Michael Palin on the Welshness that shaped Terry Jones' comedy and career
The actor paid tribute to his fellow Monty Python star as a bid to erect a bronze statue for the Colwyn Bay man nears its £120,000 target A big thank you to the Daily Post for this article and the picture on the Pier. To see the original article click HERE
Terry Jones left Colwyn Bay as a five-year-old for Home Counties Surrey but his unshakeable "Welshness" never left him, his fellow Monty Python star Sir Michael Palin said. Palin said that sense of identity shaped his life, career and comedy even under the intense teasing of another Python legend.
John Cleese - Basil Fawlty in classic TV hit Fawlty Towers - jokingly "victimised" his pal Terry for his Welshness, as he grew up in the heart of the English suburban commuter belt, the travel guru added.
Palin paid tribute to his old friend on Colwyn Bay promenade was launched last month, alongside another Python, the filmmaker Terry Gilliam. The pair were there to launch a fundraising to erect a bronze statue for Terry.
Today appeal organisers revealed the current total is £95,000 towards a £120,000 target.In his speech at the launch on Colwyn Bay pier last month Sir Michael said: "Terry always claimed he was Welsh.
But there was usually an argument with John Cleese, who claimed to be English, and they would wind each other up. Terry was sort of 'victimised' for a while by Cleese for being Welsh. The North Wales Live Whatsapp community for top stories and breaking news is live now - here’s how to sign up
"But it gave Terry his energy. It gave Terry his wonderful ideas about life. How things should be done and how things should be different and how things should be special."
Sir Michael, at the launch with another fellow Monty Python contributor Terry Gilliam, went on: "Terry (Jones) was a real polymath - he could do a lot of things. When I first met him at Oxford University he was a very good actor, a very funny man.
"He also played the guitar. He also designed the covers for the Oxford magazine Isis at the time. So Terry was into everything.
"He was always very strong-willed about it. And I think his Welshness gave him that sort of feeling that he was right! That's the way he'd see it.
"I think it was rather sad for Terry that at the age of five he had to go and live in Esher in Surrey which is probably as unWelsh as you could imagine."
Sir Michael said the idea of a statue in Colwyn Bay of Terry - which may be of him playing piano in the nude after one of his Monty Python sketches - is fitting as he could show off his "immaculate, Welsh body".
He concluded : "It's left to the people of Colwyn Bay to honour him. Here's to A Python on the Prom (statue) in the future and I just hope Terry will be an icon and a 'visitor centre' for Colwyn Bay."
Meanwhile Sally Jones, Terry’s daughter, said today the £120,000 appeal has reached £95,000 so far: “We are thrilled to reach this point in the fundraising - we have just over £25,000 left to raise to reach our goal! Everyone has been so generous.
"Our (A Python on the Prom) t-shirts have sold worldwide and we've had over 1,000 donations in just one month.” Llandudno artist Nick Elphick has released an early image of his first maquette of Terry’s likeness, sculpted in clay.
He has been commissioned to make a larger sculpture by Terry’s children Sally and Bill and the Conwy Arts Trust, who are running the fundraising campaign, supported by Conwy County Borough Council
Meanwhile campaign "Ambassador" Eric Idle, another Monty Python veteran, has been drafted in support across the Atlantic. Supporters include talk show host and stand-up, Conan O’Brien, who joins stand-up comedian Jo Brand, actor/comedian Sanjeev Bhaskar, actor/Strictly Come Dancing star Greg Wise and many other illustrious names from the TV, Film and Comedy world who are backing the campaign.Jo Brand, stand-up comedian and actor, said: “Terry was lovely, warm and absolutely hilarious. When I learnt to play the organ several years ago, it was always Terry I thought of when I sat down to play. If anyone deserves a statue, it’s Terry.”
Oscar-nominated comedy actor and writer Steve Coogan said: “Naked at the organ’ is both cheeky and a strangely profound expression of Terry’s life affirming anti-establishment anarchy!”
Actor Sanjeev Bhaskar said: “Since Terry never won ‘Rear of the Year’ I think his posterior preserved for posterity in Colwyn Bay seems right. I’m absolutely behind it.”
Although public opinion seems to be in favour of the Naked Organist, Sally said: “It hasn’t been decided what character we will use for Dad’s statue. We feel it’s really important that a decision like this is made with the people of Colwyn Bay, after all they are going to have to live with this sculpture everyday.
“For Nick, working on these maquettes is the equivalent of making sketches, trying to find Dad’s likeness, before embarking on the actual statue. This is part of a long process before he begins work on the final character and pose.”
Llandudno based Nick said: “I start with research and photographs for reference, as well as talking to the family and watching his work, really getting to know him as a human being as well as through his character and his art.”
From there, half size clay sketches of Terry’s head, starting with him as a younger man to really capture Terry’s likeness are sculpted, before Nick moves on to working on some of Terry’s facial expressions from his character work.
Terry Jones died on January 21, 2020, aged 77.
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