The Cheese Shop sketch, Monty Python

Classic Monty Python sketch.

[@chasbodaniels1744]

My dad owned a cheese shop in the 1960’s - 80’s and two young chaps waited for a quiet spell without customers, and performed this sketch for their delighted audience of one. Pop was a loyal Python fan, and he retold this anecdote long after he retired.

[@mischiefpwns]

the best is you get so used to the background music and when he shouts "SHUT THAT BLOODY DANCING UP!" it catches you offguard and forget its even playing. It makes it about 10x more funnier.

[@Gamer3427]

(Time to reply to a thirteen year old comment I suppose.) I'd say it's also arguably just as good on a rewatch after not having seen it for quite some time, as then you remember that he yells at them to stop, but don't remember when exactly, so the whole time you're noticing the music even more and waiting for him to snap.

[@MicahStringini]

@@Gamer3427 (time to reply to a 2 day old comment i suppose.) i agree

[@wespaisley257]

The funniest thing is watching these guys with someone who doesn't get the absurdity 😂

[@Roman-ln4ye]

⁠@@MicahStringini(time to reply to an 11 day old reply that was replying to a 13 year old replay I suppose) I also agree

[@fanfaretloudest]

I was just talking to my brother about that part b4 it happened. Probably one of my favorite scenes of this skit growing up lol.

[@audinos4827]

How many British cheese shops have to put up with customers doing Monty Python recreations?

[@hschnabel3055]

Audinos no more than are Scottish haggis makers putting up with German tourists if i could take a guess.

[@rheafoster7346]

not enough, I'm sure

[@Seantendo]

All of them.

[@TonyEnglandUK]

I'll be honest - I've never actually seen a cheese shop.

[@thecreationmay3792]

Tony England the closest to a cheese shop is probably the cheese counter at Sainsbury's!

[@DannyD714]

cleese and palin were the best together. argument,parrot,cheese,silly walks. all classics.

[@pineapplepenumbra]

Cheese and Parmesan?

[@BakedRBeans]

@@pineapplepenumbra John's last name was originally Cheese, but his father changed it to Cleese. I did not make that up.

[@pineapplepenumbra]

@@BakedRBeans Apparently, Reginald Francis Cheese changed his name some years before John was born. But now that you've posted this, I keep reading "Cleese" as "Cheese", damn you!

[@pineapplepenumbra]

@@BakedRBeans Somewhat of a coincidence; I haven't listened to the radio for years (I prefer listening to music that I have downloaded), but this morning, as I was driving to work, I put the radio on. I received the car in September, and haven't used the radio, so it just came on to Radio 2. Guess who was on? And literally, within a few seconds of tuning in, he was explaining that his father got sick of people taking the mickey out of his name (I think from 1915, when he joined the army and fought in France for 3 years) and changed it from Cheese to Cleese. John Cleese then said that people at school never seemed to hear his name properly, anyway, and thought that maybe it was "Creeves" or something similar.

[@joegiotta7580]

I was in a small town in Texas, walking down the Main Street, when I saw a sign for “Cheeses of the World.” I crossed the street to look in the window. It was either recently shut down or just about to newly open. It was closed, all of the shelving was up, and there were zero “cheesy comestibles” on the premises. I could only laugh heartily to myself. I really wanted to share that moment with someone. I felt like it was a setup.

[@srl6018]

That's very funny. You could almost imagine going in and encountering a Mr Wensleydale . . . 🤣

[@ownpetard8379]

Was dancing on premises licensed?

[@martinsmale5362]

@@ownpetard8379 . Yes, see the sign at the beginning!

[@arthurmoure9116]

Which town? So many small towns in Texas are becoming gormetised.

[@johnpapiewski7022]

The everyday absurdism of a cheese shop with no cheese, and shopkeeper who denies it, just kills me.

[@pineapplepenumbra]

It killed him, too.

[@brianarbenz1329]

A part we don't think about much is when Mr. Wensleydale starts to tell him one they actually have -- finally ending the customer's futility, but he interrupts with. "No! I'm keen to guess." So he cooperates with his own torment.

[@victorvienne1650]

In a nutshell. And I thought to myself, 'a little fermented curd will do the trick', so, I curtailed my Walpoling activites, sallied forth, and infiltrated your place of purveyance to negotiate the vending of some cheesy comestibles! Come again? I want to buy some cheeeeese!

[@zyaicob]

It's always Walpole isn't it?

[@linuspauling9290]

Curd-tailed!

[@linuspauling9290]

Needed to be mentioned.

[@NonsensicalSpudz]

actually Basfordiron, a cookie is a specific type of biscuit. you don't call a choc chip cookie a biscuit

[@sulista-consulting]

LOL

[@ThrashMetallix]

"WILL YOU SHUT THAT BLOODY DANCING UP?!"

[@Level7Gentlemen]

‎"I thought to myself: A little fermented curd could do the trick. So I curtailed my Walpoling activities, sallied forth and infiltrated your place of purveyance to negotiate the vending of some cheesy comestibles." Monty Python has some of the most ingenious lines in history.

[@Gennettor-nc8kx]

Walpolean.

[@brianarbenz1329]

@@Gennettor-nc8kx But at least he knew the cat's gender!

[@Skibz778]

I still think the funniest aspect of this sketch is the sheer pretentiousness of Cleese's character. Describing yourself stopping reading a book by Walpole as "curtailing my Walpoling activities" is such a creative piece of writing. :)

[@negascoot23]

Skibz778 Cleese has a gift for self-deprecating pretentiousness... If you didn't know this was supposed to be comedy, you would hear him and think: "Is he making fun of himself? Or is he really THAT MUCH of an asshole?"😁

[@linuspauling9290]

It was a pun! Curd-tailing.

[@NonsensicalSpudz]

huh? come again

[@animalntelligence3170]

How do you say you paused in reading any British author? Maybe I am dumb, but I can't think of any other way to communicate it. You sound like a leftist.

[@ForumArcade]

I think the funniest part of the sketch is the cheese on the shelf behind him.

[@jackforsyte3351]

"an act of pure optimism" i love it 😂

[@brusselssprouts560]

Did the shop owner have any of Les Patterson's Tasmanian Mauve Vein cheese?

[@MrPatrickworthington]

@@brusselssprouts560 How Tasmanian Devil Mauve Vein cheese?

[@brianarbenz1329]

@@brusselssprouts560 Ordinarily yes, but today the van broke down.

[@davkarshobby2468]

Since hearing this sketch all those years ago, I have made it my life's work to try each of these cheeses at least once. Surprisingly, most of these cheeses actually exist.

[@sbor2020]

Have you tried _bryndza_ - "Czechoslovakian sheep cheese"?

[@ClaireGarrard]

What about Venezualan beaver cheese? 😆

[@willemjansen1141]

Yes update us about your journey

[@Bloodshark123]

It must be possible to make it even if no one has. Any animal that produces milk must be able to have cheese made from it.@@ClaireGarrard

[@mq5731]

@@Bloodshark123That includes human cheese made from breast milk

[@TGMegami]

The "Licensed for public dancing" sigh at 0:08 makes me laugh every time! It's so easy to miss, but so ridiculous! Who would dance at a cheese shop? XD

[@ChrisBakerauthor]

I didn't notice that until probably my tenth viewing of this hilarious sketch.

[@hawkeye7527]

Well it's certainly not much of a cheese shop now is it?

[@ownpetard8379]

@@hawkeye7527 Ah, but a splendid cheese shop to publicly dance in!

[@ownpetard8379]

And why would public dancing be licensed in the first instance?

[@isbestlizard]

@@ownpetard8379 You appear to be moving your body to a rhythmic succession of repetitive beats. Do you have a license?

[@tonymcheezee]

This is 1 of those sketches that didn't quite make their featured "greatest hits" ...but in my opinion just about as good as anything they've done. A vintage performance by John Cleese rattling off all the different types of cheese and a well written/performed sketch by the 1 and only original team of Monty Python. "Venezualan Beaver cheese"

[@williamcrowe2576]

The coffee table book *Monty Python's Flying Circus: All the Words* (a collection of annotated transcripts from each season) had a footnote regarding Venezuelan Beaver Cheese; "If only".

[@kevhead1525]

Salad Days followed it. Great show.

[@jimsimpson1006]

Funnily enough, it’s the one that has stuck in my head after all these years.

[@brianc3761]

Who said that?

[@uncled39]

No it isn't

[@HappyArchaeology-mm4ng]

Priceless. One of my favorite MP sketches.

[@vars280287]

This video taught me about the different types of cheese

[@u.v.s.5583]

And now, Brittish trees, part three. The Larch!

[@portcullis5622]

I am not certain, but I suspect that Venezualan beever cheese might have been made up!

[@coin666911]

@@portcullis5622 beavers do lactate but not sure if they turn it into cheese in Venezuela

[@portcullis5622]

It might well be as rare as Australian duck-billed platypus cheese, perhaps?

[@deployedkitty]

​@@portcullis5622 My God, man! That Australian duck-billed platypus cheese sounds exceedingly rare! Unobtainable, even! The Queen would have first taste!

[@MissSheepgobaa]

This sketch is so classically random. Love the dancing in the background, and how long it takes Cleese to tell them to shut up.

[@peterrebelwithoutamenopaus6962]

Oh, the cat's eaten it. Has he? She, sir. Python attention to detail. Superb as always.

[@WaldoCampos1]

The camembert was so runny it was actually just plain milk for the cat

[@Syrange13]

Him transforming into a cowboy for like half a second at the end really caught me off guard

[@beesknees947]

Same!

[@premanadi]

It continues with him going off into the sunset like the ending of a cowboy movie, with music swelling up and (if I can recall) the title card "Rogue Cheddar" or something like that.

[@Darkstar263]

The way John Cleese's character speaks at the start of the sketch reminds me of the character Bernard Cribbins played in the Inspectors episode of Fawlty Towers, Using a big vocabulary.

[@danmcdaid]

Even the northern accent he affects is similar

[@SamoIsKing]

The thing I love the most about Monty Python, is that its 40 years old, and we're still laughing out asses of at it. Who knew jokes with no punchline could be so funny.

[@adambane1719]

Hello... I am messaging you from the future. Please tell the world this in 2009, the following : "THERE IS A BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS LABROTORY IN WUHAN CHINA, CO-RUN BY THE AMERICANS". The world needs to know this.....THEY MUST BE UNCOVERED AND STOPPED BEFORE THE END OF JANUARY 2020 ! .....May God be with you !

[@cristinabumbac151]

And we'll laugh for the next...n years! These guys are absolutely amazing and I think they will never be forgotten. I wish we had them again, especially in these situations....

[@KayAteChef]

I was thinking "40 years ago? surely fifty-something years!" A 14 year old comment. wow

[@SamoIsKing]

@@KayAteChef 15 now.

[@matthewclark7955]

This is just absolutely glorious

[@snottyxraygirl]

" Negotiate the vending of some cheesy comestibles...." LOL A line delivered in all it's possible glory by the incomparable John Cleese . I never tire of these sketches!

[@SpeccyMan]

... its glory requires no apostrophe since the possessive pronoun is devoid of aforementioned punctuation due to it not being the bloody contraction of "it is". 😁

[@brianarbenz1329]

@@SpeccyMan Thanks for pointing that out. Things like that matter. So many people make that error (or the converse omitting of an apostrophe) due to haste or not noticing that our friend Otto Kerect has taken an action without our permission.

[@keydetpiper]

That's the genius of Monty Python. They avoid a lot of the expected structure of the comedy sketch, often including the punchline, and leave you giggling and at the same time wondering if it really was funny. On repeated viewings (often many repetitions), it just gets funnier as you listen to the skill with which the dialogue is sculpted.

[@lordmalvada8212]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/mHPEop6ahLZ8psk&ab_channel=ericbillingsley

[@TheDylls]

On a related note, I didn't like David S. Pumpkins much on the first watch lmao

[@Andy-ub3ub]

Yes, i agree, its very public school. Where as working class humour is very much gag, punchline. Wheres the humour in that eh?

[@shadowslayer81]

"And what led you to that conclusion?" "Why it's the cleanest!" "Well it's certainly uncontaminated with cheese..." That was genius.

[@kortexsirvasil]

This sketch made me read H. Walpole's Rogue Herries. It was actually very good so I read the whole saga. Thanks, Monty Python!

[@tritonemedia]

Bet you didn't get any bloody cheese afterwards though.

[@StamfordBridge]

So by now have you curtailed your Walpoling activities?

[@gregoryschleitwiler9601]

Cultured cheese. I think that was the point. Most people just don't get it.

[@NameGoesHere21]

I went to my library for that book but they were all out.

[@brianarbenz1329]

@@NameGoesHere21 Actually they had H. Walpole's Rogue Herries, but it's a bit runny.

[@vonzigle]

I like the guy in Viking horns who pops out and says "anyway"! 😝

[@zekecasperanddeadpoolzgroovyst]

vonzigle 1:20 John Marwood Cleese AKA Mr. Mousebender: I like a nice dance you forced to! 1:23 Viking: Anyway.... 1:24 Mr. Henry Arthur Wensleydale: Who said that? *LOL ROFL!!*

[@zekecasperanddeadpoolzgroovyst]

Rose Tico Enthusiast Whom?

[@maryries4044]

Cheese goes quite well with spam. :)

[@THETexzilla]

Normally the Viking was Terry Gilliam, though on occasion it was Michael Palin.

[@rogerswift1983]

callback to earlier in the episode

[@LMacNeill]

One wonders how long it took Mr. Cleese to memorize that list of cheeses. 😂

[@Heart.Soul.Mind.]

Two words: cue cards.

[@doctorpatient519]

I doubt very long, as his capacity to memorize and deliver long and challenging dialogue is -- dare I say -- unmatched ... please find and view the "It's the Arts" episode and marvel at Mr Cleese's flawless, rapid-fire recitation of the "Greatest Name in Baroque Music", Johann Gambol Putty [deVon, etc.] (",,, of Ulm.")

[@bunstructors8591]

Mr. Cheese

[@tamar5261]

I just had a piece of cheese after this 😊

[@_Ekaros]

@@doctorpatient519 Nigel Hawthorne with Yes Minister is in competition. The near monologs are something to behold.

[@_photonx6017]

Some day I hope to taste the elusive Venezuelan beaver cheese.

[@BlitztheDragon]

My favorite part is how they fake you out with the Camembert, making us think there's about to be a punchline involving how incredibly runny it is, only for the cat to eat it. It's why I love Monty Python; they throw curveballs like that.

[@onpsxmember]

I never got the connection with the cat. I thought it was just another evasion after he didn't care for the consistency. Thx.

[@TheNthMouse]

onpsxmember - it's a subversion (done well), in that you expect him to say something like: "oh! It's run off!" (Which is also possibly a pun.) The cat is completely unconnected.

[@minoxiothethird]

That is the joke. Cats drink milk and the cat was never shown. The cat was just drinking the milk he asked for under the counter. Also Czechislovakian cheese if amazing.

[@peterbrown6224]

Perhaps he really did eat it and they had to ad lib.

[@cvn6555]

I expected Mr Wensleydale to theatrically pour it into a cup as the punchline after noting the excessive runniness.

[@kaewonf8]

Python sketches have no punchlines per se (a fact they not only admit but exploit to hilarious effect in the scene after "Argument Clinic" for example); rather, they create scenarios that are inherently absurd (a cheeseless cheese shop) and reveal that fact throughout the sketch. The dancers are another absurdity that builds as the sketch goes on. A classic example of Cleese's "thesaurus" sketches, which are always a hoot.

[@shahancheong9792]

"I don't care HOW excrementally runny it is! Hand it over with all speed!" Hahahahaha!! Oh god...

[@ExplorerDS6789]

There's a recorded version where he says "f*cking".

[@cpa2788]

Yes, on 'Matching Tie and Handkerchief'

[@rfletch62]

Great! Loved when you opened the cover of the LP, the matching tie etc. were on a hanged man.

[@sullivan2339]

the cat ate it

[@randywoodruff7691]

Dusk till Dawn

[@MrUndersolo]

“Has he?” “She, sir.” Small things like this make this really move along. Best Python sketch!

[@TonyEnglandUK]

"Wensleydale?" "Yes sir" "Splendid, well I'll have some of that then please" "Oh, I'm sorry sir, I thought you were referring to me, Mr. Wensleydale".

[@KrillLiberator]

It's a good sketch, bordering on great, but the 'Cheese Shop' game in the Brand New Monty Python Bok is a true classic. One player is the cheese shop owner, the other player is the customer. Game goes like this: 1) Shop owner and customer exchange pleasantries. 2) Shop owner asks how he can help. 3) Customer asks for a variety of cheese. 4) Shop owner offers an excuse for the lack of said cheese in stock (a simple "No" is okay, or numerous variations upon such. however, points are awarded for creative excuses - "Not since the Great Moroccan Curd Shortage of 1978, I'm afraid Sir" and so forth). 5) Customer asks for a *different* variety of cheesy comestible. 6) Shop owner offers a *different* excuse for not having any of said fromage in stock. 7) Game continues in this fashion until one player either a) cannot think of a new cheese/excuse, or b) repeats a cheese/excuse. Great at parties. Can empty entire front rooms.

[@LPSChocolateChips]

definitely playing that at Christmas

[@portcullis5622]

A friend and I used to play a game a bit like that. A kind of 'celebrity tennis'. I think it started with 'Brians'. One of us would name someone relatively famous (or at least known to both of us, such as ex-teachers) who was called Brian, and the other had to respond. The winner was the player that got the last Brian. 'Brians' and 'Bobs' could be quite long matches, whereas 'Quentins' was usually a 2-2 draw (after "Crisp", "Blake", "Letts" and "Tarantino"). I knew of someone with the splendid name of Quentin Goggs, but was not allowed that one! As you can imagine, the long winter evenings used to simply fly by!

[@jamesmartin9401]

"Well it's certainly uncontaminated by cheese." Arguably the greatest line from the TV series with "It is an ex-parrot," in close contention. Of course Star Trek: Voyager had an episode where some alien cheese infected their computer so I guess maybe the writers were Python fans.

[@pjlanzatella4785]

+James Martin "That parrot has ceased to be! It is no more!"

[@kbean63]

I don't know, the Piranhas Brothers sketch had some really good lines as well.

[@jamesmartin9401]

Kevin Enos Yes, yes it did.

[@andrealevin8979]

I completely agree.

[@iglooo102videos]

+James Martin "Well it's certainly uncontaminated by cheese." + "do you have any cheese at all" hahahahahaha

[@ge2623]

The look on Cleese's face when he gets corrected about the cat's sex...

[@mfranssens]

“Curtailed my Walpoling activities” This is ridiculously good. So well written.

[@Gennettor-nc8kx]

Walpolian.

[@ev6558]

@@Gennettor-nc8kx Wrong.

[@Gennettor-nc8kx]

@@ev6558 No, you are. You obviously don't grasp this.

[@ev6558]

@@Gennettor-nc8kx Wrong.

[@brianarbenz1329]

@@ev6558 Ordinarily it's "Walpoling," but the van broke down.

[@dennischiu272]

"What a senseless waste of human life."

[@ILuvKonata]

And tyhen he turns into an american cowboy!

[@AndrewJ9673]

Dennis Chiu Its a quote from The Good the Bad and the Ugly my doods, its what Clint Eastwood says when he is with Tuco watching the Union storm the Rebel bridge. Thats why he put on the cowboy hat.

[@AndrewJ9673]

Nevermind my dudes it appears I was wrong. Although he says something similar (“never seen so men needlessly wasted yada yada”) it isnt the quote or anything directly resembling it. Oof

[@FALL-LAFF-7477]

*cue to Rough Cheedar ending and to bloody Quentin Tarantino's Rendention of Salad Days.*

[@Kelly14UK]

No it WASNT

[@RS250Squid]

50 years after this sketch appeared on TV, I bought some Sage Derby at the Christmas market just because I recognised its name from this sketch. Now THAT'S the power of product placement! XD

[@dividingpicnic]

I got some Port Salut for the same reason.

[@jeffreyknickman5559]

@@dividingpicnic I took to getting Stilton and Jarlsberg at my local grocery store (Yank, here). And just a couple of weeks ago I tried Red Leicester.

[@carstenlund6604]

Brexit came Hard on the cheese shops.

[@luisreyes1963]

Is Ilchester really Stinking Bishop cheese? 🧀

[@tomatoherb]

Graham and TJ dancing in the background really make this one for me.

[@ChrisBakerauthor]

Who is playing the music? I guess Eric wasn't available for this one.

[@smellykelley69]

lol, i can`t go through a grocery store without checking out the cheese section and the variety they have. my favorite quote in the sketch was ` predictable really, i suppose. it was an act of pure optimism to have posed the question in the first place` classic python.

[@tyronewhitehead3123]

A fabulous sketch just hearing John mentioning all them cheeses. Is enough for me to give this Sketch a big massive thumbs up.

[@SpeccyMan]

... all THOSE cheeses ...

[@Spamcan81]

Saw this sketch live last week. Cleese and Palin struggled to keep straight faces. Brilliant.

[@AndyHoward]

I saw the broadcast of that. They did Dead Parrot/Cheese Shop combo and a tribute to Dr Graham Chapman.

[@rrrock]

"One of my favorite sketches with John. I don't think once either on television or on stage, was I ever able to get through it with a straight face". -Michael Palin

[@alienandy]

Lucky bastard

[@Sutemi]

Quicksilver rhythm of that sketch and the sheer verbal acrobatism was 100%, absolutely brilliant

[@SpeccyMan]

Verbal gymnastics makes far more sense.

[@MegaKalkyl]

Love Chapman's performance. Dancing with that "Graham" look on his face.

[@trendy4313]

I'm doing grate, but I could be cheddar.

[@katg9507]

Trendy I'm doing gouda, but "curda" be better. lol

[@godofcrap42]

I camembert these cheesy puns

[@ZilogBob]

@@godofcrap42 Too Krafty for you?

[@hannahmellinger6789]

ZilogBob someone get the police over here Swissly! There’s been a murder!

[@wallacegrommet9343]

Sweet dreams are made of cheese! Who am I to dis a brie?

[@changer_of_ways_suspense_smith]

Cleese and his cheese.

[@danramirz]

I sometimes imagine Michael Palin being the Doctor in Doctor Who. He would have been amazing.

[@DavidIckefeller]

One of their very best ever sketches. Finest in the district. Most staggeringly popular in the manor, Squire!

[@johnswan6759]

The best ever. Had a version on record in the 70s that was even funier. The timing was just brilliant. IMO this is the best sketch far more than the dead parrot

[@robertrijkers4923]

'it was an act of pure optimism to ask in the first place...' brilliant

[@premanadi]

to have posed the question

[@Deuterium2H]

"...Venezuelan Beaver Cheese"? LOL!

[@zagor1974]

Not today, no :)

[@donkorleone5188]

Zimbabwen rhinoceros cheese?

[@zagor1974]

normally yes, but today the plane broke down.

[@ironguanyin123]

In Mongolia they have Mongolian horse cheese!! Really, they do, people actually drink horse milk there.

[@whatamievendoing_]

Deuterium2H Me reí horrible y eso que vengo de Venezuela

[@stevepkelleher]

two classic understated moments in this sketch I could listen to over and over again... The thoughtful pause that Michael Palin give after "Double Gloucester ?", and then "she, sir" after "the cat's eaten it, Has he ?"

[@isrbillmeyer]

2023 and it still is brilliant and funny

[@DreamDragoness25]

This is making me crave cheese. XD

[@engladtur]

i just love how well articulated he is

[@mr.9754]

Looks like a shop for an argument to me.

[@mr.9754]

sorry....my wife doesn't let me argue in my free time :p

[@rulebritannia1518]

+Renan Lefebvre Yes it is.

[@rulebritannia1518]

+Mr. 三八弟 Yes, she does.

[@jeffcarroll6553]

I've told you once

[@pendraco2000]

no you haven't!

[@nav3346]

Those corduroy shoes are kickin.

[@stevehammer7452]

.....not gonna lie....after re-watching this video I have been looking for corduroy shoes( true story)

[@DirtDiver181992]

'I want to buy some cheese.'

[@DirtDiver181992]

1:08

[@chantelleadlington]

DirtDiver181992 THAT'S MY FAVOURITE PART 😂😂😂

[@jim4671]

Erm. No.

[@samanthawilson6861]

DirtDiver181992 lol yourself in this video 😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😁😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@freddyrichards878]

DirtDiver181992 Wallace?

[@tombradford7035]

Like the cheese counter at Tesco.

[@setogod7]

fave of mine is the ford farm dorset red and the ilcester smoked applewood and cornish yarg

[@hemipemi]

You wouldn't know it was a cheese counter until a man stood behind it and took your order. It's just a counter otherwise.

[@tileking8078]

Yes the tesco cheese 🧀 counter literally reeks of cheese you shant go there if you're fancying a shag whilst having your cheeses toasted on steltons triful morning day and the night before the morning I had to go get home and get a little more to get to it and I'll get back to you laterals the afternoon is so much to say about it I hope you get your way to fix it and then I can get to it again. I will do it for tomorrow afternoon or if you have a few things I will need to get some stuff out you..🐀🐔🎶

[@tvde6784]

"Venezuelan beavercheese ?" "Not today sir, no"

[@sandybarrie5526]

one of the funniest sketches that i often quote.

[@TigirlakaLaserwolf6]

My personal fave sketch.

[@76juno]

The character of Basil Fawlty was actually based on a real life hotel owner. Back in the 70's the Pythons stayed in a hotel somewhere in England where they were filming. Apparently the owner was as rude and obnoxious as you can get and so Cleese wrote a series around him. There were only 12 episodes but as Rhissanna rightly says, they were excrutiatingly funny to the point of making you squirm watching them. If you have never watched Fawlty Towers then get yourself the set.

[@SpeccyMan]

The hotel was Gleneagles and it was in Torquay. The proprietor was Donald Sinclair.

[@lapdawg60]

One of my all time favorite MP sketches. Brilliantly absurd. The music and dancing take it so perfectly over the top.

[@factckzone7533]

Benny Hill, Monty Python and Marty Feldman -- true comedic geniuses! In the very early 1970's we didn't have many TV channels and most went off the air before midnight. Luckily, my family lived in Michigan and we received Ontario, Canada TV broadcasts late at night. That's when Hill's and Python's shows were broadcast. Good times...!

[@golden.lights.twinkle2329]

The Pythons borrowed a lot from Benny Hill.

[@schaferhundschmidt1798]

I don't recall as much scantily clad women in varying stages of lingerie undress running around in Python skits so much as Pythons in drag, but both shows featured some hilarious songs and skits.

[@CountJackNoire]

Doing this sketch for my theatre class. Shit yeah.

[@00RockyAngel00]

That guy REALLY knows cheese! I was always curious about Red Leicester, because it was his first choice. For a long time I never saw any, but finally saw some at Whole Foods. It's $ 9.75 a pound!!! The little piece I tried was hard, but good. Supposedly it's really good melted, too.

[@bikeny]

I figured I would search again as it's been 4 years since your comment and we've all gone through the pandemic and the current inflationary situation, so I found this at Trader Joe's site: Rutland Red Leicester Cheese $11.99/pound.

[@00RockyAngel00]

Inflation was probably part of the plan all along.

[@ownpetard8379]

Is Red Leicester supposed to be hard, or was it your hard cheese that it was?

[@00RockyAngel00]

@@ownpetard8379 LOL, supposed to be

[@aredub1847]

@@00RockyAngel00 i imagine most british cheese is hard. wouldnt want to be all soft like the french cheese.

[@80swoodpanel]

The rythme in this sketch is INSANE! It's a song really!

[@ChaseSandman]

What I most like of Monty Phyton sketches is they get even funnier as the story goes on, long live the Monty Phytons! cheers from a mexican fan!

[@memorymix8884]

the music makes it so surreal lmao

[@stateofdreams1]

Has to be one the best sketches ever. All praise to be both performers and writers for producing such wonderful imaginative comedy.

[@Ved000000]

Not much of a cheese shop, is it?

[@h0lly_blue]

Finest in the district, sir!

[@h0lly_blue]

***** ...Well, it's so clean.

[@h0lly_blue]

***** You haven't asked me about _limburger_, sir.

[@TheMadwomen]

CaptainGrumpy Is it worth it?

[@dk2k1]

Well, it's certainly uncontaminated by cheese, isn't it?

[@davidmende3409]

i quote "any way" -- "WhO said that??" almost daily 😂

[@jorgefiguerola1239]

Must say after decades a Python fan, this cheese addiction sketch with its nod to many addiction documentaries was so inspired.

[@georgejordan5611]

Michael Palin is just as funny as John Cleese in this skit. Great how John Cleese finally goes off on the annoying musicians!😂

[@bierwolf8360]

I looked up Illchester on Wikipedia after this and found a slight anomaly. When typing in the name of the eponymous town, wikipedia referred to it as a "human settlement" instead of just "town" or "village". The peculiarity thereof led me to take a map of England and try random other smaller towns in England but my search concluded: none (of the small dozen I searched) but Illchester is referred to as "human settlement"

[@brianarbenz1329]

It's no longer a human settlement, because everyone has been shot dead because of the cheese shortage!

[@user-yr8jj5ut7z]

I love the cheesy comestibles line

[@earlosandwich7433]

That was a fitting end. 😂

[@ConstantineBooth]

You spend the entire sketch waiting for 4:51, and it's still hilarious!

[@SWSMD]

You can't beat Monty Python. John Cleese in Faulty Towers still kept up this kind of humour. Well done.

[@helisoma]

i memorized this and other sketches when i was a teenager from the albums ...and if bored i still go through them for fun to this day

[@fb30xhk]

I did the same thing with a couple of my favourite Fawlty Towers episodes as a teenager, but I’m afraid they’re long gone

[@walterbriggs272]

Next to the 5 minute argument these 2 are hilarious wordplay

[@alexandergrace5144]

Any time I hear Wensleydale, I always think of Wallace.

[@JOECANDELA22]

....and Gromit!

[@raymondo6665]

Best sketch ever. Even better on the Matching Tie and Handkerchief album......

[@oz314]

The best sketch imo

[@maestrovon_r5108]

From Cleese's elaboration at the start there, you can sort of see the inspiration for Fawlty Towers' Mr. Hutchinson.

[@dars5229]

For years I thought it was crazy they didn't get Terry Jones to play that character, when he pretty much did for years on Monty Python.

[@Jalfmar3]

Outside of " . . . we already got one . . ." my favorite line in all of Pythondom is in this sketch. "Well, it's certainly uncontaminated by cheese." I'm convinced the Star Trek: Voyager episode where the computer's bio gel packs get "sick" from the fumes off Neelix's cheese was inspired by this sketch.

[@user-qt4qp6bj1q]

"...on account'uh it's so clean, sir!"

[@mikeohagan2206]

there is no limberger in space.

[@pepepoopsonthefarright7531]

imagine working there with that music all day

[@dragodobroslavovic8572]

God i missed this show.

[@fredflintstoner596]

Mrs Richards: "I paid for a room with a view !" Basil: (pointing to the lovely view) "That is Torquay, Madam ." Mrs Richards: "It's not good enough!" Basil: "May I ask what you were expecting to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window ? Sydney Opera House, perhaps? the Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically past?..." Mrs Richards: "Don't be silly! I expect to be able to see the sea!" Basil: "You can see the sea, it's over there between the land and the sky." Mrs Richards: "I'm not satisfied. But I shall stay. But I expect a reduction." Basil: "Why?! Because Krakatoa's not erupting at the moment ?"

[@fb30xhk]

I agree, it’s one of the best quotes from Fawlty Towers, but perhaps a bit out of context here?

[@fredflintstoner596]

@@fb30xhk YOU NAUGHTY MOOSE !

[@ownpetard8379]

@@fb30xhk Is there a Torquay cheesy comestible perhaps?

[@MillicentSquirrelHole]

Context, eh? Krakatoans, when not on fire..adore a slice of Beluga Humpback blubber (close your eyes and say 'cheese' when gulping the Beluga..and there you go..eh?

[@dovegrey1]

Great sketch----also on their Matching Tie And Handkerchief LP....this is where I learned so many cheese names!

[@premanadi]

In that version, he says "I don't care how fucking runny it is." Also, at the end: "Not a scrap. I was deliberately wasting your time."

[@HarrisBoe]

I’m a starting to see a pattern with the most famous MP:FC sketches. John Cleese is on one side or the other, on an exchange of people unable or unwilling to properly provide what’s been advertised. Cheese, *living* parrots, silly walks, arguments, etc

[@ebthedoc4992]

Oooohh. John Cleese. One of your best. “The senseless waste…”

[@BobGermanovich]

this happened to me in Bloomington Illinois. I walked into a TGIFridays and the server handed me a beer menu (i swear this is fact), i asked for a coors, she replied "we're out of coors" and then asked for a bud and again got a "we're out of that too" i got about 4 beers deep and she said "oh, we're out of beer"

[@Treknologist]

This is the first monty python sketch I have ever liked, and I just happened upon it by accident! No one ever told me about this one before. This is truly amazing. Very funny indeed. Every frame exudes humor.

[@somebodysnobody]

Nothing like the great Monty python to depict life's absurdity 🤌🏻 always look on the bright side of life...

[@dekytay5593]

Curiosity leads me to search for all the cheeses that mentioned in this sketch. Bloody worth it.

[@Shindai]

I'd love to see Rowan Atkinson do this sketch, I think his voice and mannerisms would do it wonderful justice