- Home
- Michael Palin
Michael Palin
Known for: ActingMichael Edward Palin, CBE FRGS (born 5 May 1943) is an English comedian, actor, writer and television presenter best known for being one of the members of the comedy group Monty Python and for his travel documentaries. Palin wrote most of his comedic material with Terry Jones. Before Monty Python, they had worked on other shows such as The Ken Dodd Show, The Frost Report and Do Not Adjust Your Set. Palin appeared in some of the most famous Python sketches, including "Argument Clinic", "Dead Parrot", "The Lumberjack Song", and "The Spanish Inquisition". Palin continued to work with Jones after Python, co-writing Ripping Yarns. He has also appeared in several films directed by fellow Python Terry Gilliam and made notable appearances in other films such as A Fish Called Wanda, for which he won the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. In a 2005 poll to find The Comedian's Comedian, he was voted the 30th favourite by fellow comedians and comedy insiders. After Python, he began a new career as a travel writer and travel documentarian. His journeys have taken him across the world, including the North and South Poles, the Sahara desert, the Himalayas and, most recently, Eastern Europe. In 2000 Palin was honoured as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for his services to television.
Filmography 56
Small Prophets
Monty Python's Flying Circus
as Various / "It's" man
Vanity Fair
as William Makepeace Thackeray
Life of Brian
as Wise Man #3 / Mr. Big Nose / Francis / Mrs. A / Ex-Leper / Announcer / Ben / Pontius Pilate / Boring Prophet / Eddie / Shoe Follower / Nisus Wettus
Arthur Christmas
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
as First Swallow-Savvy Guard / Dennis / Peasant 2 / Right Head / Sir Galahad the Pure / Narrator / King of Swamp Castle / Brother Maynard's Brother / Leader of The Knights Who Say NI!
The Magic Faraway Tree
as Know All
A Fish Called Wanda
as Ken Pile
Brazil
as Jack Lint
The Death of Stalin
as Vyacheslav Molotov
Time Bandits
as Vincent
Monty Python's The Meaning of Life
Absolutely Anything
as Kindly Alien (voice)
G.B.H.
as Jim Nelson
Do Not Adjust Your Set
as Various Characters
Ripping Yarns
Creator
Remember Me
as Tom Parfitt
Monty Python's Best Bits (Mostly)
as Self (archive footage)
Fierce Creatures
as Adrian "Bugsy" Malone
And Now for Something Completely Different
as Gumby / Man with tape recorder / Phrasebook Author / Arthur Pewtey / Second self - defence student / Second Tenant / Lost His Wallet / Shrill Petrol Announcer / Milkman / Ernest Scribbler / P
Worzel Gummidge
as The Green Man
Monty Python's Personal Best
as Self / Various Characters
Clangers
as Narrator (voice)
Jabberwocky
as Dennis Cooper
Michael Palin's New Europe
as Self - Presenter
The Wind in the Willows
as The Sun
Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl
as Various Roles
Michael Palin: Travels of a Lifetime
as Self - Host
Sahara with Michael Palin
as Self - Presenter
The Wind in the Willows
as Rat (voice)
Monty Python Live (Mostly)
as Self, others
The Roots of Monty Python
as Self (archive footage)
Attenborough at 90
as Self
A Private Function
as Gilbert Chilvers
The Willows in Winter
as Rat
Not the Messiah (He's a Very Naughty Boy)
Monty Python Conquers America
as Self
Parrot Sketch Not Included: Twenty Years of Monty Python
as Self / Various Characters
The Wipers Times
as General Mitford
Produced by George Martin
as Self
A Liar's Autobiography: The Untrue Story of Monty Python's Graham Chapman
as Various (voice)
An Accidental Studio
as Self
Pleasure at Her Majesty's
as Self
Monty Python: Live at Aspen
as Self
American Friends
as Rev. Francis Ashby
My National Gallery, London
as Self
The Meaning of Monty Python
as Self