
Acting
Michael Palin
Biography
Michael Edward Palin, CBE FRGS (born 5 May 1943) 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. Palin wrote most of his comedic material with Terry Jones. Before Monty Python, they had worked on other shows such as The Ken Dodd Show, The Frost Report and Do Not Adjust Your Set. Palin appeared in some of the most famous Python sketches, including "Argument Clinic", "Dead Parrot", "The Lumberjack Song", and "The Spanish Inquisition". Palin continued to work with Jones after Python, co-writing Ripping Yarns. He has also appeared in several films directed by fellow Python Terry Gilliam and made notable appearances in other films such as A Fish Called Wanda, for which he won the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role. In a 2005 poll to find The Comedian's Comedian, he was voted the 30th favourite by fellow comedians and comedy insiders. After Python, he began a new career as a travel writer and travel documentarian. His journeys have taken him across the world, including the North and South Poles, the Sahara desert, the Himalayas and, most recently, Eastern Europe. In 2000 Palin was honoured as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for his services to television.
Movies with Michael Palin

Monty Python and the Holy Grail
1975

The Magic Faraway Tree
2026

Brazil
1985

Life of Brian
1979

Arthur Christmas
2011

A Fish Called Wanda
1988

The Witches
1990

Absolutely Anything
2015

The Death of Stalin
2017

Time Bandits
1981

David Attenborough's 100 Years on Planet Earth
2026

Jabberwocky
1977

Monty Python's The Meaning of Life
1983

Fierce Creatures
1997

The Missionary
1982

The Willows in Winter
1996

The Wind in the Willows
1995

Concert for George
2003

And Now for Something Completely Different
1971

Joke
2026

50 Films to See Before You Die
2006

Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl
1982

What Is Brazil?
2008

The Wipers Times
2013

The Academy of Armando
2025

The Wind in the Willows
1996

Attenborough at 90
2016

Hitler: The Comedy Years
2007

A Private Function
1984

The Secret Life of Brian
2007

American Friends
1991

Monty Python: Live at Aspen
1998

Jeepers Creepers
2020

The Secret Policeman's Ball
2012

The Crimson Permanent Assurance
1983

Remember the Secret Policeman's Ball?
2004

Monty Python: The Meaning of Live
2014

Monty Python Live (Mostly)
2014

Innes Lloyd: The Producer
2025

Generation '66
2016

The Fringe, Fame and Me
2022

The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash
1978

An Accidental Studio
2019

The Grand Knockout Tournament
1987

50 Years of BBC Two Comedy
2014

Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute
1988

Making Qi
2011

What the Pythons Did Next...
2007

Anatomy of a Liar
2012

How to Irritate People
1969
Life Of Brian Screenplay
2008

The Secret Policeman's Other Ball
1982

The Movie Life of George
1989

Fawlty Towers: Re-Opened
2009

Life of Python
1990

Monty Python Conquers America
2008

The Unknown Peter Sellers
2000

Robbie the Reindeer in Close Encounters of the Herd Kind
2007

A Liar's Autobiography: The Untrue Story of Monty Python's Graham Chapman
2012

Across the Andes by Frog
1977

Tracey Ullman: A Class Act
1993

Roger of the Raj
1979

Pleasure at Her Majesty's
1976

Euroshow '71: May Day Special
1971

Henry Cleans Up
1974

Rik Mayall: Lord of Misrule
2014

Murder at Moorstones Manor
1977

The Roots of Monty Python
2005

Monty Python: Before the Flying Circus
2008

Monty Python's Flying Circus—Terry Jones' Personal Best
2006

Monty Python's Flying Circus—John Cleese's Personal Best
2006

Not the Messiah (He's a Very Naughty Boy)
2010

The Pythons: Somewhere in Tunisia, Circa A.D. 1979
1979

The Meaning of Monty Python
2013

Monty Python in Aberystwyth
2009

The Secret Policeman’s Biggest Ball
1989

Three Men in a Boat
1975

Monty Python: And Now for Something Rather Similar
2014

Produced by George Martin
2012

The Best of Monty Python's Flying Circus Volume 3
2004

Dame Maggie Smith - A Celebration
2024

Golden Gordon
1979

The Quest for the Holy Grail Locations
2001

Monty Python's Best Bits Celebrated
2021

Monty Python's Flying Circus—Terry Gilliam's Personal Best
2006

The Secret Policeman's Ball
1979

Monty Python's Flying Circus—Graham Chapman's Personal Best
2006
Meridian: The First Ten Minutes
1993

The Philosophers' Football Match
1972

Peter Sellers: A State of Comic Ecstasy
2020

Monty Python & the Holy Grail Location Report
1974

Monty Python: Almost the Truth (The Lawyer's Cut) - Theatrical Release
2010
John Cleese's First Farewell Performance
1988

Python at 50: Silly Talks and Holy Grails
2019

Parrot Sketch Not Included: Twenty Years of Monty Python
1989

Marty Feldman: Six Degrees of Separation
2008

Tomkinson's Schooldays
1976

Monty Python's Flying Circus—Eric Idle's Personal Best
2006

Spike Milligan I told you I was ill... A live tribute
2002

The Seventh Python
2008

The Dress
1984

The Monty Python Story
1999

Frost on Sketch Shows
2013

Best Sellers or: Peter Sellers and 'Dr. Strangelove'
2004

The Great Birds Eye Peas Relaunch 1971
1971

Life on Air: David Attenborough's 50 Years in Television
2002

The Meaning of Making 'The Meaning of Life'
2003

The Box
1981

Whinfrey's Last Case
1979

Monty Python's Flying Circus—Graham Chapman's Personal Best
2006

John Peel's Record Box
2005

The Broken Bottle
1977

Isadora Duncan, the Biggest Dancer in the World
1966

Spike Milligan: Love, Light and Peace
2014
Sir David Attenborough and Sir Michael Palin in Conversation
2020

Viz: The Documentary
1990

Is This a Record?
1973

Monty Python: From Spam to Sperm
1999

The Best of Monty Python's Flying Circus Volume 2
2004

Alexander Armstrong's Real Ripping Yarns
2014

The Curse of the Claw
1977

The Best of Monty Python's Flying Circus Volume 1
2004

Fawlty Towers: 50 Years of Laughs
2023

Comedians Do It On Stage
1986

Monty Python: Who's There?
1970

Michael Palin: A Life on Screen
2018

Michael Palin's Quest for Artemisia
2015

Escape from Stalag Luft 112B
1977

New Tales from Around the World in 80 Days
2014

The Testing of Eric Olthwaite
1977

Monty Python's Flying Circus—Michael Palin's Personal Best
2006

Ending It All
1970

Michael Palin In Wyeth's World
2013

Close-Up Toothpaste Relaunch

Timewatch: The Last Day of World War One
2008

Monty Python: 30th Anniversary Sketches
1999

Comic Roots: Michael Palin
1983

Michael Palin & the Mystery of Hammershøi
2005

When Bruce Springsteen Came to Britain
2025
How To Make It In Comedy
2024

Palin on Redpath
1997

Get Up and Go: The Making of 'The Rutles'
2008

Monty Python In The Netherlands
1973

Around the World in 20 Years
2008

The Art Of Travel With Michael Palin
1989

Rabbit Ears - Jack and the Beanstalk
1991
The First Night of Meridian
1993

Inside Shabby Road: The Music of 'The Rutles'
2008

Final Ascent: The Legend of Hamish MacInnes
2019

Not The Messiah: The Road To Albert Hall
2010

Monty Python: Pythonland
1999

The New Incomplete And Utter History Of Everything
2014
The Phoenix: A Century of Cinema
2011

Michael Palin and the Ladies Who Loved Matisse
2003
TV Shows with Michael Palin

The Simpsons
1989

The Graham Norton Show
2007

Saturday Night Live
1975

Wogan
1982

The One Show
2006

Late Night with Conan O'Brien
1993

Parkinson
1998

Les Rendez-vous du dimanche
1975

The Jonathan Ross Show
2011

Going Live!
1987

Remembers…
2022
The Alan Titchmarsh Show
2007
Film '72
1971

Small Prophets
2026

Monty Python's Flying Circus
1969

Pebble Mill at One
1972

Staged
2020

Legends
2006

ZULU Comedy Galla
2010

The Frank Skinner Show
1995
Daytime Live
1987

Vanity Fair
2018

The Secret Policeman's Ball
1976

Perspectives
2011

Friday Night, Saturday Morning
1979

Ripping Yarns
1976
Friday People
1985

G.B.H.
1991

Remember Me
2014

Michael Palin in Nigeria
2024
Clive Anderson All Talk
1996

Great Railway Journeys
1980

Clangers
2015

Worzel Gummidge
2019

Monty Python's Best Bits (Mostly)
2014

Travels with Palin
1980

A Life on Screen
2014

Movie Connections
2007

Michael Palin: Around the World in 80 Days
1989

Monty Python: Almost the Truth (The Lawyer's Cut)
2009
Full House
1972

Do Not Adjust Your Set
1967

David Frost Vs
2025

Pole to Pole
1992
Frost on Sunday
1968

Omnibus Presents Comic Relief
1986

Monty Python's Personal Best
2006
A Series of Bird's
1967

Himalaya with Michael Palin
2004
Artsnight
2015

The Complete and Utter History of Britain
1969

Monty Python's Fliegender Zirkus
1972

Full Circle with Michael Palin
1997
Fantasy World Cup
1998

Michael Palin: Travels of a Lifetime
2020

Michael Palin's New Europe
2007

Sahara with Michael Palin
2002

Michael Palin in North Korea
2018
Twice a Fortnight
1967

Michael Palin's Hemingway Adventure
1999

Brazil with Michael Palin
2012

The Secret Life of Trees
2025

Michael Palin: The Art of Travel
1989

Michael Palin in Venezuela
2025

Michael Palin: Into Iraq
2022