An English comedian, actor, writer, and television host with the name of Michael Palin. He is Mary Rachel Ovey and Edward Moreton Palin’s second child. Lieutenant-Colonel Richard Lockhart Ovey was his grandpa. He attended the Shrewsbury School before earning a history degree from Brasenose College in Oxford. He met Terry Jones and Robert Hewison while attending college. Jones and Palin formed a partnership. They worked together to write the lyrics for “Diversions,” an album by Barry Booth. Along with other team members, the duo contributed writing to The Frost Report. For “The Late Show,” “A Series of Birds,” “Twice a Fortnight,” the children’s comedy program “Do Not Adjust Your Set,” and “The Complete and Utter History of Britain,” the Palin-Jones combination collaborated. The pair wrote “The Lumberjack Song,” “Every Sperm is Sacred,” and “Spam,” among other tunes. Following “Around the World in 80 Days,” he hosted seven further episodes of the BBC travel series. He advocated for sustainable transportation, especially in cities. He was honored with two trains. He is well-known for his Monty Python roles. He received the BAFTA Award for “A Fish Called WandaBest “‘s Actor in a Supporting Role.
Early Childhood & Life
In Broomhill, Sheffield, West Riding of Yorkshire, England, on May 5, 1943, Palin was born. He is Mary Rachel Ovey and Edward Moreton Palin’s second child. His father was an engineer who was employed by a steel company. High Sheriff of Oxfordshire was his grandfather, Lieutenant-Colonel Richard Lockhart Ovey. He began his studies at Sheffield’s Birkdale Preparatory School before transferring to Shrewsbury School. His sister Angela, who was nine years older than him, was close to him.
Work and Later Life
Palin enrolled at Oxford’s Brasenose College in 1962 to pursue a history degree. He collaborated on a comic act for Christmas with his classmate Robert Hewison. Terry Jones, a classmate, witnessed the performance and decided to join them.
After earning his degree in 1965, he went on to broadcast “Now!,” a comedy-pop program for Television Wales and the West. He got in touch with Terry Jones, and they started working as a writing team. For several BBC shows, including The Ken Dodd Show, The Billy Cotton Band Show, and The Illustrated Weekly Hudd, Palin and Jones created comedic scripts. They worked together to write the lyrics for “Diversions,” an album by Barry Booth.
Along with fellow team members Frank Muir, Barry Cryer, Marty Feldman, Ronnie Barker, Ronnie Corbett, Dick Vosburgh, Graham Chapman, John Cleese, and Eric Idle, they contributed writing to “The Frost Report.” For “The Late Show” and “A Series of Bird’s,” the Palin-Jones combo contributed writing. On the children’s comedy program “Do Not Adjust Your Set” and “Twice a Fortnight,” they contributed as writers and actors.
Palin was given the opportunity to appear in “How to Irritate People” alongside Graham Chapman and Tim Brooke-Taylor by John Cleese. Jones and Palin collaborated on the writing of “The Complete and Utter History of Britain.”
With Jones, he started the “Spanish Inquisition skit” and co-wrote several more sketches. The pair wrote “The Lumberjack Song,” “Every Sperm is Sacred,” and “Spam,” among other tunes. Decomposing Composers and Finland are two of his solo musical pieces.
In the 1977 movie “Jabberwocky,” directed by Terry Gilliam, he played Dennis the Peasant. Additionally, he made an appearance in “All You Need Is Cash” as Eric Manchester, the Rutles’ publicity agent. Together with Terry Gilliam, Palin co-wrote the 1980 movie “Time Bandits,” which she also starred in. He authored and acted in “The Missionary” two years later. He plays the Reverend Charles Fortescue with Maggie Smith.
He traveled by rail across the UK, through Manchester, York, Newcastle upon Tyne, Edinburgh, and Inverness, from London to Kyle of Lochalsh for the 1980 BBC television series “Great Railway Journeys of the World.” In the Terry Jones and Palin-starring movie “The Wind in the Willows,” Palin had a minor role. He also had an appearance alongside John Cleese in the film “The Human Face.”
He traveled nearly along the route outlined in the renowned Jules Verne narrative without using an airplane in 1989 when he presented the first episode of the BBC travel series “Around the World in 80 Days.” “Pole to Pole,” “Full Circle with Michael Palin,” “Michael Palin’s Hemingway Adventure,” “Sahara with Michael Palin,” “Himalaya with Michael Palin,” “Michael Palin’s New Europe,” and “Brazil with Michael Palin” are some of his BBC travel programs.
He participated as both a producer and an actor in the 1991 movie “American Friends,” which was based on a true story from the life of his great-grandfather, an Oxford fellow at St. John’s College. He visited Ireland in 1994 for the “Derry to Kerry” television series. He made an effort to find Brita Gallagher, his great-grandmother, who emigrated from Ireland 150 years ago during the Great Famine.
Bigger Works of Michael Palin
Palin portrayed a variety of characters in Monty Python, including the lumberjack from the Lumberjack Song, the seller of Dead Parrots, the owner of a Cheese Shop, a Postal Clerk, and stupid characters like Arthur Putey and Mr. Anchovy. He backed efforts such as the Campaign for Better Transport and others to promote sustainable transportation, especially in metropolitan areas. Since 1986, he has served as the campaign’s president.
Recognition & Achievements
Palin played the animal-loving assassin Ken Pile in the comedy movie “A Fish Called Wanda,” which was released in 1988. He earned the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. His contributions to television drama and travel documentaries earned him the Commander of the Order of the British Empire, or CBE, in the 2000 Queen’s Millennium Honors List.
He won the James Joyce Award from the Dublin Literary and Historical Society in 2008. He received the Royal Scottish Geographical Society’s Livingstone Medal the following year. He was named a BAFTA fellow in 2013, which is the organization’s highest honor. The Royal Canadian Geographical Society awarded him a gold medal in recognition of his contributions to geography.
Personal Legacy & Life
He initially met Helen Gibbins seven years previously while on vacation in Southwold, Suffolk, and they were married in 1966. The couple has a grandson as well as three children. In honor of Michael Palin’s accomplishments as a traveler, Virgin Trains’ high-speed Super Voyager and “National Express East Anglia” both named British Rail Class 153 after him.
Estimated Net Worth
British travel presenter and comedian Michael Palin has a fortune of $25 million. Michael Palin acquired his wealth through his work as an actor, comedian (mostly with Monty Python), and writer. Prior to making a name for himself as a reputable travel host, Palin was a well-known actor in the absurdist comic troupe Monty Python.
Trivia
If they had not arrived early and boarded an earlier train, this writer-comedian and his group would have been on one of the trains involved in the Clapham Junction rail accident.