinosaur Hour which airs on Sunday evenings.[88]
In hisAlimony Tour Cleese explained the origin of his fondness forblack humour, the only thing that he inherited from his mother. Examples of it are theDead Parrot sketch, "The Kipper and the Corpse" episode ofFawlty Towers, his clip for the 1992 BBC2 mockumentary "A Question of Taste", theUndertakers sketch, andhis eulogy at Graham Chapman's memorial service which included the line, "Good riddance to him, the freeloading bastard! I hope he fries."[89] On his attitude to life he states, "I can take almost nothing seriously".[11]
Cleese has criticisedpolitical correctness,wokeism andcancel culture, saying that despite initial good intentions to "not be mean to people", they have become "a sort of indulgence of the most over-sensitive people in your culture, the people who are most easily upset [...] if you have to keep thinking which words you can use and which you can't, then that will stifle creativity." According to Cleese, "The main thing is to realise that words depend on their context [...] PC people simply don't understand this business about context because they tend to be very literal-minded", and that he imagined a "woke joke [...] might be heart-warming but it's not going to be very funny."[90] He has also argued that political correctness and wokeism are a threat to humour, creativity, andfreedom of thought andexpression.[1]
In 2020, following a controversy over the content of theFawlty Towers episode "The Germans", Cleese criticised the BBC, saying "The BBC is now run by a mixture of marketing people and petty bureaucrats. It used to have a large sprinkling of people who'd actually made programmes. Not any more. So BBC decisions are made by persons whose main concern is not losing their jobs... That's why they're so cowardly and gutless and contemptible." He likened the style of humour inFawlty Towers to the representation ofAlf Garnett from another BBC sitcom,Till Death Us Do Part, saying "We laughed at Alf's reactionary views. Thus we discredited them, by laughing at him. Of course, there were people—very stupid people—who said 'Thank God someone is saying these things at last'. We laughed at these people too. Now they're taking decisions about BBC comedy."[91]
Activism and politics
Amnesty first started doing these fund-raising shows in 1976. The instigation came from John Cleese who wanted to help out. And he did it in the only way he knew how. Which was to put on a show with what he described as "a few friends". Who of course transpired to be his colleagues in Monty Python and other luminaries of British comedy.
Cleese (and the other members of Python) have contributed their services to charitable endeavours and causes—sometimes as an ensemble, at other times as individuals. The cause that has been the most frequent and consistent beneficiary has been the human rights work ofAmnesty International via theSecret Policeman's Ball benefit shows. The idea of theBall was conceived by Cleese, withHuffington Post stating "in 1976 he "friended" the then-struggling Amnesty International (according to Martin Lewis, the very notion of Human Rights was then not the domain of hipsters and students, but just of foreign-policy wonks) first with a cheque signed "J. Cleese" — and then by rounding up "a few friends" to put on a show."[92] Many musicians have publicly attributed their activism—and the organisation of their ownbenefit events—to the inspiration of the work in this field of Cleese and the rest of Python, such asBob Geldof (organiser ofLive Aid),U2,Pete Townshend, andSting.[93] On the impact of the Ball on Geldof, Sting states, "he took the 'Ball' and ran with it."[92]
In 2011, Cleese declared his appreciation for Britain's coalition government between theConservatives and Liberal Democrats, saying: "I think what's happening at the moment is rather interesting. The Coalition has made everything a little more courteous and a little more flexible. I think it was quite good that the Liberal Democrats had to compromise a bit with the Tories." He also criticised the previousLabour government, commenting: "Although my inclinations are slightlyleft-of-centre, I was terribly disappointed with the last Labour government.Gordon Brown lacked emotional intelligence and was never a leader." Cleese also reiterated his support for proportional representation.[100]
In April 2011, Cleese said that he had declined alife peerage for political services in 1999. Outgoing leader of the Liberal DemocratsPaddy Ashdown had put forward the suggestion shortly before stepping down, with the idea that Cleese would take the party whip and sit as a working peer, but the actor quipped that he "realised this involved being in England in the winter and I thought that was too much of a price to pay." Cleese had declined aCBE title in 1996 as he thought they were "silly".[101]
In an interview withThe Daily Telegraph in 2014, Cleese expressed political interest about theUK Independence Party, saying that although he was in doubt as to whether he was prepared to vote for it, he was attracted to its challenge to the established political order and the radicalism of its policies on the United Kingdom's membership of theEuropean Union. He expressed support for immigration, but also concern about the integration of immigrants into British culture.[102]
Talking toDer Spiegel in 2015, Cleese expressed a critical view on what he saw as aplutocracy that was unhealthily developing control of the governance of theFirst World's societies, stating that he had reached a point when he "saw that our existence here is absolutely hopeless. I see the rich have got a stranglehold on us. If somebody had said that to me when I was 20, I would have regarded him as aleft-wing loony."[103]
In 2016, Cleese publicly supportedBrexit in thereferendum on leaving the European Union.[104] He tweeted: "If I thought there was any chance of major reform in the EU, I'd vote to stay in. But there isn't. Sad." Cleese said that "EU bureaucrats" had taken away "any trace of democratic accountability" and suggested they should "give up theeuro, introduce accountability."[105]
During then-Republican nomineeDonald Trump'srun for the US presidency in 2016, Cleese described Trump as "a narcissist, with no attention span, who doesn't have clear ideas about anything and makes it all up as he goes along".[106] He had previously described the leadership of the Republican Party as "the most cynical, most disgracefully immoral people I've ever come across in a Western civilisation".[102]
In 2017, Cleese stated that he would not vote inthat year's general election because "I live in Chelsea and Kensington, so under our present system my vote is utterly worthless."[107] In July 2018, Cleese said that he was leaving the UK to relocate to the Caribbean island ofNevis, partly over frustration around the standard of the Brexit debate, including "dreadful lies" by "the right" and a lack of reform regarding the press and the voting system.[108] He relocated to Nevis on 1 November 2018.[109]
In May 2019, Cleese repeated his previous statement that London was no longer an English city, saying "virtually all my friends from abroad have confirmed my observation. So there must be some truth in it... I note also that London was the UK city that voted most strongly to remain in the EU."London MayorSadiq Khan responded, "These comments make John Cleese sound like he's in character asBasil Fawlty. Londoners know that our diversity is our greatest strength. We are proudly the English capital, a European city and a global hub." Cleese added, "I suspect I should apologise for my affection for the Englishness of my upbringing, but in some ways I found it calmer, more polite, more humorous, less tabloid, and less money-oriented than the one that is replacing it."[110]
In 2020, Cleese opposed the BBC's removal of theFawlty Towers episode "The Germans" from theUKTV streaming service afterprotests following themurder of George Floyd, stating that the program was mocking prejudice with its use of a character who uttered racial slurs. "If they can't see that, if people are too stupid to see that, what can one say," said Cleese.[111] UKTV later restored the episode with a disclaimer about its content.[112]
In November 2021, Cleese protested against perceivedcancel culture by blacklisting himself over a Hitler impersonation controversy at the Cambridge Union.[113]
Anti-smoking campaign
In 1992, the UK Health Education Authority (subsequently the Health Development Agency, now merged into theNational Institute for Health and Care Excellence) recruited Cleese—an ex-smoker—to star in a series of anti-smokingpublic service announcements (PSAs) on British television, which took the form of sketches rife with morbid humour about smoking and were designed to encourage adult smokers to quit. In a controlled study of regions of central and northern England (one region received no intervention) the PSAs were broadcast in two regions, and one region received both the PSAs, plus locally organised anti-tobacco campaigning. The study found:
After 18 months, 9.8% of successfully re-interviewed smokers had stopped and 4.3% of ex-smokers had relapsed. [...] There was no evidence of an extra effect of the local tobacco control network when combined with TV media [...] Applying these results to a typical population where 28% smoke and 28% are ex-smokers, and where there would be an equal number of quitters and relapsers over an 18 month period without the campaign, suggests that the campaign would reduce smoking prevalence by about 1.2%.[114]
Personal life
Cleese metConnie Booth in the US and they married in 1968.[53] In 1971, Booth gave birth to their only child, Cynthia Cleese, who went on to appear with her father in his filmsA Fish Called Wanda andFierce Creatures. With Booth, Cleese wrote the scripts for and co-starred in both series ofFawlty Towers, although the two were actually divorced before the second series was finished and aired. Cleese and Booth are said to have remained close friends since. Cleese has two grandchildren through Cynthia's marriage to writer/directorEd Solomon. Cleese married American actressBarbara Trentham in 1981. Their daughter Camilla, Cleese's second child, was born in 1984. He and Trentham divorced in 1990. During this time, Cleese emigrated toLos Angeles.
In 1992, he married American psychotherapistAlyce Faye Eichelberger. They divorced in 2008; the divorce settlement left Eichelberger with £12 million in finance and assets, including £600,000 a year for seven years. Cleese said, "What I find so unfair is that if we both died today, her children would get much more than mine ... I got off lightly. Think what I'd have had to pay Alyce if she had contributed anything to the relationship—such as children, or a conversation".[115]
Less than a year later, he returned to theUK, where he has property inLondon and a home on theRoyal Crescent inBath, Somerset.[116][117] In August 2012, Cleese married English jewellery designer and former model Jennifer Wade in a ceremony on the Caribbean island ofMustique.[118]
In an interview in 2014, Cleese blamed his mother, who lived to the age of 101, for his problems in relationships with women, saying: "My ingrained habit of walking on eggshells when dealing with my mother dominated my romantic liaisons for many years." Cleese said that he had spent "a large part of my life in some form of therapy" over his relationships with women.[119] He has received treatment fordepression.[120]
In March 2015, in an interview withDer Spiegel, he was asked if he was religious. Cleese stated that he did not think much of organised religion and said he was not committed to "anything except the vague feeling that there is something more going on than the materialist reductionist people think".[103]
Cleese has a passion forlemurs.[121][122] Following the 1997 comedy filmFierce Creatures, in which thering-tailed lemur played a key role, he hosted the 1998BBC documentaryIn the Wild: Operation Lemur with John Cleese, which tracked the progress of areintroduction ofblack-and-white ruffed lemurs back into theBetampona Reserve in Madagascar. The project had been partly funded by Cleese's donation of the proceeds from the London premiere ofFierce Creatures.[122][123] Cleese said "I adore lemurs. They're extremely gentle, well-mannered, pretty and yet great fun ... I should have married one".[121]
TheBemaraha woolly lemur (Avahi cleesei), also known as Cleese's woolly lemur, is native to western Madagascar. The scientist who discovered the species named it after Cleese, mainly because of Cleese's fondness for lemurs and his efforts at protecting and preserving them. The species was first discovered in 1990 by a team of scientists from theUniversity of Zurich led by Urs Thalmann but was not formally described as a species until 11 November 2005.[124]
A species oflemur, theBemaraha woolly lemur (Avahi cleesei), has been named in his honour. Cleese has mentioned this in television interviews. Also, there is a mention of this honour inNew Scientist magazine—and Cleese's response to it.[125]
A municipal rubbish heap 45 metres (148 ft) high that has been named Mt Cleese at theAwapuni landfill just outsidePalmerston North after he dubbed the city "suicide capital of New Zealand" after a stay there in 2005.[126][127]
^McCall, Douglas. L. (1991).Monty Python: a chronological listing of the troupe's creative output, and articles and reviews about them, 1969–1989. McFarland. p. 1.
^abCowsill, Alan (2010). "2000s". In Dolan, Hannah (ed.).DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle.Dorling Kindersley. p. 315.ISBN978-0-7566-6742-9.Comedy legend John Cleese joined forces with artist John Byrne, inker Mark Farmer and writer Kim Johnson for a unique take on the Superman story.Superman: True Brit saw Kal-El's rocketship land on a farm... in the UK.
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