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John Cleese
Education & Learning
English actor and comedian John Cleese co‑founded Monty Python, co‑wrote Fawlty Towers, and is known for film, television, and satirical work.
Biography
John Marwood Cleese (born 27 October 1939) is an English actor and comedian who emerged from the Cambridge Footlights in the 1960s. He first achieved success at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and as a scriptwriter and performer on The Frost Report (1966–1967), then co‑founded Monty Python and starred in Monty Python's Flying Circus and the group's films, including Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), Life of Brian (1979), and The Meaning of Life (1983).
With his first wife Connie Booth he co‑wrote and starred in the television sitcom Fawlty Towers as Basil Fawlty, winning the 1980 British Academy Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance. He wrote and starred in A Fish Called Wanda (1988) and has appeared in films such as Time Bandits, Clockwise, and others, plus franchise roles in James Bond films, the Harry Potter films, and the Shrek series. He cofounded the production company Video Arts, helped produce The Secret Policeman's Ball benefit shows, and declined a 1999 offer from the Liberal Democrats to nominate him for a life peerage.
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Books by John Cleese
Professor at large
Professor at Large collects talks, essays, and lectures from John Cleese's role as professor-at-large at Cornell University. The book presents a view of his pursuit of intellectual discovery across a range of topics.