Original artwork, not a still
The announcer's link (John Cleese), Monty Python's Flying Circus
And now for something completely different.
— Monty Python's Flying Circus ‧ 1969
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
It sounds like a normal television link and works as the show's mission statement: no sketch has a proper ending, so the next one simply starts. Python turned a stock phrase of British continuity announcers into the comedy group's signature, and it is still how people announce a sharp change of topic, from conference slides to news bulletins.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for Monty Python's Flying CircusShow the scene
In Monty Python's Flying Circus, this is the link line of the BBC continuity announcer, a running gag in which an announcer delivers it from the most unexpected places to join one sketch to the next. The announcer first appears in the episode "Sex and Violence" played by Eric Idle, and thereafter by John Cleese, whose version became the best known. As the series went on the line was shortened to "And now". It became the title of the 1971 film spinoff, released on 28 September in the UK, which remade favourite sketches from the first two series for an American audience.
Sources (2)
- Monty Python Wiki: BBC continuity announcerIntroReference checked
- Monty Python Wiki: And Now for Something Completely DifferentIntroReference checked
Context reviewed
