Michael Edward Palin is a British
comedian and television presenter. He is famous for
being a member of the Monty Python's Flying Circus
team in which he generally played roles that called
for manic enthusiasm (such as the lumberjack of the
Lumberjack Song), or unflappable calmness (such as
the Dead Parrot vendor or Cheese Shop proprietor).
As the latter, he was often the perfect foil to the
rising ire of characters portrayed by John Cleese.
Michael Palin was educated at Birkdale preparatory
school and Shrewsbury public school. He went on to
read History at Brasenose College, Oxford.
After Monty Python, Palin subsequently collaborated
with Python writing partner Terry Jones on the television
comedy series Ripping Yarns. He also appeared in All
You Need Is Cash as the lawyer and press agent for
The Rutles.
In later years, Palin rejoined Cleese for the movies
A Fish Called Wanda and Fierce Creatures and played
an information retrieval specialist in fellow Python
Terry Gilliam's Brazil. He has assisted Transport 2000
and others with campaigns on transport policy issues,
particularly those relating to urban areas. |
