The First Time I Thought I’d Die Laughing Watching a Film
How I feared for my life during my first viewing of Monty Python and the Holy Grail
In the very first episode of Monty Python’s Flying Circus, there’s a hilarious sketch involving a man who writes the funniest joke in the world, and as a consequence dies laughing. When I discovered Monty Python around the age of twelve or so, I ought to have realised this was a harbinger of things to come. Sure enough, a few years later, during my first viewing of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, I laughed so much, I began to genuinely wonder if it really was possible to die laughing.
I knew I was in trouble the moment the opening credits started rolling. The faux-Swedish subtitles gradually degenerated into spectacularly silly ramblings about “the majestic moose, “suggestive moose poses”, “moose trained to mix concrete and fill out complicated insurance forms”, and many other ludicrous moose related credits. The disclaimer is signed Richard Nixon, then subtitles appear apologising for the fault in the subtitles, saying those responsible have been sacked. This happens a couple of times, as moose credits keep recurring. Then after increasingly ridiculous apologies, (“The directors of the firm hired to continue the credits after the other people had been sacked, wish it to be known…
