Pythonesque is a tribute to Monty Pythons Flying Circus, forty years after it first appeared on television.The show is ostensibly based upon the life story of Graham Chapman. The premise is that after he died of cancer he was kept waiting outside the gates of heaven while his career was reviewed to see if he was worthy of entering heaven. We see his career, and that of the other Pythons, developing from their early days at Cambridge and Oxford, in a series of humorous sketches.Initially it looked as though the show would just be a rehash of the original sketches but in most cases they were rewritten so that they appeared fresh, although they were still clearly related to their originals. For example, the four Yorkshiremen sketch was changed so that they were talking about TV in the 60s, rather than growing up in the 30s. Eric Idles rant about holidays (Watneys Red Barrel etc.) was changed to theatres. Other topics covered included David Frost, Canadian Mounties, the Spanish Inquisition, Monty Python And The Holy Grail and, of course, Life Of Brian. It was this last film which presented Chapman with the most difficulty in getting in to heaven he even had a dead pope opposing him.Very funny and well worth seeing, for anyone whos ever seen and liked any Monty Python or has a sense of humour.
