Dead Bishop
Encyclopedia
The Dead Bishop sketch, also known as the Church Police or Salvation Fuzz, is a comedic sketch appearing in Episode 29 of Monty Python's Flying Circus
, "The Money Programme". It was also performed in Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl
and featured on the record Matching Tie and Handkerchief.
and Terry Jones
) turning off a radio show (in the audio version, a panel is asked "what would they do if they were Hitler?" and after the answers the woman turns off the radio saying "liberal rubbish!") and deciding to eat a dead unjugged
rabbitfish
, which is followed by a slice of strawberry
tart
("without so much rat in it") for dessert. Their son (Graham Chapman
) enters and informs them that they have a dead bishop
on the landing. After a bit of discussion as to why dead bishops keep appearing on the landing, they call for the Church Police (led by Michael Palin
), who arrive exactly two seconds later and beseech God
to "tell us who croaked Leicester
". To the accompaniment of a church organ, a large finger laboriously descends and points at the husband, who admits, "All right, it's a fair cop, but society is to blame". All exit, singing the hymn
, "Jerusalem
" ("All Things Bright and Beautiful
" in Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl
).
"Dead Bishop" was infamous among the Pythons for being the one sketch they could not get through live without laughing. Indeed, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and John Cleese
can all clearly be seen barely containing their laughter when performing the sketch in the film Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl
(1982).
Monty Python's Flying Circus
Monty Python’s Flying Circus is a BBC TV sketch comedy series. The shows were composed of surreality, risqué or innuendo-laden humour, sight gags and observational sketches without punchlines...
, "The Money Programme". It was also performed in Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl
Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl
Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl is a 1982 concert film in which the Monty Python team perform many of their greatest sketches at the Hollywood Bowl. The show also included filmed inserts which were mostly taken from two Monty Python specials, Monty Python's Fliegender Zirkus, which had been...
and featured on the record Matching Tie and Handkerchief.
Plot
The skit begins with a couple (Eric IdleEric Idle
Eric Idle is an English comedian, actor, author, singer, writer, and comedic composer. He was as a member of the British comedy group Monty Python, a member of the The Rutles on Saturday Night Live and author of the play, Spamalot....
and Terry Jones
Terry Jones
Terence Graham Parry Jones is a Welsh comedian, screenwriter, actor, film director, children's author, popular historian, political commentator, and TV documentary host. He is best known as a member of the Monty Python comedy team....
) turning off a radio show (in the audio version, a panel is asked "what would they do if they were Hitler?" and after the answers the woman turns off the radio saying "liberal rubbish!") and deciding to eat a dead unjugged
Jugging
Jugging is the process of stewing whole animals, mainly game or fish, for an extended period in a tightly covered container such as a casserole or an earthenware jug....
rabbitfish
Rabbitfish
Rabbitfishes or spinefoots are perciform fishes in the family Siganidae. The 28 species are in a single genus, Siganus. In some now obsolete classifications, the species having prominent face stripes—colloquially called foxfaces–are in the genus Lo. Other species like the Masked...
, which is followed by a slice of strawberry
Strawberry
Fragaria is a genus of flowering plants in the rose family, Rosaceae, commonly known as strawberries for their edible fruits. Although it is commonly thought that strawberries get their name from straw being used as a mulch in cultivating the plants, the etymology of the word is uncertain. There...
tart
Tart
A tart is a baked dish consisting of a filling over a pastry base with an open top not covered with pastry. The pastry is usually shortcrust pastry; the filling may be sweet or savoury, though modern tarts are usually fruit-based, sometimes with custard....
("without so much rat in it") for dessert. Their son (Graham Chapman
Graham Chapman
Graham Arthur Chapman was a British comedian, physician, writer, actor, and one of the six members of the Monty Python comedy troupe.-Early life and education:...
) enters and informs them that they have a dead bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
on the landing. After a bit of discussion as to why dead bishops keep appearing on the landing, they call for the Church Police (led by Michael Palin
Michael Palin
Michael Edward Palin, CBE FRGS 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....
), who arrive exactly two seconds later and beseech God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
to "tell us who croaked Leicester
Bishop of Leicester
The Bishop of Leicester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Leicester in the Province of Canterbury.The first bishops of Leicester were originally prelates who administered an Anglo-Saxon diocese between the 7th and 9th centuries...
". To the accompaniment of a church organ, a large finger laboriously descends and points at the husband, who admits, "All right, it's a fair cop, but society is to blame". All exit, singing the hymn
Hymn
A hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification...
, "Jerusalem
And did those feet in ancient time
"And did those feet in ancient time" is a short poem by William Blake from the preface to his epic Milton a Poem, one of a collection of writings known as the Prophetic Books. The date on the title page of 1804 for Milton is probably when the plates were begun, but the poem was printed c. 1808...
" ("All Things Bright and Beautiful
All Things Bright and Beautiful
All Things Bright and Beautiful is an Anglican hymn, also popular with other Christian denominations.The piece can be sung to several melodies, in particular the 17th-century English melody "Royal Oak", adapted by Martin Shaw, and "Bright and Beautiful" by William Henry Monk...
" in Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl
Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl
Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl is a 1982 concert film in which the Monty Python team perform many of their greatest sketches at the Hollywood Bowl. The show also included filmed inserts which were mostly taken from two Monty Python specials, Monty Python's Fliegender Zirkus, which had been...
).
"Dead Bishop" was infamous among the Pythons for being the one sketch they could not get through live without laughing. Indeed, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and John Cleese
John Cleese
John Marwood Cleese is an English actor, comedian, writer, and film producer. He achieved success at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and as a scriptwriter and performer on The Frost Report...
can all clearly be seen barely containing their laughter when performing the sketch in the film Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl
Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl
Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl is a 1982 concert film in which the Monty Python team perform many of their greatest sketches at the Hollywood Bowl. The show also included filmed inserts which were mostly taken from two Monty Python specials, Monty Python's Fliegender Zirkus, which had been...
(1982).