John Cleese has said he “always loathed” fellow Monty Python co-star Eric Idle after the actor called the group’s income a “disaster”.
Idle said over the weekend that he was still working at 80 for financial reasons and blamed the comedy troupe’s manager Holly Gilliam, daughter of Python co-founder Terry Gilliam, for the group’s dwindling finances.
In response, Cleese has said Ms Gilliam was “very efficient”.
The comedian and actor, who founded Python alongside Idle, Gilliam, Terry Jones, Sir Michael Palin and Graham Chapman, wrote on X: “I have worked with Holly for the last 10 years, and I find her very efficient, clear-minded, hard-working, and pleasant to have dealings with.
“Michael Palin has asked me to to make it clear that he shares this opinion. Terry Gilliam is also in agreement with this.”
An X user asked Cleese if he had fallen out with Idle, to which he responded: “We always loathed and despised each other, but it’s only recently that the truth has begun to emerge.”
What exactly did Idle say?
Idle said he was still working at 80 and he had “never dreamed that at this age the income streams would tail off so disastrously”.
“But I guess if you put a Gilliam child in as your manager you should not be so surprised. One Gilliam is bad enough. Two can take out any company,” he said.
He added: “I don’t know why people always assume we’re loaded. Python is a disaster. Spamalot made money 20 years ago.
“I have to work for my living. Not easy at this age.”
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