John Cleese has fired back at his former Monty Python co-star Eric Idle after Idle appeared to rule out any chance of the comedy group reuniting.
Idle, 83, recently declared that Monty Python is “dead” while promoting his new book, Idle In Provence: A Brief History of Thyme.
Taking to X, Idle wrote: “Today is my publication day in the UK. I hope you like and enjoy the book I spent five years on. That’s what I’m doing.”
He then added: “Python is dead.”
Today is my publication day in the UK. I hope you like and enjoy the book I spent five years on. That’s what I’m doing. Python is dead.
— Eric Idle (@EricIdle) September 10, 2026
Idle has also been responding to fans asking about the possibility of one final reunion with Cleese, Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam.
When one fan called for “one last hurrah” with his former co-stars, Idle replied: “No thanks.”
He was also asked about the ongoing disagreement between himself and the other members of the group.
“When you hear what caused it, you might be more sympathetic,” Idle said.
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When another fan suggested that he and Cleese should put their political differences aside, Idle replied: “Unfortunately it’s much worse than that, but I’m not going to say as it’s very boring.”
Idle was then asked whether he would consider making another Monty Python show with Palin and Gilliam, without Cleese.
His response was simply: “No.”
Cleese has now responded to some of Idle’s recent comments, including his remarks about the money made from Spamalot, the musical based on Monty Python and the Holy Grail.
In a recent interview with The Daily Telegraph, Idle claimed he had more business sense than some of his former co-stars.
“I think I have more business sense. I think they’re not very good at it, a lot of them,” he said.
Idle also addressed Cleese’s previous claim that the pair had “always loathed and despised each other”.
“I think it might be what he secretly feels,” Idle said.
Responding on X, Cleese accused Idle of once again complaining about the royalties received from Spamalot.
He then appeared to take a direct swipe at his former co-star's earnings from the show.
“Bearing [in] mind that Eric has made at least 16 million dollars from the show, while Michael, Terry, Graham and I made just over a million each for writing ALL the iconic comedy scenes, maybe the gratitude should be coming in the other direction,” Cleese wrote.
Monty Python was formed in 1969 and became one of the most influential comedy groups of all time through Monty Python’s Flying Circus and films including Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Life of Brian.
The group has reunited several times over the years, most recently for a series of live shows in London in 2014.
For now, however, Idle appears to have firmly ruled out another reunion.
