Monty Python's Big Red Book

by Graham Chapman

Not that big...or particularly red. Pages of silliness based on the original television series.

Genres: Humor, Comedy, Fiction, Tv

64 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1972

About the author

Graham Chapman was an English comedian, actor, writer, physician and one of the six members of the Monty Python comedy troupe. He was also the lead actor in their two narrative films, playing King Arthur in Monty Python and the Holy Grail and the title character in Monty Python's Life of Brian.

Reviews

[Manny · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the Medical Quiz:

A woman's breasts are full of

a) milk

b) fun

c) naughty secrets

My helpful piece of advice for the day: if you didn't find the above amusing, you probably won't like the rest of Monty Python's Big Red Book either.

[Ian Wood · Rating 3 out of 5]

‘Monty Python’s Big Red Book’ was probably the first ever TV tie-in cash in Christmas book. The material is drawn from the first two series of ‘Monty Python’s Flying Circus’ but great TV sketch material does not make for a great book.

However ‘Monty Python’s Big Red Book’ is served better than most comedy books in that it has Terry Gilliam and his perfect graphic design to make it look absolutely fantastic. And so this book should be ideal for anyone wanting a beautiful looking book to remind them of the Python’s, anyone wanting a book to capture the humour of the Pythons would be better served by buying the scripts to ‘Monty Python’s Flying Circus’ which have also been published.

[The Hanged Man · Rating 5 out of 5]

[David Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everyone always forgets the books. A lot of people forget the albums but everyone always forgets the books. I watched five hours of a documentary series about Monty Python on Netflix recently and it spoke about the shows and the movies a lot, touched on the live shows and very briefly mentioned the albums. But the books were ignored completely, which is a huge shame.

For a lot of us growing up post-Python but pre-netflix (or even DVD's), the books were an essential part of python. They were accessible and could be read over and over again.

The Big Red Book is technically a TV tie-in and does contain material that appeared in the earlier episodes of Flying Circus, but there is more than enough original material to ensure it's not just repetition for those who have the script books. The entire team took the opportunity to use ideas which only worked in print and the results are worthy of the Python name. Eric Idle acted as editor and there's a lot of his wordy style although Palin's hand is clearly at work in a lot of places and Gilliam is given free reign to return to his comic book days as he provides the visual style.

The Big Red Book is python at its finest and still holds up after all these years.

[Bas · Rating 4 out of 5]

While it's not actually red and the being big is subject to discussion (big pages versus not a lot of pages) and I'm unsure if it can actually be called a book, it IS very silly.

Monty Python's Big Red Book is basically a collection of various short, foolish things. There are riddles, trivia (did you know the human penis can actually be used for peeing too?), a lot of nude ladies (with naughty bits), poems and songs (tiddle tiddle bing bang bong), ridiculous illustrations by Terry Gilliam and other silly parts like a page dedicated to goats.

A lot of the material is original while some of it is derictly transcripted from Flying Circus and some of it is at least based on the sketches from the TV show.

That said Flying Circus fans are obviously the intended audience and whoever watched and loved it should also be able to enjoy the Big Red Book (alternatively those who didn't like, won't like).

As an aside for those who like the Big Red Book: you should also check out Bert Fegg's Nasty Book for Boys and Girls by Jones and Palin which is basically more of the same, just nastier and with exclusively original material.

[Shelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loony fun :)

[Darcy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had originally purchased this book when it came out in 1971. Over the years I had lost track of it so was quite pleased to discover a hardcover copy in a used book store. While not an expansive read (You can get through the whole thing in about 45 minutes or so) and mainly composed of recycled material from the series, it is still Monty Python and what more can you want?

There is not a word wasted here as even the adverts are pythonesque. There are some naughty bits. And there are some more naughty bits. (And by naughty, I mean by the standards of the time. Pretty tame by what we are currently used to). There are also quite a few bits that made me chortle and even laugh out loud. That is what a book by Monty Python is supposed to do. Even with the recycling, it is still pretty darn funny.

You are only going to find used copies of this book, but if you are a Python fan, the small cash outlay will be worthwhile.

[Christopher Carpenter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book over and over again when I was a teenage comedy nerd, and I'm happy to say that it is still funny after all these years. Is it ambitious? No. But as a humorous picture book, that partially relies on already existing material, it gets the job done. As an extra bonus, it has the design sensibilities of Terry Gilliam all over it, and is really quite beautiful.

[Nicole Baratta]

Monty Python's Big Red Book (1971)

[Iain Watson]

Monty Pythons Big Red Book by

[Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

First Python book I ever read when I was 15 back at the end of the seventies . Very funny bit s and pictures , wish I still had it .

[Shane C · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is really unique!!

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too many references I didn’t get.

[Sanjay Gupta · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read this book over five times. Each time I have laughed out loud as much the last. I really love this book, it's full of the traditional Monty Python humour you would expect, but it also has a lot more besides.

Edited and compiled by Eric Idle among the new material not performed on TV or film are two pages on 'Why Accountancy is not boring', 'The World Encyclopaedia of Carnal Knowledge' a page exclusively for Goats, plus a children's page and lots of naughty bits. I love this book, and I can highly recommend it. One warning, it is not very PC and some people and goats may be easily offended. Buy it now!!

[Joe Besserfan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've had this book for many years. I think I got it for Christmas back when it first came out. I recently dusted it off because I'm currently reading (and really digging) Eric Idol's autobiography. "Monty Python's Big red Book" is very silly but it's also a lot of fun. My copy is pretty beat up. I guess we read it a lot back then.

[Eitan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very much reads and looks like a Monty Python book. I think I like the humor better in sketch or movie form- not all of the jokes land here and often they’re more amusing than flat out funny, but it’s still good. Very very British.

(7/10)

[Jerry Capote · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book when it came out, and I've just revisited it nearly 50 years later. In my opinion, some things have aged and probably not PC as they should be, but still nevertheless brilliantly funny!! I loved it both times I've read it!!

[The Bauchler · Rating 4 out of 5]

I should probably shouldn't give this a 4* as I frankly can't remember a single thing that was in it, but I was such a Python fan when I read it I would have certainly given it a 5*

I'm sure If I got my hands on a copy it would all come flooding back to me.

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've owned this book since its first printing in the mid-70s. We pulled it off the shelf for a re-read last year and it's still a riot. Hope you enjoy it.