View source for John Cleese

{{Short description|English comedian and actor (born 1939)}}
{{Pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2023}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = John Cleese
| image              = John Cleese in 2024 - 54020963437.jpg
| caption            = Cleese in 2024
| birth_name         = John Marwood Cleese
| birth_date         = {{birth date and age|df=y|1939|10|27}}
| birth_place        = [[Weston-super-Mare]], Somerset, England
| landscape          = yes
| alt                = Cleese with a microphone
| alma_mater         = [[Downing College, Cambridge]]
| occupation         = {{hlist|Actor|comedian|screenwriter|producer|presenter}}
| years_active       = 1961–present
| spouse             = {{plainlist|
* {{marriage|[[Connie Booth]]|1968|1978|end=div}}
* {{marriage|[[Barbara Trentham]]|1981|1990|end=div}}
* {{marriage|[[Alyce Cleese|Alyce Eichelberger]]|1992|2008|end=div}}
* {{marriage|Jennifer Wade|2012}}
}}
| children           = 2
| website            = {{URL|johncleese.com}}
}}

'''John Marwood Cleese''' ({{IPAc-en|'|k|l|iː|z}} {{respell|KLEEZ}}; born 27 October 1939) is an English actor, comedian, screenwriter, producer, and [[Television presenter|presenter]]. Emerging from the [[Footlights|Cambridge Footlights]] in the 1960s, he first achieved success at the [[Edinburgh Festival Fringe]] and as a scriptwriter and performer on ''[[The Frost Report]]''. In the late 1960s, he cofounded [[Monty Python]], the comedy troupe responsible for the [[sketch show]] ''[[Monty Python's Flying Circus]].'' Along with his Python costars [[Graham Chapman]], [[Terry Gilliam]], [[Eric Idle]], [[Terry Jones]] and [[Michael Palin]], Cleese starred in Monty Python films, which include ''[[Monty Python and the Holy Grail]]'' (1975), ''[[Monty Python's Life of Brian|Life of Brian]]'' (1979), and ''[[Monty Python's The Meaning of Life|The Meaning of Life]]'' (1983).

In the mid-1970s, Cleese and first wife [[Connie Booth]] cowrote the sitcom ''[[Fawlty Towers]]'', in which he starred as hotel owner [[Basil Fawlty]], for which he won the 1980 [[British Academy Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance]]. In 2000, the show topped the [[British Film Institute]]'s list of the [[100 Greatest British Television Programmes]], and in a 2001 [[Channel 4]] poll, Basil was ranked second on its list of the [[100 Greatest (TV series)|100 Greatest TV Characters]].

Cleese starred in and wrote the comedy film ''[[A Fish Called Wanda]]'' (1988), for which he received [[Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay|Academy Award]], [[BAFTA Award]], and [[Golden Globe Award]] nominations, and its quasi-sequel ''[[Fierce Creatures]]'' (1997). He has also starred in ''[[Time Bandits]]'' (1981), ''[[Silverado (film)|Silverado]]'' (1985), ''[[Clockwise (film)|Clockwise]]'' (1986), ''[[Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (film)|Mary Shelley's Frankenstein]]'' (1994), ''[[George of the Jungle (film)|George of the Jungle]]'' (1997), ''[[Rat Race (film)|Rat Race]]'' (2001), ''[[Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle]]'' (2003), and ''[[The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008 film)|The Day the Earth Stood Still]]'' (2008). Prominent franchise film roles of his included R and [[Q (James Bond)|Q]] in the [[James Bond films]] ''[[The World Is Not Enough]]'' (1999) and ''[[Die Another Day]]'' (2002),  [[Nearly Headless Nick]]  in ''[[Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)|Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone]]'' (2001) and ''[[Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)|Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets]]'' (2002), and the last three ''[[Shrek (franchise)|Shrek]]'' films (2004–2010). He received a [[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series]] for ''[[Cheers (TV series)|Cheers]]'' (1987) and was nominated for ''[[3rd Rock from the Sun]]'' (1998) and ''[[Will & Grace]]'' (2004).

Cleese has specialised in political and religious [[satire]],<ref name="Reason 2022">{{cite magazine |last=Gillespie |first=Nick |date=1 August 2022 |title=John Cleese's War on Wokeism |url=https://reason.com/video/2022/08/01/john-cleeses-war-on-wokeism/ |url-status=live |magazine=[[Reason (magazine)|Reason]] |publisher=[[Reason Foundation]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220802072439/https://reason.com/video/2022/08/01/john-cleeses-war-on-wokeism/ |archive-date=2 August 2022 |access-date=3 August 2022}}</ref> [[black comedy]], [[sketch comedy]], and [[surreal humour]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Rowan |first1=Terry |title=The Kings & Queens of Hollywood Comedy |date=2017 |publisher=Lulu |page=201}}</ref> He was ranked the second best comedian ever in a 2005 Channel 4 poll of fellow comedians.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/4141019.stm|work=[[BBC News]]|title=Cook voted 'comedians' comedian'|date=2 January 2005 |access-date=22 July 2022}}</ref> He cofounded [[Video Arts]], a production company making entertaining training films as well as ''[[The Secret Policeman's Ball]]'' benefit shows to raise funds for the human rights organisation [[Amnesty International]]. Formerly a staunch supporter of the [[Liberal Democrats (UK)|Liberal Democrats]], in 1999, he turned down an offer from the party to nominate him for a [[life peer]]age.

== Early life and education ==
Cleese was born in [[Weston-super-Mare]], [[Somerset]], England, the only child of Reginald Francis Cleese (1893–1972), an insurance salesman, and his wife Muriel Evelyn (''née'' Cross, 1899–2000), the daughter of an auctioneer.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.filmreference.com/film/20/John-Cleese.html |title=John Cleese Biography (1939–) |website=Film Reference |access-date=14 June 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100204051924/http://www.filmreference.com/film/20/John-Cleese.html |archive-date=4 February 2010 }}</ref> His family's surname was originally Cheese, but his father had thought it was embarrassing and used the name Cleese when he enlisted in the [[British Army|Army]] during the [[First World War]]; he changed it officially by [[Deed poll#Use for changing name|deed poll]] in 1923.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/32864/page/6398|title=Reginald Francis Cleese|work=[[The London Gazette]]|date=21 September 1923|issue=32864|page=6398}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Stadlen |first=Matthew |title=John Cleese says: 'I've finally found true love—in a fish and three cats' |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/relationships/11157618/John-Cleese-says-Ive-finally-found-true-love-in-a-fish-and-three-cats.html |access-date=11 November 2015 |work=The Daily Telegraph |date=13 October 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151105021521/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/relationships/11157618/John-Cleese-says-Ive-finally-found-true-love-in-a-fish-and-three-cats.html |archive-date=5 November 2015 }}</ref> As a child, Cleese supported [[Bristol City F.C.|Bristol City]] and [[Somerset County Cricket Club]].<ref>{{cite news |first1=Amy |last1=Raphael |title=Ross and Brand were astoundingly tasteless |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2008/nov/29/john-cleese-interview |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |location=London, England|date=29 November 2008 |access-date=23 November 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129084524/http://www.theguardian.com/culture/2008/nov/29/john-cleese-interview |archive-date=29 November 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The Bristol Funny List: 50 of the city's funniest men and women |url=https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/bristol-funny-list-50-citys-1582 |website=Bristol Live |access-date=17 July 2018|date=18 February 2017 }}</ref> Cleese was educated at St Peter's Preparatory School,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/culture/comedy/article/and-now-for-something-completely-silly-7g6pg0pxpgw|title=And now for something completely silly|website=[[The Times]]|access-date=30 March 2022|last1=Cleese |first1=John }}</ref> paid for by money his mother had inherited,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://wtfpod.libsyn.com/episode-961-john-cleese|title=WTF with Marc Maron Podcast: Episode 961—John Cleese|website=wtfpod.libsyn.com|access-date=22 October 2018}}</ref> where he received a prize for [[English studies|English]] and did well at [[cricket (sport)|cricket]] and [[boxing]]. When he was 13, he was awarded an [[exhibition (scholarship)|exhibition]] at [[Clifton College]], an [[English public school]] in Bristol. By that age, he was more than 6 feet (1.83 m) tall.<ref name="WTTW">{{cite news |title=John Cleese: 'I Can Take Almost Nothing Seriously' |url=https://news.wttw.com/2015/12/30/john-cleese-i-can-take-almost-nothing-seriously |access-date=19 March 2020 |agency=WTTW}}</ref>

{{Quote box
| width = 27%
| bgcolor = #FFFFF0
| align = right
| quote = The biggest influence was ''[[The Goon Show]]''. Kids were devoted to it. It was written by [[Spike Milligan]]. It also had [[Peter Sellers]] in it, who of course is the greatest voice man of all time. In the morning, we'd be at school and we'd discuss the whole thing and rehash the jokes and talk about it. We were obsessed with it.
| source = —Cleese on his greatest comedic influence growing up, 1950s BBC Radio comedy ''The Goon Show''.<ref>{{cite news |title=John Cleese on The Goon Show, His Earliest Comedy Influence |url=https://www.vulture.com/2018/07/talking-peter-sellers-and-the-goon-show-with-john-cleese.html |access-date=10 September 2019 |work=Vulture}}</ref>
}}

Cleese allegedly defaced the school grounds, as a prank, by painting footprints to suggest that the statue of [[Field Marshal]] [[Douglas Haig, 1st Earl Haig|Earl Haig]] had left its plinth and gone to the toilet.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sandiegomag.com/media/San-Diego-Magazine/March-2006/Silly-Walks-and-Dead-Parrots/ |title=San Diego Magazine, Silly Walks and Dead Parrots |website=Sandiegomag.com |access-date=14 June 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928021220/http://www.sandiegomag.com/media/San-Diego-Magazine/March-2006/Silly-Walks-and-Dead-Parrots/ |archive-date=28 September 2007}}</ref> Cleese played cricket in the First XI and did well academically, passing eight [[GCE Ordinary Level|O-Levels]] and three [[GCE Advanced Level|A-Levels]] in mathematics, physics and chemistry.<ref>{{cite web |title=John Cleese |url=http://www.cardinalfang.net/biographies/cleese_biog.html |website=Cardinal Fang's Python Site |access-date=7 May 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723052835/http://www.cardinalfang.net/biographies/cleese_biog.html |archive-date=23 July 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=John Cleese |url=http://www.leadingauthorities.com/agent/john-cleese.aspx |publisher=Leading Authorities |access-date=7 May 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100910042226/http://www.leadingauthorities.com/Agent/John-Cleese.aspx |archive-date=10 September 2010}}</ref> In his autobiography ''So, Anyway'', he says that discovering, aged 17, he had not been made a house [[prefect]] by his housemaster affected his outlook: "It was not fair and therefore it was unworthy of my respect... I believe that this moment changed my perspective on the world."<ref>{{cite book |last1=Cleese |first1=John |title=So, Anyway...: The Autobiography |date=2014 |publisher=Random House}}</ref>

Cleese could not go straight to the [[University of Cambridge]], as the ending of [[conscription in the United Kingdom|National Service]] meant there were twice the usual number of applicants for places, so he returned to his prep school for two years<ref name="fringe">{{cite book|first1=Roger|last1=Wilmut|title=From Fringe to Flying Circus: Celebrating a Unique Generation of Comedy 1960–1980|publisher=[[Methuen Publishing]]|location=North Yorkshire, England|date=1980|isbn=0-413-46950-6}}</ref> to teach science, English, geography, history, and Latin<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dailyllama.com/news/1999/llama090.html |title=John Cleese to Spend Five Years Tour As Professor at Cornell University |work=Daily Llama |date=18 January 1999 |access-date=4 April 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120326105229/http://www.dailyllama.com/news/1999/llama090.html |archive-date=26 March 2012 }}</ref> (he drew on his Latin teaching experience later for a scene in ''[[Life of Brian]]'', in which he corrects Brian's badly written Latin [[graffiti]]).<ref>Life of Brian commentary by Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam and Eric Idle</ref> He then took up a place he had won at [[Downing College, Cambridge|Downing College]], Cambridge, to read law. He also joined the [[Footlights|Cambridge Footlights]]. He recalled that he went to the [[Cambridge Guildhall]], where each university society had a stall, and went up to the Footlights stall, where he was asked if he could sing or dance. He replied "no" as he was not allowed to sing at his school because he was so bad, and if there was anything worse than his singing, it was his dancing. He was then asked "Well, what do you do?" to which he replied, "I make people laugh."<ref name="fringe" />

At the Footlights theatrical club, Cleese spent a lot of time with [[Tim Brooke-Taylor]] and [[Bill Oddie]] and met his future writing partner [[Graham Chapman]].<ref name="fringe" /> Cleese wrote extra material for the 1961 Footlights Revue ''I Thought I Saw It Move'',<ref name="fringe" /><ref name="footlights">{{cite book|first=Robert|last=Hewison|title=Footlights! A Hundred Years of Cambridge Comedy|publisher=[[Methuen Publishing|Methuen London Ltd.]]|location=London, England|date=1983|isbn=0-413-51150-2}}</ref> and was registrar for the Footlights Club during 1962. He was also in the cast of the 1962 Footlights Revue ''Double Take!''<ref name="fringe" /><ref name="footlights" /> Cleese graduated from Cambridge in 1963 with an [[British undergraduate degree classification#Upper second-class honours|upper second]]. Despite his successes on ''[[The Frost Report]]'', his father sent him cuttings from ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' offering management jobs in places such as [[Marks & Spencer]].<ref>''[[The Sunday Times]]'', 16 October 1988.</ref>

== Career ==
=== 1963–1968: Pre-Python ===
Cleese was a scriptwriter, as well as a cast member, for the 1963 [[Cambridge Footlights Revue|Footlights Revue]] ''A Clump of Plinths''.<ref name="fringe" /><ref name="footlights" /> The revue was so successful at the [[Edinburgh Festival Fringe]] that it was renamed ''[[Cambridge Footlights Revue|Cambridge Circus]]'' and taken to the [[West End Theatre|West End]] in London and then on a tour of New Zealand and Broadway, with the cast's also appearing in some of the revue's sketches on ''[[The Ed Sullivan Show]]'' in October 1964.<ref name="fringe" />

After ''Cambridge Circus'', Cleese briefly stayed in America, performing [[Broadway theatre|on]] and [[off-Broadway]]. While performing in the musical ''[[Half a Sixpence]]'',<ref name="fringe" /> Cleese met future Python [[Terry Gilliam]] as well as American actress Connie Booth, whom he married on 20 February 1968.<ref name="fringe" /> At their wedding at a Unitarian church in Manhattan, the couple attempted to ensure an absence of any theistic language. "The only moment of disappointment", Cleese recalled, "came at the very end of the service when I discovered that I'd failed to excise one particular mention of the word 'God'."<ref>Cleese, John (2014). New York: Crown Archetype, p. 318.</ref> Later, Booth became a writing partner. Cleese was soon offered work as a writer with [[BBC Radio]], where he worked on several programmes, most notably as a sketch writer for ''[[Dick Emery|The Dick Emery Show]]''. The success of the Footlights Revue led to the recording of a short series of half-hour radio programmes, called ''[[I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again]]'', which were so popular that the BBC commissioned a regular series with the same title that ran from 1965 to 1974. Cleese returned to Britain and joined the cast.<ref name="fringe" /> In many episodes, he is credited as "John Otto Cleese" (according to Jem Roberts, this may have been due to the embarrassment of his actual middle name, "Marwood").<ref>P70, The Authorised History of I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue; Jem Roberts {{ISBN|978-1-84809-132-0}}</ref>

Also in 1965, Cleese and Chapman began writing on ''[[The Frost Report]]''. The writing staff chosen for the programme consisted of a number of writers and performers who went on to make names for themselves in comedy.<ref name="BBCComedy">{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/thefrostreport/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071223081031/http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/thefrostreport/|url-status=dead|archive-date=23 December 2007|title=The Frost Report|publisher=BBC Comedy|access-date=9 July 2016}}</ref> They included co-performers from ''I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again'' and future [[The Goodies|Goodies]] [[Bill Oddie]] and [[Tim Brooke-Taylor]], and also [[Frank Muir]], [[Barry Cryer]], [[Marty Feldman]], [[Ronnie Barker]], [[Ronnie Corbett]], and [[Dick Vosburgh]] and future Python members [[Eric Idle]], [[Terry Jones]], and [[Michael Palin]].<ref name="BBCComedy"/><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2016/07/08/jimmy-gilbert-bbc-producer-who-presided-over-a-golden-age-of-lig/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/2016/07/08/jimmy-gilbert-bbc-producer-who-presided-over-a-golden-age-of-lig/ |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Jimmy Gilbert, BBC producer who presided over a golden age of light entertainment—obituary|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London|date=8 June 2016|access-date=9 July 2016}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Marty Feldman: Six Degrees of Separation |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b009pgsc |work=[[BBC Two]] |date=13 August 2011 |access-date=18 November 2015}}</ref> While working on ''The Frost Report'', the future Pythons developed the writing styles that would make their collaboration significant. Cleese's and Chapman's sketches often involved authority figures, some of whom were performed by Cleese, while Jones and Palin were both infatuated with filmed scenes that opened with idyllic countryside panoramas. Idle was one of those charged with writing [[David Frost]]'s monologue. During this period Cleese met and befriended influential British comedian [[Peter Cook]], eventually collaborating with Cook on several projects and forming a close friendship that lasted until Cook's death in 1995.<ref name="BBCComedy"/><ref>{{cite AV media |last1=Geraghty |first1=Geraldine |title=The Undiscovered Peter Cook |date=16 November 2016 |publisher=BBC |type=Film }}</ref>

It was as a performer on ''The Frost Report'' that Cleese achieved his breakthrough on British television as a comedy actor, appearing as the tall, ''upper class'' patrician figure in the classic [[Class sketch|"Class" sketch]] (screened on 7 April 1966), contrasting comically in a line-up with the shorter, ''middle class'' [[Ronnie Barker]] and the even shorter, ''working class'' [[Ronnie Corbett]]. The British Film Institute commented, "Its twinning of height and social position, combined with a minimal script, created a classic TV moment."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.screenonline.org.uk/tv/id/852164/ |title=BFI Screenonline: Frost Report, The (1966–67) |publisher=[[British Film Institute]] |access-date=21 April 2010 }}</ref> The series was so popular that in 1966 Cleese and Chapman were invited to work as writers and performers with Brooke-Taylor and Feldman on ''[[At Last the 1948 Show]]'',<ref name="fringe" /> during which time the "[[Four Yorkshiremen sketch]]" was written by all four writers/performers (the "Four Yorkshiremen" sketch is now better known as a [[Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl|Monty Python sketch]]).<ref name="BrightRoss2001">{{cite book |author1=Morris Bright |author2=Robert Ross |title=Fawlty Towers: fully booked |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AH-FAAAAIAAJ |access-date=29 September 2010 |year=2001 |publisher=BBC |isbn=978-0-563-53439-6 |page=60 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130607064408/http://books.google.com/books?id=AH-FAAAAIAAJ |archive-date=7 June 2013 }}</ref>

Cleese and Chapman also wrote episodes for the first series of ''[[Doctor in the House (TV series)|Doctor in the House]]'' (and later Cleese wrote six episodes of ''[[Doctor at Large (TV series)|Doctor at Large]]'' on his own in 1971). These series were successful, and in 1969 Cleese and Chapman were offered their very own series. However, owing to Chapman's alcoholism, Cleese found himself bearing an increasing workload in the partnership and was, therefore, unenthusiastic about doing a series with just the two of them. He had found working with Palin on ''The Frost Report'' an enjoyable experience and invited him to join the series. Palin had previously been working on ''[[Do Not Adjust Your Set]]'' with Idle and Jones, with Terry Gilliam creating the animations. The four of them had, on the back of the success of ''Do Not Adjust Your Set'', been offered a series for [[Thames Television]], which they were waiting to begin when Cleese's offer arrived. Palin agreed to work with Cleese and Chapman in the meantime, bringing with him Gilliam, Jones, and Idle.<ref>{{cite book |last1=McCall |first1=Douglas. L. |title=Monty Python: a chronological listing of the troupe's creative output, and articles and reviews about them, 1969–1989 |date=1991 |publisher=McFarland |page=1}}</ref>

=== 1969–1983: Monty Python ===
{{Main|Monty Python}}
''[[Monty Python's Flying Circus]]'' ran for four series from October 1969 to December 1974 on [[BBC Television]], though Cleese quit the show after the third. Cleese's two primary characterisations were as a sophisticate and a loony. He portrayed the former as a series of announcers, TV show hosts, and government officials (for example, "[[The Ministry of Silly Walks]]"). The latter is perhaps best represented in the "[[Cheese Shop Sketch|Cheese Shop]]" and by Cleese's [[Mr Praline]] character, the man with a [[Dead Parrot sketch|dead Norwegian Blue parrot]] and a menagerie of other animals all named "Eric". He was also known for his working class "Sergeant Major" character, who worked as a Police Sergeant, Roman Centurion, etc. Cleese also appeared during some abrupt scene changes as a radio commentator (usually outfitted in a dinner suit) where, in a rather pompous manner, he would make the formal and determined announcement "And now for something completely different", which later became the title of [[And Now For Something Completely Different|the first Monty Python film]].<ref>{{cite news |title=And Now For Something Completely Different |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/and-now-for-something-completely-different-102005497/ |access-date=20 August 2019 |work=Smithsonian}}</ref>

'''Partnership with Graham Chapman'''
{{Quote box
| width = 29%
| bgcolor = #FFFFF0
| align = right
| quote = He was the greatest sounding board I've ever had. If Graham thought something was funny, then it almost certainly was funny. You cannot believe how invaluable that is.
| source = — Cleese on Chapman in ''[[The Pythons Autobiography by The Pythons]]'' (2003).<ref>{{cite news |title=The full Monty |url=https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2003/oct/05/tvandradio |access-date=21 August 2019 |work=The Guardian}}</ref>
}}

Along with Gilliam's animations, Cleese's work with Graham Chapman provided Python with its darkest and angriest moments, and many of his characters display the seething suppressed rage that later characterised his portrayal of [[Basil Fawlty]].

Unlike Palin and Jones, Cleese and Chapman wrote together in the same room; Cleese claims that their writing partnership involved him doing most of the work, while Chapman sat back, not speaking for long periods before suddenly coming out with an idea that often elevated the sketch to a new level. A classic example of this is the "[[Dead Parrot sketch]]", envisaged by Cleese as a satire on poor customer service, which was originally to have involved a broken toaster and later a broken car (this version was actually performed and broadcast on the pre-Python special ''[[How to Irritate People]]''). It was Chapman's suggestion to change the faulty item into a dead parrot, and he also suggested that the parrot be specifically a "Norwegian Blue", giving the sketch a [[Surrealism|surreal]] air which made it far more memorable.<ref>McCabe, Bob (2005). ''The Life of Graham, The authorised biography of Graham Chapman''. pp. 90–91. London: Orion Books</ref>

Their humour often involved [[Everyman|ordinary people]] in ordinary situations behaving absurdly for no obvious reason. Like Chapman, Cleese's [[Deadpan|poker face]], clipped middle class accent, and intimidating height allowed him to appear convincingly as a variety of authority figures, such as policemen, detectives, Nazi officers or government officials, which he then proceeded to undermine. In the "[[The Ministry of Silly Walks|Ministry of Silly Walks]]" sketch (written by Palin and Jones), for example, Cleese exploits his stature as the crane-legged civil servant performing a grotesquely elaborate walk to his office. On the Silly Walks sketch, Ben Beaumont-Thomas in ''[[The Guardian]]'' writes, "Cleese is utterly deadpan as he takes the stereotypical [[Bowler hat|bowler-hatted]] political drone and ruthlessly skewers him. All the self-importance, bureaucratic inefficiency and laughable circuitousness of [[Whitehall]] is summed up in one balletic extension of his slender leg."<ref>{{cite news |title=John Cleese and Mick Jagger are wrong—Monty Python's silly walks are still hilarious |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2014/jul/01/john-cleese-mick-jagger-monty-python-silly-walks-funny |access-date=22 August 2019 |work=The Guardian}}</ref>

[[File:Monty Python Live 02-07-14 13 00 13 (14415341590).jpg|thumb|"[[Argument Clinic]]" sketch with Palin (standing) at ''[[Monty Python Live (Mostly)]]'', in 2014]]

Chapman and Cleese also specialised in sketches wherein two characters conducted highly articulate arguments over completely arbitrary subjects, such as in the "cheese shop", the "dead parrot" sketch and "[[Argument Clinic]]", where Cleese plays a stone-faced bureaucrat employed to sit behind a desk and engage people in pointless, trivial bickering.<ref>Monty Python (1989). ''The Complete Monty Python's Flying Circus: All the Words, Volume 2''. Pantheon Books. p. 86.</ref> All of these roles were opposite Palin (who Cleese often claims is his favourite Python to work with)—the comic contrast between the towering Cleese's crazed aggression and the shorter Palin's shuffling inoffensiveness is a common feature in the series. Occasionally, the typical Cleese–Palin dynamic is reversed, as in "[[Fish Licence]]", wherein Palin plays the bureaucrat with whom Cleese is trying to work.

Though ''Flying Circus'' lasted four series, by the start of series 3, Cleese was growing tired of dealing with Chapman's alcoholism. He felt, too, that the show's scripts had declined in quality. For these reasons, he became restless and decided to move on. Though he stayed for the third series, he officially left the group before the fourth season.<ref name="Split">{{cite news |title=And now for something completely difficult ... |url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2006/sep/13/theatre |access-date=21 August 2019 |work=The Guardian}}</ref> Cleese received a credit on three episodes of the fourth series which used material from these sessions, though he was officially unconnected with the fourth series. He remained friendly with the group, and all six began writing ''[[Monty Python and the Holy Grail]]''. Much of his work on ''Holy Grail'' remains widely quoted, including the [[Black Knight (Monty Python)|Black Knight]] scene.<ref>{{cite news |title=49 of Monty Python's most absurdly funny jokes and quotes |url=https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/read-this/49-of-monty-pythons-most-absurdly-funny-jokes-and-quotes/ |access-date=18 August 2019 |work=Yorkshire Post |archive-date=18 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190818192829/https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/read-this/49-of-monty-pythons-most-absurdly-funny-jokes-and-quotes/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Cleese returned to the troupe to co-write and co-star in two further Monty Python films, ''[[Monty Python's Life of Brian]]'' and ''[[Monty Python's The Meaning of Life]]''. His attack on Roman rule in ''Life of Brian''–when he asks "What have the Romans ever done for us?", before being met with a string of benefits including sanitation, roads and public order–was ranked the seventh funniest line in film in a 2002 poll.<ref name="line poll">{{cite news |title=Life of Brian wins the vote for film's best laughter line |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1385293/Life-of-Brian-wins-the-vote-for-films-best-laughter-line.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1385293/Life-of-Brian-wins-the-vote-for-films-best-laughter-line.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=19 August 2019 |newspaper=The Telegraph}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Since the last Python film (''Meaning of Life'' in 1983) Cleese has participated in various live performances with the group over the years.<ref name="Split"/>

=== 1970–1979: ''Fawlty Towers'' ===
From 1970 to 1973, Cleese served as [[rector of the University of St Andrews]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://foi.st-andrews.ac.uk/doc.jsp?id=295 |title=List of Rectors of University of St. Andrews |access-date=18 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050114000125/http://foi.st-andrews.ac.uk/doc.jsp?id=295 |archive-date=14 January 2005 }}</ref> His election proved a milestone for the university, revolutionising and modernising the post. For instance, the rector was traditionally entitled to appoint an "assessor", a deputy to sit in his place at important meetings in his absence. Cleese changed this into a position for a student, elected across campus by the student body, resulting in direct access and representation for the student body.<ref>{{cite web |title=John Cleese Biography |url=http://www.cardinalfang.net/biographies/cleese_biog.html |publisher=Cardinal Fang |access-date=8 October 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111009130013/http://www.cardinalfang.net/biographies/cleese_biog.html |archive-date=9 October 2011 }}</ref>

Around this time, Cleese worked with comedian [[Les Dawson]] on his sketch/stand-up show ''[[Sez Les]]''. The differences between the two physically (the tall, lean Cleese and the short, stout Dawson) and socially (the public school and the Cambridge-educated Cleese vs. the working class, self-educated [[Manchester|Mancunian]] Dawson) were marked, but both worked well together from series 8 onwards until the series ended in 1976.<ref>{{cite web |author=Andy Lowe |url=http://www.bubblegun.com/features/cleese.html |title=30 Things You Genuinely Never Knew About John Cleese |website=Bubblegun.com |access-date=4 April 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120422113142/http://www.bubblegun.com/features/cleese.html |archive-date=22 April 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.chortle.co.uk/correspondents/2008/01/15/6271/why_well_never_know_the_real_les_dawson |title=Why we'll never know the real Les Dawson : Correspondents 2008 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide |publisher=Chortle |date=15 January 2008 |access-date=4 April 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111105025011/http://chortle.co.uk/correspondents/2008/01/15/6271/why_well_never_know_the_real_les_dawson |archive-date=5 November 2011 }}</ref>

Cleese appeared on a single, "Superspike", with [[Bill Oddie]] and a group of UK athletes, billed the "Superspike Squad", to fund the latter's attendance at the [[1976 Summer Olympics]] in Montreal.<ref>Bradley's BRAD 7606, released 20 February 1976. A side: Superspike (Part 1), B side: Superspike (Part 2). {{YouTube|5z5h2mDNNwg|Superspike}}</ref>

Cleese starred in the low-budget spoof of the [[Sherlock Holmes]] detective series ''[[The Strange Case of the End of Civilization as We Know It]]'' (1977) as the grandson of the world's greatest consulting detective. In December 1977, Cleese appeared as a guest star on ''[[The Muppet Show]]''.<ref>{{cite book|title=Kermit Culture: Critical Perspectives on Jim Henson's Muppets|last1=Garlen|first1=Jennifer C.|last2=Graham|first2=Anissa M.|publisher=McFarland & Company|year=2009|isbn=978-0-7864-4259-1|page=[https://archive.org/details/kermitculturecri0000unse/page/218 218]|url=https://archive.org/details/kermitculturecri0000unse/page/218}}</ref> Ranked one of the best guest stars to appear on the show, Cleese was a fan of ''The Muppet Show'' and co-wrote much of the episode.<ref name="Muppet Show">{{cite news |title=The 10 best Muppet Show guests: John Cleese |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/gallery/2012/jan/22/ten-best-muppets-in-pictures |access-date=19 March 2020 |work=The Guardian}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.muppetcentral.com/guides/episodes/tms/season2/47_cleese.shtml|title=John Cleese&nbsp;– Episode 47|publisher=Muppet Central|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081229022312/http://www.muppetcentral.com/guides/episodes/tms/season2/47_cleese.shtml|archive-date=29 December 2008|url-status=live|access-date=20 December 2008}}</ref> In it he is "kidnapped" before the show begins, complains about the number of pigs, and gets roped into doing a closing number with [[Kermit the Frog]], [[Sweetums]], pigs, chickens and monsters.<ref name="Muppet Show"/> Cleese also made a [[cameo appearance]] in their 1981 film ''[[The Great Muppet Caper]]'' and won the ''[[TV Times]]'' award for Funniest Man on TV&nbsp;– 1978–79.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.savemeaticket.com/event/theatre/entertainment/john-cleese-tickets|title=John Cleese|publisher=Save me a ticket|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110409230952/http://www.savemeaticket.com/event/theatre/entertainment/john-cleese-tickets|archive-date=9 April 2011|url-status=dead|access-date=12 February 2011}}</ref> In 1979, he starred in a TV special, ''[[To Norway, Home of Giants]]'', produced by [[Johnny Bergh]].

Throughout the 1970s, Cleese also produced and acted in a number of successful business training films, including ''[[Meetings, Bloody Meetings]],'' and ''[[More Bloody Meetings]]''. These were produced by his company [[Video Arts]].<ref>[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/video-arts-sells-out-in-pounds-25m-deal-1322504.html Video Arts sells in £25m deal]. ''[[The Independent]]''. 5 January 1996.</ref>

''' ''Fawlty Towers'' '''
{{Main|Fawlty Towers}}
Cleese achieved greater prominence in the United Kingdom as the neurotic hotel manager [[Basil Fawlty]] in the two series of ''Fawlty Towers'', first broadcast 1975 and 1979, which he co-wrote with his wife [[Connie Booth]]. The series won three [[BAFTA]] awards when produced, and in 2000 it topped the [[British Film Institute]]'s list of the [[100 Greatest British Television Programmes]]. In a 2001 poll conducted by [[Channel 4]] Basil Fawlty was ranked second (behind [[Homer Simpson]]) on their list of the [[100 Greatest (TV series)|100 Greatest TV Characters]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/G/greatest/tv_characters/results.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090531160558/http://www.channel4.com/entertainment/tv/microsites/G/greatest/tv_characters/results.html |archive-date=31 May 2009 |title=100 Greatest TV Characters |access-date=26 May 2019 |publisher=[[Channel 4]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.itnsource.com/en/shotlist/ITVProgs/2001/05/05/Y22090001/ |title=100 Greatest ... (100 Greatest TV Characters (Part 1)) |publisher=[[ITN Source]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150221233837/http://www.itnsource.com/en/shotlist/ITVProgs/2001/05/05/Y22090001/ |archive-date=21 February 2015 |access-date=13 May 2019}}</ref> The series also featured [[Prunella Scales]] as Basil's acerbic wife [[Sybil Fawlty|Sybil]], [[Andrew Sachs]] as the much abused Spanish waiter [[Manuel (Fawlty Towers)|Manuel]], and Booth as waitress [[Polly Sherman|Polly]], the series' voice of sanity. Cleese based Basil Fawlty on a real person, [[Donald Sinclair (hotel owner)|Donald Sinclair]], whom he had encountered in 1970 while the Monty Python team were staying at the Gleneagles Hotel in [[Torquay]] while filming inserts for their television series.<ref name="Sinclair"/> Reportedly, Cleese was inspired by Sinclair's mantra, "I could run this hotel just fine if it weren't for the guests." He later described Sinclair as "the most wonderfully rude man I have ever met", although Sinclair's widow has said her husband was totally misrepresented in the series. During the Pythons' stay, Sinclair allegedly threw Idle's briefcase out of the hotel "in case it contained a bomb", complained about Gilliam's "American" table manners, and threw a bus timetable at another guest after he dared to ask the time of the next bus to town.<ref name="Sinclair">{{cite news |title=Fawlty hotelier was bonkers, says waitress |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1394580/Fawlty-hotelier-was-bonkers-says-waitress.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1394580/Fawlty-hotelier-was-bonkers-says-waitress.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=24 May 2019 |work=The Daily Telegraph}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/devon/content/articles/2006/08/10/fawlty_towers_relaunch_feature.shtml |title=Sybil back at Fawlty Towers |publisher=BBC |date=18 September 2006 |access-date=6 January 2014}}</ref>

The first series was screened from 19 September 1975 on [[BBC Two|BBC 2]], initially to poor reviews,<ref name="Malmo">{{cite news |last1=Milmo |first1=Cahal |title=Life after Polly: Connie Booth (a case of Fawlty memory syndrome) |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/life-after-polly-connie-booth-a-case-of-fawlty-memory-syndrome-450289.html |access-date=8 October 2015 |work=Independent |date=25 May 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080502123852/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/this-britain/life-after-polly-connie-booth-a-case-of-fawlty-memory-syndrome-450289.html |archive-date=2 May 2008}}</ref> but gained momentum when repeated on [[BBC One|BBC 1]] the following year. Despite this, a second series did not air until 1979, by which time Cleese's marriage to Booth had ended, but they revived their collaboration for the second series. ''Fawlty Towers'' consisted of two seasons, each of only six episodes; Cleese and Booth both maintain that this was to avoid compromising the quality of the series. The popularity of ''Fawlty Towers'' has endured, and in addition to featuring high in greatest-ever television show polls it is often rebroadcast.<ref>Mattha Busby (9 April 2019). [https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2019/apr/09/fawlty-towers-greatest-ever-british-sitcom "Fawlty Towers named greatest ever British TV sitcom"]. ''The Guardian''. Retrieved 24 May 2019.</ref> In a 2002 poll, Basil's "[[The Germans|don't mention the war]]" comment (said to the waitress Polly about the German guests) was ranked the second funniest line in television.<ref name="line poll"/>

=== 1980–1999 ===
During the 1980s and 1990s, Cleese focused on film, though he did work with [[Peter Cook]] in his one-off TV special ''Peter Cook and Co.'' in 1980. In the same year, Cleese played [[Petruchio]], in [[William Shakespeare|Shakespeare]]'s ''[[The Taming of the Shrew]]'' in the [[BBC Television Shakespeare]] series. In 1981 he appeared in the [[Terry Gilliam]]-directed ''[[Time Bandits]]'' as [[Robin Hood]]. He also participated in ''[[Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl]]'' (filmed 1980, released 1982) and starred in ''[[The Secret Policeman's Ball (1979)|The Secret Policeman's Ball]]'' for [[Amnesty International]]. In 1985, Cleese had a small dramatic role as a sheriff in the American [[Western (genre)|Western]] ''[[Silverado (film)|Silverado]]'', which had an all-star cast that included [[Kevin Kline]], with whom he starred in ''[[A Fish Called Wanda]]'' three years later. In 1986, he starred in the British comedy film ''[[Clockwise (film)|Clockwise]]'' as an uptight school headmaster obsessed with punctuality and constantly getting into trouble during a journey to speak at the [[Headmasters' Conference]]. Written by [[Michael Frayn]], the film was successful in the UK but not in the United States. It earned Cleese the 1987 [[Peter Sellers]] Award For Comedy at the [[Evening Standard British Film Awards]].<ref name="five">{{cite magazine|magazine=Filmink|first=Stephen|last=Vagg|url=https://www.filmink.com.au/forgotten-british-film-moguls-nat-cohen-part-five-1971-1988/|access-date=5 February 2025|date=5 February 2025|title=Forgotten British film moguls – Nat Cohen: Part Five (1971-1988)}}</ref>

[[File:John Cleese at 1989 Oscars.jpg|thumb|upright|Cleese appearing at the [[61st Academy Awards]] in March 1989]]
In 1988, Cleese wrote and starred in ''A Fish Called Wanda'' as the lead, Archie Leach, along with [[Jamie Lee Curtis]], Kevin Kline, and Michael Palin. ''Wanda'' was a commercial and critical success, becoming one of the [[1988 in film|top ten films of the year]] at the US box office, and Cleese was nominated for an [[Academy Award]] for his script. Kline won the Oscar for his portrayal of bumbling, violent, narcissistic ex-CIA agent Otto West in the film.

From 1988 to 1992, Cleese appeared in numerous television commercials for Schweppes Ginger Ale. Between 1992 and 1994, he also appeared in some television commercials for Magnavox.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.tbsnews.net/features/panorama/golden-era-humour-advertising-over-558490 | title=Is the golden era of humour in advertising over? | date=27 December 2022 }}</ref>

In 1989, Graham Chapman was diagnosed with [[Esophageal cancer|throat cancer]]; Cleese, Michael Palin, Peter Cook, and Chapman's partner [[David Sherlock]] witnessed Chapman's death. Chapman's death occurred a day before the 20th anniversary of the first broadcast of ''Flying Circus'', with Jones commenting that it was "the worst case of party-pooping in all history." Cleese gave a eulogy at Chapman's memorial service.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cardinalfang.net/misc/chapman_memorial.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120801025612/http://www.cardinalfang.net/misc/chapman_memorial.html|url-status=dead|title=Graham Chapman's memorial speech|archive-date=1 August 2012|website=Cardinalfang.net}}</ref>

Cleese later played a supporting role in [[Kenneth Branagh]]'s adaptation of ''[[Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (film)|Mary Shelley's Frankenstein]]'' (1994) alongside Branagh himself and [[Robert De Niro]]. With [[Robin Skynner]], the English psychiatrist, Cleese wrote two books on relationships: ''[[Families and How to Survive Them]]'' and ''[[Life and How to Survive It]]''. The books are presented as a dialogue between Skynner and Cleese.

The follow-up to ''A Fish Called Wanda'', ''[[Fierce Creatures]]''—which again starred Cleese alongside Kevin Kline, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Michael Palin—was released in 1997, but was greeted with mixed reception by critics and audiences. Cleese has since often stated that making the second film had been a mistake. When asked by his friend, director and restaurant critic [[Michael Winner]], what he would do differently if he could live his life again, Cleese responded, "I wouldn't have married [[Alyce Faye Eichelberger]] and I wouldn't have made ''Fierce Creatures''."<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/food_and_drink/eating_out/winners_dinners/article4275153.ece |title=Restaurant review: Michael Winner at Villa Principe Leopoldo, Switzerland |work=The Sunday Times |location=UK |date=6 July 2008 |access-date=3 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202234740/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/food_and_drink/eating_out/winners_dinners/article4275153.ece |archive-date=2 December 2008 }}</ref>

In 1999, Cleese appeared in the [[James Bond]] film ''[[The World Is Not Enough]]'' as [[Q (James Bond)|Q's]] assistant, referred to by Bond as "R". In 2002, when Cleese reprised his role in ''[[Die Another Day]]'', the character was promoted, making Cleese the new quartermaster (Q) of [[MI6]]. In 2004, Cleese was featured as Q in the video game ''[[James Bond 007: Everything or Nothing]]'', featuring his likeness and voice.<ref>{{cite news |title=James Bond 007: Everything Or Nothing |url=https://ew.com/article/2004/02/13/james-bond-007-everything-or-nothing/ |access-date=23 August 2019 |work=EW |archive-date=25 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210725212153/https://ew.com/article/2004/02/13/james-bond-007-everything-or-nothing/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Cleese did not appear in the subsequent Bond films, ''[[Casino Royale (2006 film)|Casino Royale]]'', ''[[Quantum of Solace]]'' and ''[[Skyfall]]''; in the latter film, [[Ben Whishaw]] was cast in the role of Q.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-15889689 |title=Ben Whishaw Cast as Q in New James Bond Film Skyfall |date=25 November 2011 |work=BBC News |access-date=2 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814142542/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-15889689 |archive-date=14 August 2018 |url-status=live  }}</ref>

=== 2000–2009 ===
Cleese is Provost's visiting professor at [[Cornell University]], after having been [[Andrew D. White]] Professor-at-Large from 1999 to 2006. He makes occasional well-received appearances on the Cornell campus. In 2001, Cleese was cast in the comedy ''[[Rat Race (film)|Rat Race]]'' as the eccentric hotel owner Donald P. Sinclair, the name of the [[Torquay]] hotel owner on whom he had based the character of Basil Fawlty. That year he appeared as [[Nearly Headless Nick]] in the first [[Harry Potter (film series)|''Harry Potter'' film]]: ''[[Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)|Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone]]'' (2001), a role he would reprise in ''[[Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)|Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets]]'' (2002).<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/2001/03/22/cleese-talks-harry-potter |title=Cleese Talks Harry Potter |last=Linder |first=Brian |website=[[IGN]] |date=22 March 2001 |access-date=4 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200604034109/https://www.ign.com/articles/2001/03/22/cleese-talks-harry-potter |archive-date=4 June 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2002, Cleese made a cameo appearance in the film ''[[The Adventures of Pluto Nash]]'', in which he played "James", a computerised chauffeur of a hover car stolen by the title character (played by [[Eddie Murphy]]). The vehicle is subsequently destroyed in a chase, leaving the chauffeur stranded in a remote place on the moon. In 2003, Cleese appeared as Lyle Finster on the American sitcom ''[[Will & Grace]]''. His character's daughter, Lorraine, was played by [[Minnie Driver]]. In the series, Lyle Finster briefly marries [[Karen Walker (Will & Grace)|Karen Walker]] ([[Megan Mullally]]). In 2004, Cleese was credited as co-writer of a [[DC Comics]] [[graphic novel]] titled ''[[Superman: True Brit]]''.<ref name="True Brit">{{cite book |last=Cowsill |first=Alan |editor-last=Dolan |editor-first=Hannah |chapter=2000s |title=DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle |publisher=[[Dorling Kindersley]] |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-7566-6742-9 |page=315 |quote=Comedy legend John Cleese joined forces with artist John Byrne, inker Mark Farmer and writer Kim Johnson for a unique take on the Superman story. ''Superman: True Brit'' saw Kal-El's rocketship land on a farm... in the UK.}}</ref> Part of DC's "[[Elseworlds]]" line of imaginary stories, ''True Brit'', mostly written by [[Kim Howard Johnson]], suggests what might have happened had [[Superman]]'s rocket ship landed on a farm in Britain, not America.<ref name="True Brit"/>

[[File:John Cleese 2008 bigger crop.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Cleese in 2008]]
From 10 November to 9 December 2005, Cleese toured New Zealand with his stage show ''John Cleese—His Life, Times and Current Medical Problems''. Cleese described it as "a [[one-man show]] with several people in it, which pushes the envelope of acceptable behaviour in new and disgusting ways". The show was developed in New York City with [[William Goldman]] and includes Cleese's daughter Camilla as a writer and actor (the shows were directed by Australian [[Bille Brown]]). His assistant of many years, Garry Scott-Irvine, also appeared and was listed as a co-producer. The show then played in universities in California and [[Arizona]] from 10 January to 25 March 2006 under the title ''Seven Ways to Skin an Ocelot''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.playbill.com/news/article/97589.html |title=John Cleese Brings Seven Ways to Skin an Ocelot to U.S. |work=Playbill |access-date=14 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011212747/http://www.playbill.com/news/article/97589.html |archive-date=11 October 2007}}</ref> His voice can be downloaded for directional guidance purposes as a downloadable option on some personal [[Global Positioning System|GPS]]-navigation device models by company [[TomTom]].

In a 2005 poll of comedians and comedy insiders, ''The Comedians' Comedian'', Cleese was voted second to [[Peter Cook]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Peter Cook the funniest |url=http://www.theage.com.au/news/People/Peter-Cook-the-funniest/2005/01/03/1104601276619.html |work=The Age |location=Australia |date=3 January 2005}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Cook tops poll of comedy greats|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2005/jan/02/arts.artsnews |work=The Guardian |date=2 January 2005}}</ref> In 2006, Cleese hosted a television special of football's greatest kicks, goals, saves, bloopers, plays, and penalties, as well as football's influence on culture (including the Monty Python sketch "Philosophy Football"), featuring interviews with pop culture icons [[Dave Stewart (Eurythmics)|Dave Stewart]], [[Dennis Hopper]], and [[Henry Kissinger]], as well as eminent footballers, including [[Pelé]], [[Mia Hamm]], and [[Thierry Henry]]. ''The Art of Soccer with John Cleese'' was released in North America on DVD in January 2009 by BFS Entertainment & Multimedia.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bfsent.com/item_detail.asp?number=30895 |title=Art of Soccer, The With John Cleese |publisher=Bfsent.com |access-date=14 June 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110707231506/http://www.bfsent.com/item_detail.asp?number=30895 |archive-date=7 July 2011 }}</ref> Also in 2006, Cleese released the song "[[Don't Mention the World Cup]]".<ref>{{cite web|last=Sherwin |first=Adam |url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/article718221.ece |title=Don't mention the War, says Cleese in World Cup peace bid |publisher=The Times (archived at Wayback Machine) |access-date=30 May 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110809055508/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/article718221.ece |archive-date=9 August 2011 }}</ref><ref name=abc>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2006/s1642618.htm |title=Soccer fans learn World Cup etiquette according to Cleese |publisher=ABC |date=19 May 2006 |access-date=29 May 2014}}</ref>

Cleese lent his voice to the [[BioWare]] video game ''[[Jade Empire]]''. His role was that of an "outlander" named Sir Roderick Ponce von Fontlebottom the Magnificent Bastard, stranded in the Imperial City of the Jade Empire. His character is essentially a [[British colonialism|British colonialist]] stereotype who refers to the people of the Jade Empire as "savages in need of enlightenment". His armour has the design of a fork stuck in a piece of cheese. In 2007, Cleese appeared in ads for [[Titleist]] as a golf course designer named "Ian MacCallister", who represents "Golf Designers Against Distance". Also in 2007, he was involved in filming of the sequel to ''[[The Pink Panther (2006 film)|The Pink Panther]]'', titled ''[[The Pink Panther 2]]'', with [[Steve Martin]] and [[Aishwarya Rai]].

Cleese collaborated with [[Los Angeles Guitar Quartet]] member [[William Kanengiser]] in 2008 on the text to the performance piece "The Ingenious Gentleman of La Mancha". Cleese, as narrator, and the LAGQ premiered the work in [[Santa Barbara County, California|Santa Barbara]]. The year 2008 also saw reports of Cleese working on a musical version of ''A Fish Called Wanda'' with his daughter Camilla.

At the end of March 2009, Cleese published his first article as "Contributing Editor" to ''[[The Spectator]]'': "The real reason I had to join ''The Spectator''".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.spectator.co.uk/i//the-magazine/features/3472446/the-real-reason-i-had-to-join-the-spectator.thtml |title=The real reason I had to join |work=The Spectator |location=UK |date=25 March 2009 |access-date=14 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090330060944/http://www.spectator.co.uk/i/the-magazine/features/3472446/the-real-reason-i-had-to-join-the-spectator.thtml |archive-date=30 March 2009}}</ref> Cleese has also hosted comedy galas at the [[Montreal]] [[Just for Laughs]] comedy festival in 2006, and again in 2009. Towards the end of 2009 and into 2010, Cleese appeared in a series of television adverts for the Norwegian electric goods shop chain [[Elkjøp]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dagbladet.no/2009/09/23/kjendis/tv/tv_og_medier/reklame/elkjop/8259273/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120730031508/http://www.dagbladet.no/2009/09/23/kjendis/tv/tv_og_medier/reklame/elkjop/8259273/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=30 July 2012 |title=John Cleese i Elkjøp-reklame |last=Ottosen |first=Peder |publisher=Kjendis.no |access-date=17 February 2011 |date=23 September 2009 }}</ref> In March 2010 it was announced that Cleese would be playing Jasper in the video game ''[[Fable III]]''.<ref>{{cite web |last=Brudvig |first=Erik |url=http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/107/1076735p1.html |title=GDC 10: Designing Fable III&nbsp;– Xbox 360 Preview at IGN |publisher=Xbox360.ign.com |date=11 March 2010 |access-date=14 June 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100419055442/http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/107/1076735p1.html |archive-date=19 April 2010 }}</ref>

In 2009 and 2010, Cleese toured [[Scandinavia]] and the US with his Alimony Tour Year One and Year Two. In May 2010, it was announced that this tour, set for May 2011, would extend to the UK (his first tour there). The show is dubbed the "Alimony Tour" in reference to the financial implications of Cleese's divorce. The UK tour started in [[Cambridge]] on 3 May, visiting [[Birmingham]], [[Nottingham]], [[Salford, Greater Manchester|Salford]], [[York]], Liverpool, [[Leeds]], Glasgow, [[Edinburgh]], [[Oxford]], Bristol and [[Bath (England)|Bath]] (the Alimony Tour DVD was recorded on 2 July, the final Bath date).<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/local/bristol/hi/people_and_places/arts_and_culture/newsid_8695000/8695560.stm |title=BBC&nbsp;– Ex-Python John Cleese goes on first UK tour, aged 71 |work=BBC News |date=20 May 2010 |access-date=14 June 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100523042254/http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/bristol/hi/people_and_places/arts_and_culture/newsid_8695000/8695560.stm |archive-date=23 May 2010 }}</ref> Later in 2011 John took his Alimony Tour to South Africa. He played [[Cape Town]] on the 21 & 22 October before moving over to [[Johannesburg]], where he played from 25 to 30 October. In January 2012 he took his one-man show to Australia, starting in Perth on 22 January and throughout the next four months visited [[Adelaide]], [[Brisbane]], [[City of Gold Coast|Gold Coast]], [[Newcastle, New South Wales]], [[Melbourne]], Sydney, and finished up during April in [[Canberra]].

=== 2010–present ===
In 2010, Cleese appeared in advertisements for [[The Automobile Association]]<ref>{{cite web |last=Oatts |first=Joanne |url=http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/sectors/travel-and-leisure/aa-ad-features-john-cleese/3019428.article |title=AA ad features John Cleese at |work=Marketing Week |access-date=1 June 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121010061506/http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/sectors/travel-and-leisure/aa-ad-features-john-cleese/3019428.article |archive-date=10 October 2012 }}</ref> and for the Canadian insurance company [[Pacific Blue Cross]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.the-cma.org/awards/downloads/CA0GLR4WEB.pdf |title=Canadian Marketing Association Awards 2010 |publisher=Canadian Marketing Association |date=November 2010 |access-date=6 December 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001022733/http://www.the-cma.org/awards/downloads/CA0GLR4WEB.pdf |archive-date=1 October 2011 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.waveproductions.com/newsframe.php |title=Pacific Blue Cross gets Comedic Insurance with John Cleese |publisher=Wave Productions |date=1 April 2010 |access-date=6 December 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090101073650/http://www.waveproductions.com/newsframe.php |archive-date=1 January 2009}}</ref>

In 2012, Cleese was cast in ''Hunting Elephants'', a [[heist film]] comedy by Israeli filmmaker Reshef Levi. Cleese had to quit just prior to filming due to heart trouble and was replaced by [[Patrick Stewart]].<ref name="he1">{{cite web |url=https://www.haaretz.com/culture/british-actor-john-cleese-to-appear-in-israeli-heist-comedy-1.431056 |title=British actor John Cleese to appear in Israeli heist comedy |last=Anderman |first=Irit |date=17 May 2012 |work=[[Haaretz]] |access-date=17 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120701122914/http://www.haaretz.com/culture/british-actor-john-cleese-to-appear-in-israeli-heist-comedy-1.431056 |archive-date=1 July 2012}}</ref><ref name="he2">{{cite web |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/cannes-john-cleese-hunting-elephants-325570 |title=Cannes 2012: John Cleese Joins Israeli Comedy 'Hunting Elephants' |last=Roxborough |first=Scott |date=16 May 2012 |work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |access-date=17 May 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120520053817/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/cannes-john-cleese-hunting-elephants-325570 |archive-date=20 May 2012 }}</ref><ref name="he3">{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4266862,00.html |title=Cleese replaced by Stewart |newspaper=Ynetnews |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121120150628/http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4266862,00.html |archive-date=20 November 2012 |year=2012 |last1=Yaakov |first1=Yaara }}</ref> Between September and October 2013, Cleese embarked on his first-ever cross-Canada comedy tour. Entitled "John Cleese: Last Time to See Me Before I Die tour", he visited Halifax, [[Ottawa]], Toronto, [[Edmonton]], Calgary, [[Victoria (British Columbia)|Victoria]] and finished in [[Vancouver]], performing to mostly sold-out venues.<ref>{{cite news |last=Chamberlain |first=Adrian |url=http://www.timescolonist.com/john-cleese-the-minister-of-silly-talks-sure-has-a-big-following-1.654719 |title=John Cleese, the minister of silly talks, sure has a big following |newspaper=[[Times Colonist]] |date=9 October 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131220230254/http://www.timescolonist.com/john-cleese-the-minister-of-silly-talks-sure-has-a-big-following-1.654719 |archive-date=20 December 2013 }}</ref> Cleese returned to the stage in [[Dubai]] in November 2013, where he performed to a sold-out theatre.<ref>{{cite web |last=Hymers |first=Sarah |url=http://www.ahlanlive.com/john-cleese-in-dubai-%E2%80%93-an-evening-with-456682.html |title=John Cleese in Dubai |work=[[Ahlan!]] |date=6 November 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131220023822/http://www.ahlanlive.com/john-cleese-in-dubai-%E2%80%93-an-evening-with-456682.html |archive-date=20 December 2013 }}</ref>

[[File:Monty Python O2 Arena.jpg|thumb|Cleese (right) with the rest of Monty Python on stage at [[The O2 Arena|the O<sub>2</sub> Arena]], London, in July 2014]]
Cleese was interviewed and appears as himself in filmmaker [[Gracie Otto]]'s 2013 documentary film ''[[The Last Impresario]]'', about Cleese's longtime friend and colleague [[Michael White (producer)|Michael White]]. White produced ''[[Monty Python and the Holy Grail]]'' and Cleese's pre-Python comedy production ''[[Cambridge Footlights Revue|Cambridge Circus]]''.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Coveney |first1=Michael |title=Michael White obituary |url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2016/mar/09/michael-white-producer-obituary |access-date=9 December 2017 |work=The Guardian |date=9 March 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170908135521/https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2016/mar/09/michael-white-producer-obituary |archive-date=8 September 2017 }}</ref> At a comic press conference in November 2013, Cleese and other surviving members of the Monty Python comedy group announced a reuniting performance to be held in July 2014.<ref>{{cite web |last=Ng |first=David |url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/culture/la-et-cm-monty-python-reunion-20131121,0,6836416.story |title=Monty Python makes it official: group reuniting in July |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=21 November 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131219152929/http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/culture/la-et-cm-monty-python-reunion-20131121,0,6836416.story |archive-date=19 December 2013 }}</ref>

Cleese joined with Eric Idle in 2015 and 2016 for a tour of North America, Canada and the ANZUS nations, "John Cleese & Eric Idle: Together Again At Last ... For The Very First Time", playing small theatres and including interaction with audiences as well as sketches and reminisces.<ref>{{cite press release|url=https://www.justforlaughs.com/about/press/john-cleese-eric-idle-announce-additional-north-american-tour-dates|title=John Cleese & Eric Idle announce additional North American tour dates!|website=Just For Laughs|date=15 June 2016}}</ref> In a [[Reddit]] Ask Me Anything interview, Cleese expressed regret that he had turned down the role played by [[Robin Williams]] in ''[[The Birdcage]]'', the butler played by [[Anthony Hopkins]] in ''[[The Remains of the Day (film)|The Remains of the Day]]'', and the bishop played by [[Peter Cook]] in ''[[The Princess Bride (film)|The Princess Bride]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/70arwl/i_am_john_cleese_writer_actor_and_tall_person_ama/ |work=Reddit |title=I am John Cleese: writer, actor, and tall person. AMA! |date=15 September 2017 |access-date=16 September 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171124162826/https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/70arwl/i_am_john_cleese_writer_actor_and_tall_person_ama/|archive-date=24 November 2017 }}</ref>

In 2017, Cleese wrote ''[[Bang Bang! (play)|Bang Bang!]]'', a new adaptation of [[Georges Feydeau]]'s French play ''Monsieur Chasse!'', for the [[Mercury Theatre, Colchester]], before making its American premiere at the Shadowland Stages in [[Ellenville, New York]], in 2018 followed by touring the UK in spring 2020.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.chortle.co.uk/news/2019/10/16/44546/uk_tour_for_john_cleeses_first_stage_farce|title=UK tour for John Cleese's first stage farce : News 2019 : Chortle : The UK Comedy Guide|last=Bennett|first=Steve|website=www.chortle.co.uk|language=en|access-date=1 February 2020}}</ref>

In 2021, Cleese cancelled an appearance at the [[Cambridge Union|Cambridge Union Society]] after learning that art historian [[Andrew Graham-Dixon]] had been blacklisted by the union for impersonating Adolf Hitler. His visit to the university was intended to be part of a documentary on [[wokeism]]. Cleese said he was "blacklisting myself before someone else does".<ref>{{Cite news|date=10 November 2021|title=John Cleese blacklists himself from Cambridge University event|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-59237741|access-date=13 November 2021}}</ref> 

In 2023, Cleese starred in [[Roman Polanski]]'s black comedy film ''[[The Palace (2023 film)|The Palace]]''.<ref>{{cite news|last=Vivarelli|first=Nick|date=22 May 2022|url=https://variety.com/2022/film/news/france-falls-out-of-love-with-roman-polanski-1235272794/|title= Roman Polanski Always Thrived in France, But Now Even His Adopted Country is Turning On Him (EXCLUSIVE)|work=Variety|access-date=22 May 2022}}</ref> In October, he starting presenting a new show on [[GB News]], ''The Dinosaur Hour'', which aired on Sunday evenings.<ref>{{Cite news |date=10 October 2022 |title=John Cleese to host new GB News TV show |first=Paul|last=Glynn|work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-63197829 |access-date=12 October 2022}}</ref>

== Style of humour ==
[[File:Monty Python Graffiti Leicester.jpg|thumb|Graffiti of Cleese in "[[The Ministry of Silly Walks]]" sketch in Monty Python—[[Leicester]], 2007]]

In his ''Alimony Tour'' Cleese explained the origin of his fondness for [[black humour]], the only thing that he inherited from his mother. Examples of it are the [[Dead Parrot sketch]], "[[The Kipper and the Corpse]]" episode of ''[[Fawlty Towers]]'', his clip for the 1992 BBC2 mockumentary "A Question of Taste", the [[Undertakers sketch]], and [[Dead Parrot sketch#Further uses|his eulogy]] at Graham Chapman's memorial service which included the line, "Good riddance to him, the freeloading bastard! I hope he fries."<ref>{{cite news |title=Monty Python reunion: 10 things you didn't know |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/comedy/comedy-news/10463439/Monty-Python-reunion-10-things-you-didnt-know.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/comedy/comedy-news/10463439/Monty-Python-reunion-10-things-you-didnt-know.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=27 May 2019 |work=The Telegraph}}{{cbignore}}</ref> On his attitude to life he states, "I can take almost nothing seriously".<ref name="WTTW"/> 

Cleese has criticised [[political correctness]], ''[[Woke|wokeism]]'' and [[cancel culture]], saying that despite initial good intentions to "not be mean to people", they have become "a sort of indulgence of the most over-sensitive people in your culture, the people who are most easily upset [...] if you have to keep thinking which words you can use and which you can't, then that will stifle creativity." According to Cleese, "The main thing is to realise that words depend on their context [...] PC people simply don't understand this business about context because they tend to be very literal-minded", and that he imagined a "''woke'' joke [...] might be heart-warming but it's not going to be very funny."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/john-cleese-political-correctness-comedy-woke-bbc-fawlty-towers-a9702986.html |title=John Cleese condemns 'woke jokes' and claims 'political correctness' is stifling creativity|first=Adam|last=White|date=3 September 2020 |access-date=8 March 2021 |work=The Independent}}</ref> He has also argued that political correctness and ''wokeism'' are a threat to humour, creativity, and [[freedom of thought]] and [[Freedom of Expression|expression]].<ref name="Reason 2022"/>

In 2020, following a controversy over the content of the ''Fawlty Towers'' episode "[[The Germans]]", Cleese criticised the BBC, saying "The BBC is now run by a mixture of marketing people and petty bureaucrats. It used to have a large sprinkling of people who'd actually made programmes. Not any more. So BBC decisions are made by persons whose main concern is not losing their jobs... That's why they're so cowardly and gutless and contemptible." He likened the style of humour in ''Fawlty Towers'' to the representation of [[Alf Garnett]] from another BBC sitcom, ''[[Till Death Us Do Part]]'', saying "We laughed at Alf's reactionary views. Thus we discredited them, by laughing at him. Of course, there were people—very stupid people—who said 'Thank God someone is saying these things at last'. We laughed at these people too. Now they're taking decisions about BBC comedy."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-53020335 |title=Fawlty Towers: John Cleese attacks 'cowardly' BBC over episode's removal |date=12 June 2020 |access-date=14 June 2020 |work=[[BBC News]]}}</ref>

== Activism and politics ==
{{Quote box|width=29%|bgcolor=#FFFFF0|align=right|quote=Amnesty first started doing these fund-raising shows in 1976. The instigation came from John Cleese who wanted to help out. And he did it in the only way he knew how. Which was to put on a show with what he described as "a few friends".  Who of course transpired to be his colleagues in Monty Python and other luminaries of British comedy.|source=— [[Martin Lewis (humorist)|Martin Lewis]], co-founder of ''[[The Secret Policeman's Ball]]'', on Cleese instigating the benefit show.<ref name="Amnesty Ball">{{cite news |title=How the Secret Policeman's Ball Got Rolling... |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/secret-policemans-ball_b_1318876 |access-date=23 September 2019 |work=Huffington Post}}</ref>}}

Cleese (and the other members of Python) have contributed their services to charitable endeavours and causes—sometimes as an ensemble, at other times as individuals. The cause that has been the most frequent and consistent beneficiary has been the human rights work of [[Amnesty International]] via the ''[[The Secret Policeman's Ball|Secret Policeman's Ball]]'' benefit shows. The idea of the ''Ball'' was conceived by Cleese, with ''Huffington Post'' stating "in 1976 he 'friended' the then-struggling Amnesty International (according to Martin Lewis, the very notion of Human Rights was then not the domain of hipsters and students, but just of foreign-policy wonks) first with a cheque signed 'J. Cleese' — and then by rounding up 'a few friends' to put on a show."<ref name="Amnesty Ball"/> Many musicians have publicly attributed their activism—and the organisation of their own [[Benefit concert|benefit events]]—to the inspiration of the work in this field of Cleese and the rest of Python, such as [[Bob Geldof]] (one of the organisers of [[Live Aid]]), [[U2]], [[Pete Townshend]], and [[Sting (musician)|Sting]].<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/mar/02/secret-policemans-ball-new-york-amnesty "Secret Policeman's Ball recruits New York's finest to Amnesty celebration"]. ''The Guardian''. Retrieved 24 September 2019.</ref> On the impact of the Ball on Geldof, Sting states, "he took the 'Ball' and ran with it."<ref name="Amnesty Ball"/>

In 2022, Cleese spoke at the conference of the revival [[Social Democratic Party (UK, 1990–present)|Social Democratic Party]].<ref>{{Citation |title=Manchester 2022—SDP Question Time—William Clouston Rod Liddle Joanna Williams and Wayne Dixon | date=26 October 2022 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLZOWkpSsqo |language=en |access-date=12 November 2022}}</ref> Previously, he was a long-standing supporter of the [[Liberal Democrats (UK)|Liberal Democrats]] and before that was a supporter of the original [[Social Democratic Party (UK)|SDP]] after their formation in 1981. During the [[1987 United Kingdom general election|1987 general election]] he recorded a party political broadcast for the [[SDP–Liberal Alliance]], in which he advocated for the introduction of [[proportional representation]].<ref>{{cite web | url= https://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/the-staggers/2010/05/sdp-liberal-alliance-broadcast | title= Proportional representation for dummies . . . by John Cleese | work=New Statesman | date=5 May 2010 | access-date=9 August 2021}}</ref> Cleese subsequently appeared in broadcasts for the Liberal Democrats in the [[1997 United Kingdom general election|1997 general election]] and narrated a radio election broadcast for the party during the [[2001 United Kingdom general election|2001 general election]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/news/vote2001/hi/english/newsid_1361000/1361458.stm |title=Lib Dems plan warmer homes |work=BBC News |date=31 May 2001 |access-date=21 July 2008 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081219210901/http://news.bbc.co.uk/vote2001/hi/english/newsid_1361000/1361458.stm |archive-date=19 December 2008 }}</ref>

In 2008, Cleese expressed support for [[Barack Obama]] and his [[Barack Obama 2008 presidential campaign|presidential candidacy]], offering his services as a speech writer.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://articles.nydailynews.com/2008-04-09/news/17895834_1_monty-python-obama-s-campaign-speechwriter |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120911205635/http://articles.nydailynews.com/2008-04-09/news/17895834_1_monty-python-obama-s-campaign-speechwriter |url-status=dead |archive-date=11 September 2012 |title='Monty Python' icon John Cleese stumps to be Barack Obama's speechwriter |work=[[New York Daily News]] |location=New York City|date=9 April 2008 |access-date=14 June 2010}}</ref> He was an outspoken critic of [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] Vice-Presidential candidate [[Sarah Palin]], saying that "Michael Palin is no longer the funniest Palin".<ref>{{cite web |first1=John |last1=Cleese |url=http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/b63785_John_Cleese__Sarah_Palin_Funnier_Than_Michael_Palin.html |title=John Cleese: Sarah Palin Funnier Than Michael Palin |first2=Erik |last2=Pedersen |publisher=E! |date=14 October 2008 |access-date=14 June 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100616180442/http://www.eonline.com/uberblog/b63785_John_Cleese__Sarah_Palin_Funnier_Than_Michael_Palin.html |archive-date=16 June 2010 }}</ref> The same year, he wrote a satirical poem about [[Fox News]] commentator [[Sean Hannity]] for ''[[Countdown with Keith Olbermann]]''.<ref>{{cite news |title=Poem For Today |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/daily-dish/archive/2008/10/poem-for-today/210474/ |access-date=8 April 2020 |magazine=The Atlantic}}</ref>

In 2011, Cleese declared his appreciation for Britain's coalition government between the [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservatives]] and Liberal Democrats, saying: "I think what's happening at the moment is rather interesting. The Coalition has made everything a little more courteous and a little more flexible. I think it was quite good that the Liberal Democrats had to compromise a bit with the Tories." He also criticised the previous [[New Labour|Labour]] government, commenting: "Although my inclinations are slightly [[Centre-left politics|left-of-centre]], I was terribly disappointed with the last Labour government. [[Gordon Brown]] lacked emotional intelligence and was never a leader." Cleese also reiterated his support for proportional representation.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/8279180/David-Cameron-impresses-John-Cleese-with-his-good-manners.html |title=David Cameron impresses John Cleese with his good manners |work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |first=Tim |last=Walker |date=25 January 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624175146/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/8279180/David-Cameron-impresses-John-Cleese-with-his-good-manners.html |archive-date=24 June 2016 }}</ref>

In April 2011, Cleese said that he had declined a [[life peerage]] for political services in 1999. Outgoing leader of the Liberal Democrats [[Paddy Ashdown]] had put forward the suggestion shortly before stepping down, with the idea that Cleese would take the party whip and sit as a working peer, but the actor quipped that he "realised this involved being in England in the winter and I thought that was too much of a price to pay." Cleese had declined a [[Order of the British Empire|CBE title]] in 1996 as he thought they were "silly".<ref>{{cite news |last=Nikkhah |first=Roya |title=Lord Cleese of Fawlty Towers: Why John Cleese declined a peerage |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/8455538/Lord-Cleese-of-Fawlty-Towers-Why-John-Cleese-declined-a-peerage.html |newspaper=[[The Sunday Telegraph]] |date=17 April 2011 |access-date=17 April 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110420075708/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/8455538/Lord-Cleese-of-Fawlty-Towers-Why-John-Cleese-declined-a-peerage.html |archive-date=20 April 2011 }}</ref>

In an interview with ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' in 2014, Cleese expressed political interest about the [[UK Independence Party]], saying that although he was in doubt as to whether he was prepared to vote for it, he was attracted to its challenge to the established political order and the radicalism of its policies on the United Kingdom's membership of the [[European Union]]. He expressed support for immigration, but also concern about the integration of immigrants into British culture.<ref name="stadlen">{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/relationships/11157618/John-Cleese-says-Ive-finally-found-true-love-in-a-fish-and-three-cats.html |title=John Cleese says: 'I've finally found true love—in a fish and three cats' |work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |first=Matthew |last=Stadlen |date=13 October 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151105021521/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/relationships/11157618/John-Cleese-says-Ive-finally-found-true-love-in-a-fish-and-three-cats.html |archive-date=5 November 2015 }}</ref>

Talking to ''[[Der Spiegel]]'' in 2015, Cleese expressed a critical view on what he saw as a [[plutocracy]] that was unhealthily developing control of the governance of the [[First World]]'s societies, stating that he had reached a point when he "saw that our existence here is absolutely hopeless. I see the rich have got a stranglehold on us. If somebody had said that to me when I was 20, I would have regarded him as a [[Loony left|left-wing loony]]."<ref name="spiegel.de" />

In 2016, Cleese publicly supported [[Brexit]] in the [[2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum|referendum on leaving the European Union]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Saul |first=Heather |title=Brexit: The famous figures celebrating the EU referendum result |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/brexit-the-famous-figures-celebrating-the-eu-referendum-result-a7102511.html |work=The Independent |date=25 June 2016}}</ref> He tweeted: "If I thought there was any chance of major reform in the EU, I'd vote to stay in. But there isn't. Sad." Cleese said that "EU bureaucrats" had taken away "any trace of democratic accountability" and suggested they should "give up the [[euro]], introduce accountability."<ref>{{cite news |last=Szalai |first=Georg |title=John Cleese, Jeremy Clarkson Chime in on Brexit Vote as Debate Enters Final Days |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/brexit-john-cleese-jeremy-clarkson-904348 |work=Hollywood Reporter |date=20 June 2016}}</ref>

During then-Republican nominee [[Donald Trump]]'s [[Donald Trump 2016 presidential campaign|run for the US presidency]] in 2016, Cleese described Trump as "a narcissist, with no attention span, who doesn't have clear ideas about anything and makes it all up as he goes along".<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/entertainment/news/donald-trump-narcissist-with-no-attention-span-says-john-cleese-35120288.html |title=Donald Trump narcissist with no attention span, says John Cleese |work=[[The Belfast Telegraph]] |date=11 October 2016}}</ref> He had previously described the leadership of the Republican Party as "the most cynical, most disgracefully immoral people I've ever come across in a Western civilisation".<ref name="stadlen" />

In 2017, Cleese stated that he would not vote in [[2017 United Kingdom general election|that year's general election]] because "I live in Chelsea and Kensington, so under our present system my vote is utterly worthless."<ref>{{cite news| url= https://www.standard.co.uk/showbiz/celebrity-news/john-cleese-slammed-after-deeming-general-election-vote-utterly-worthless-a3561176.html | title= John Cleese slammed after deeming General Election vote 'utterly worthless' – before counting suspended in his constituency| newspaper=Evening Standard | first=Emma | last=Powell | date=9 June 2017 | access-date=19 May 2021}}</ref> In July 2018, Cleese said that he was leaving the UK to relocate to the Caribbean island of [[Nevis]], partly over frustration around the standard of the Brexit debate, including "dreadful lies" by "[[right-wing politics|the right]]" and a lack of reform regarding the press and the voting system.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/showbiz/celebrity-news/john-cleese-set-to-move-to-the-caribbean-over-disappointment-with-uk-a3884261.html|title=John Cleese set to move to the Caribbean over 'disappointment' with UK|first=Fiona |last=Simpson |date=11 July 2018|newspaper=[[Evening Standard]]}}</ref> He relocated to Nevis on 1 November 2018.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/movies/movie-news/actor-john-cleese-reveals-hes-quit-uk-and-is-now-living-in-the-caribbean-37700845.html |title=Actor John Cleese reveals he's quit UK and is now living in the Caribbean|newspaper=Independent.ie |date=10 January 2019 |author=Nicola Anderson}}</ref>

In May 2019, Cleese repeated his previous statement that London was no longer an English city, saying "virtually all my friends from abroad have confirmed my observation. So there must be some truth in it... I note also that London was the UK city that voted most strongly to remain in the EU." [[London Mayor]] [[Sadiq Khan]] responded, "These comments make John Cleese sound like he's in character as [[Basil Fawlty]]. Londoners know that our diversity is our greatest strength. We are proudly the English capital, a European city and a global hub." Cleese added, "I suspect I should apologise for my affection for the Englishness of my upbringing, but in some ways I found it calmer, more polite, more humorous, less tabloid, and less money-oriented than the one that is replacing it."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-48451384 |title=John Cleese criticised for saying London is 'no longer an English city'|website=BBC News |date=29 May 2019 |access-date=29 May 2019}}</ref>

In 2020, Cleese opposed the BBC's removal of the ''[[Fawlty Towers]]'' episode "[[The Germans]]" from the [[UKTV]] streaming service after [[George Floyd protests in the United Kingdom|protests]] following the [[murder of George Floyd]], stating that the program was mocking prejudice with its use of a character who uttered racial slurs. "If they can't see that, if people are too stupid to see that, what can one say", said Cleese.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theage.com.au/culture/tv-and-radio/john-cleese-slams-uktv-decision-to-remove-fawlty-towers-episode-as-stupid-20200612-p5523w.html |title=John Cleese slams UKTV decision to remove Fawlty Towers episode as 'stupid' |first=Karl |last=Quinn |date=12 June 2020 |access-date=12 June 2020 |work=[[The Age]] }}</ref> UKTV later restored the episode with a disclaimer about its content.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-53032895 |title=Fawlty Towers: The Germans episode to be reinstated by UKTV |date=13 June 2020 |access-date=14 June 2020 |work=[[BBC News]]}}</ref>

In November 2021, Cleese protested against perceived [[cancel culture]] by blacklisting himself over a Hitler impersonation controversy at the Cambridge Union.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/john-cleese-cancel-culture-blacklist-hitler |title=John Cleese takes stand on cancel culture, blacklists himself over Hitler controversy |date=11 November 2021 |access-date=11 November 2021 |work=[[Fox News]]}}</ref>

In 2025, Cleese canceled all of his performances in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv due to threats from the [[Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions]] (BDS) organization. At the same time as canceling shows, he also has been reposting anti-Israel content on his X account.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-11-11 |title=John Cleese says he canceled Israel shows after safety advice |url=https://www.newsweek.com/entertainment/john-cleese-israel-shows-canceled-safety-11028173 |access-date=2025-11-15 |website=Newsweek |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Ex-comedian John Cleese Cancels Israel Shows While Amplifying Social Media Posts by Antisemitic Conspiracy Theorists |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2025-11-11/ty-article/.premium/john-cleese-cancels-israel-shows-while-pushing-posts-by-antisemitic-conspiracy-theorists/0000019a-73d7-d6d8-af9b-77df3f360000}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=News |first=Israel National |title=John Cleese cancels Israel shows, producers claim: He caved to BDS |url=https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/417597 |access-date=2025-11-15 |website=Israel National News |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=ynet |date=2025-11-10 |title=British comedian John Cleese cancels Israel shows: 'Surrendered to BDS threats' |url=https://www.ynetnews.com/article/wege7aqnn |access-date=2025-11-15 |work=Ynetglobal |language=en}}</ref>

=== Anti-smoking campaign ===
In 1992, the UK Health Education Authority (subsequently the Health Development Agency, now merged into the [[National Institute for Health and Care Excellence]]) recruited Cleese—an ex-smoker—to star in a series of anti-smoking [[public service announcements]] (PSAs) on British television, which took the form of sketches rife with morbid humour about smoking and were designed to encourage adult smokers to quit. In a controlled study of regions of central and northern England (one region received no intervention) the PSAs were broadcast in two regions, and one region received both the PSAs, plus locally organised anti-tobacco campaigning. The study found:
<blockquote>After 18 months, 9.8% of successfully re-interviewed smokers had stopped and 4.3% of ex-smokers had relapsed. [...] There was no evidence of an extra effect of the local tobacco control network when combined with TV media [...] Applying these results to a typical population where 28% smoke and 28% are ex-smokers, and where there would be an equal number of quitters and relapsers over an 18 month period without the campaign, suggests that the campaign would reduce smoking prevalence by about 1.2%.<ref name="McVeyStapleton">{{cite journal |last1=McVey |first1=Dominic |last2=Stapleton |first2=John |title=Can anti-smoking television advertising affect smoking behaviour? controlled trial of the Health Education Authority for England's anti-smoking TV campaign |journal=Tob Control |date=September 2000 |volume=9 |issue=3 |pages=273–82 |doi=10.1136/tc.9.3.273 |pmid=10982571 |url= |pmc=1748378}}</ref></blockquote>

== Personal life ==
Cleese met [[Connie Booth]] in the US and they married in 1968.<ref name="Malmo" /> In 1971, Booth gave birth to their only child, Cynthia Cleese, who went on to appear with her father in his films ''A Fish Called Wanda'' and ''Fierce Creatures''. With Booth, Cleese wrote the scripts for and co-starred in both series of ''Fawlty Towers'', although the two were actually divorced before the second series was finished and aired. Cleese and Booth are said to have remained close friends since. Cleese has two grandchildren through Cynthia's marriage to writer/director [[Ed Solomon]]. Cleese married American actress [[Barbara Trentham]] in 1981. Their daughter Camilla, Cleese's second child, was born in 1984. He and Trentham divorced in 1990. During this time, Cleese emigrated to [[Los Angeles]].

In 1992, Cleese married American psychotherapist [[Alyce Faye Eichelberger]]. They divorced in 2008; the divorce settlement left Eichelberger with £12&nbsp;million in finance and assets, including £600,000 a year for seven years. Cleese said, "What I find so unfair is that if we both died today, her children would get much more than mine ... I got off lightly. Think what I'd have had to pay Alyce if she had contributed anything to the relationship—such as children, or a conversation".<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/6043628/John-Cleese-in-12-million-divorce-settlement.html |work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |title=John Cleese in £12&nbsp;million divorce settlement |first=Andrew |last=Pierce |date=18 August 2009 |access-date=6 May 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100407190653/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/6043628/John-Cleese-in-12-million-divorce-settlement.html |archive-date=7 April 2010 }}</ref>

Less than a year later, Cleese returned to the [[United Kingdom|UK]], where he has property in [[London]] and a home on the [[Royal Crescent]] in [[Bath, Somerset]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/local/bristol/hi/people_and_places/newsid_8920000/8920365.stm |title=John Cleese on move to 'beautiful' Georgian Bath |work=[[BBC News]] |access-date=6 December 2011 |date=17 August 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304010756/http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/bristol/hi/people_and_places/newsid_8920000/8920365.stm |archive-date=4 March 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.southwestbusiness.co.uk/news/18032013093934-john-cleese-could-be-spending-more-time-in-bath-after-selling-his-monaco-des-res/ |title=John Cleese could be spending more time in Bath after selling His Monaco des res |website=Southwest Business |date=18 March 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131220000044/http://www.southwestbusiness.co.uk/news/18032013093934-john-cleese-could-be-spending-more-time-in-bath-after-selling-his-monaco-des-res/ |archive-date=20 December 2013 }}</ref> In August 2012, Cleese married English jewelry designer and former model Jennifer Wade in a ceremony on the Caribbean island of [[Mustique]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/9470746/John-Cleese-marries-for-the-fourth-time.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/9470746/John-Cleese-marries-for-the-fourth-time.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=John Cleese marries for the fourth time|last=Singh|first=Anita|date=13 August 2012|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|access-date=11 July 2018|language=en-GB|issn=0307-1235}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In an interview in 2014, Cleese blamed his mother, who lived to the age of 101, for his problems in relationships with women, saying: "My ingrained habit of walking on eggshells when dealing with my mother dominated my romantic liaisons for many years." Cleese said that he had spent "a large part of my life in some form of therapy" over his relationships with women.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/john-cleese-blames-his-problems-with-women-on-tyrant-late-mother-9760711.html |title=John Cleese blames his problems with women on 'tyrant' late mother |first=Daisy|last=Wyatt|work=[[The Independent]]|date=28 September 2014|access-date=14 June 2020}}</ref> He has received treatment for [[Major depressive disorder|depression]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.mcmanweb.com/fab_five.html#:~:text=The%20ultimate%20high%2Dstrung%20British,symptoms%20eventually%20diagnosed%20as%20depression | title=Comedy's Fab Five }}</ref> 

In March 2015, in an interview with ''[[Der Spiegel]]'', he was asked if he was religious. Cleese stated that he did not think much of organised religion and said he was not committed to "anything except the vague feeling that there is something more going on than the materialist reductionist people think".<ref name="spiegel.de">{{cite web|url=http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/spiegel-interview-with-john-cleese-a-1026293.html |title=SPIEGEL Interview with John Cleese: 'Satire Makes People Think'|website=[[Der Spiegel]]|date=March 30, 2015| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150526064531/http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/spiegel-interview-with-john-cleese-a-1026293.html |archive-date=26 May 2015 |accessdate=31 March 2015}}</ref>

Cleese has a passion for [[lemur]]s.<ref name=2002DailyLlama>{{cite web |title=John Cleese Visits Lemurs at San Francisco Zoo |first=Hans |last=ten Cate |date=13 June 2002 |website=PythOnline's Daily Llama |url=http://www.dailyllama.com/news/2002/llama143.html |access-date=28 December 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101216023151/http://dailyllama.com/news/2002/llama143.html |archive-date=16 December 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name=PBS_InTheWild>{{cite video |people=John Cleese (host) |year=1998 |title=In the Wild: Operation Lemur with John Cleese |url=https://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/inthewild/cleese.html |medium=DVD |publisher=Tigress Productions Ltd for BBC |access-date=28 December 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100605033531/http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/inthewild/cleese.html |archive-date=5 June 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Following the 1997 comedy film ''Fierce Creatures'', in which a [[ring-tailed lemur]] played a key role, he hosted the 1998 [[BBC]] documentary ''In the Wild: Operation Lemur with John Cleese'', which tracked the progress of a [[reintroduction]] of [[black-and-white ruffed lemur]]s back into the [[Betampona Reserve]] in Madagascar. The project had been partly funded by Cleese's donation of the proceeds from the London premiere of ''Fierce Creatures''.<ref name=PBS_InTheWild /><ref name=1998ScienceDaily>{{cite web |title=Four More Lemurs To Be Released into Madagascar Jungle This Fall |work=Science Daily |date=12 October 1998 |url=http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/1998/10/981012073550.htm |access-date=28 December 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100926123703/http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/1998/10/981012073550.htm |archive-date=26 September 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Cleese said "I adore lemurs. They're extremely gentle, well-mannered, pretty and yet great fun&nbsp;... I should have married one".<ref name=2002DailyLlama />

The [[Bemaraha woolly lemur]] (''Avahi cleesei''), also known as Cleese's woolly lemur, is native to western Madagascar. The scientist who discovered the species named it after Cleese, mainly because of Cleese's fondness for lemurs and his efforts at protecting and preserving them. The species was first discovered in 1990 by a team of scientists from the [[University of Zurich]] led by Urs Thalmann but was not formally described as a species until 11 November 2005.<ref>{{cite news |title=Endangered lemurs get Fawlty name |date=11 November 2005 |website=[[BBC]] |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4427160.stm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100204075908/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4427160.stm |archive-date=4 February 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref>

== Filmography ==
{{main|John Cleese on screen and stage}}

== Awards and nominations == 
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Year
! Association
! Category
! Nominated work
! Result
|-
| 1988 || [[Academy Award]] || [[Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay|Original Screenplay]] || rowspan=4|''[[A Fish Called Wanda]]'' || {{nom}} 
|-
|1988 || [[Golden Globe Award]] || [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical|Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Comedy of Musical]] || {{nom}} 
|-
|rowspan=2|1988 || rowspan=2|[[BAFTA Film Award]] || [[BAFTA Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]] || {{won}}
|-
|[[BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplay|Best Original Screenplay]] || {{nom}}
|-
|1970
| rowspan="5" |[[BAFTA Television Award]]
| rowspan="5" |[[British Academy Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance|Best Light Entertainment Performance]]
| rowspan="3" |''[[Monty Python’s Flying Circus]]''
| {{nom}}
|-
|1971 || {{nom}}
|-
|1973
| {{nom}}
|-
|1976 || rowspan=2|''[[Fawlty Towers]]'' || {{nom}}
|-
|1980 || {{won}}
|-
|1987 || rowspan=4|[[Primetime Emmy Awards|Emmy Awards]] || rowspan=2|[[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series|Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series]] || ''[[Cheers (TV series)|Cheers]]'' ||{{won}} 
|-
|1998 || ''[[3rd Rock from the Sun]]'' || {{nom}}
|-
|2002 || [[Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special|Outstanding Non-Fiction Special]] || ''[[The Human Face]]'' || {{nom}}
|-
|2004 || Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series || ''[[Will & Grace]]'' || {{nom}}
|-
|1976 || rowspan=5|[[Grammy Awards]] || rowspan=3|[[Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album|Best Comedy Album]] || ''[[The Monty Python Matching Tie and Handkerchief]]'' || {{nom}}
|-
|1981 || ''[[Monty Python's Contractual Obligation Album]]'' || {{nom}}
|-
|1984 || ''[[Monty Python's The Meaning of Life (album)|Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life]]'' || {{nom}}
|-
|1989 || [[Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album|Best Spoken Word Album]] || ''[[The Screwtape Letters]]'' || {{nom}}
|-
|1994 || [[Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album for Children|Best Spoken Word Album for Children]] || ''[[Did I Ever Tell You How Lucky You Are?]]'' || {{nom}} 
|-
|}

== Honours and tributes ==
* A species of [[lemur]], the [[Bemaraha woolly lemur]] (''Avahi cleesei''), has been named in his honour. Cleese has mentioned this in television interviews. Also, there is a mention of this honour in ''[[New Scientist]]'' magazine—and Cleese's response to it.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Cleese |first1=John |title=Monty Python's lemur |journal=New Scientist |date=3 December 2005 |issue=2528 |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=mg18825280.400 |access-date=8 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080206010416/http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=mg18825280.400 |archive-date=6 February 2008}}</ref>
* An asteroid, [[9618 Johncleese]], is named in his honour.
* A municipal rubbish heap {{convert|45|m}} high that has been named Mt Cleese at the [[Awapuni, Palmerston North|Awapuni]] landfill just outside [[Palmerston North]] after he dubbed the city "suicide capital of New Zealand" after a stay there in 2005.<ref>[http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21767448-1702,00.html Funnyman Cleese rubbishes NZ city] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071010130657/http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21767448-1702,00.html |date=10 October 2007 }}. The Australian. 21 May 2007.</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10440967 |title=Palmerston North's heap of payback on Cleese |date=21 May 2007 |access-date=18 March 2018 |website=New Zealand Herald}}</ref>

=== Scholastic ===
; University degrees

{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
! style="width:20%;"| Location
! style="width:20%;"| Date
! style="width:40%;"| School
! style="width:20%;"| Degree
|-
| England || '''1963''' || [[Downing College, Cambridge]] || Law
|-
|}

; Chancellor, visitor, governor, rector, and fellowships

{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
! style="width:20%;"| Location
! style="width:20%;"| Date
! style="width:40%;"| School
! style="width:20%;"| Position
|-
| Scotland || '''1970–1973''' || [[University of St Andrews]] || [[Rector of the University of St Andrews|Rector]]
|-
|}

;Honorary degrees

{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%;"
! style="width:20%;"| Location
! style="width:20%;"| Date
! style="width:40%;"| School
! style="width:20%;"| Degree
|-
| Scotland || '''1971''' || [[University of St Andrews]] || Doctorate
|-
| California, United States || '''1999''' || [[Pomona College]] || [[Doctor of Letters]] (D.Litt.)<ref>[https://www.pomona.edu/commencement/honorary-degree-recipients "Honorary Degree Recipients"]. Pomona College. Retrieved 13 June 2020.</ref>
|-
| England || '''28 June 2016''' || [[University of Bath]] || [[Doctor of Clinical Psychology]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bath.ac.uk/announcements/university-honours-john-cleese/|title=University honours John Cleese|website=Bath.ac.uk}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bath.ac.uk/corporate-information/john-cleese-oration/|title=John Cleese: oration|website=Bath.ac.uk}}</ref>
|-
| England || '''17 September 2016''' || [[Open University]] || [[Doctor of the University]] (D. Univ)<ref>[http://www.open.ac.uk/students/ceremonies/sites/www.open.ac.uk.students.ceremonies/files/files/Honorary_graduate_cumulative_list_2017.pdf "Honorary Graduate List"]. Open University. Retrieved 26 May 2019.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlU2d7XUxCI| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/IlU2d7XUxCI| archive-date=11 December 2021 | url-status=live|title=John Cleese receives honorary degree at The Open University|publisher=I Am A Graduate |date=10 February 2017|via=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref>
|-
|}
{{Incomplete list|date=October 2018}}

== Published works ==
* ''The Rectorial Address of John Cleese'', Epam, 1971, 8 pages
* ''The Human Face'' (with [[Brian Bates (psychologist)|Brian Bates]]) (DK Publishing Inc., 2001, {{ISBN|978-0-7894-7836-8}})
* Foreword for ''Time and the Soul'', [[Jacob Needleman]], 2003, {{ISBN|1-57675-251-8}} (paperback)
* ''[[Superman: True Brit]]'', [[DC Comics]], 2004, {{ISBN|9781845760120}}
* {{Cite book |title=So, Anyway... |publisher=Crown Archetype |date=2014 |isbn=978-0-385-34824-9}} [[Memoir]].
* {{Cite book |title=Professor at Large: The Cornell Years |publisher=Cornell University Press | date=2018 |isbn=978-1-5017-1657-7}}
* ''Creativity: A Short and Cheerful Guide'', 2020, [[Crown Publishing Group|Crown]], {{ISBN|978-0385348270}}
* {{Cite book |title=The Golden Skits of Wing-commander Muriel Volestrangler, F.R.H.S. and Bar |publisher=Methuen | date=1984 |isbn=978-0413415608}}

=== Dialogues ===
* ''[[Families and How to Survive Them]]'', w/[[Robin Skynner]], 1983. {{ISBN|0-413-52640-2}} (hardcover), {{ISBN|0-19-520466-2}} (paperback)
* ''[[Life and How to Survive It]]'', w/Robin Skynner, 1993. {{ISBN|0-413-66030-3}} (hardcover), {{ISBN|0-393-31472-3}} (paperback)

== See also ==
* [[List of people who have declined a British honour]]

== References ==
{{Reflist
| colwidth = 30em
| refs =
}}

== Further reading ==
* ''Cleese Encounters: The Unauthorized Biography of Monty Python Veteran John Cleese'', Jonathan Margolis, St. Martin's Press, 1992, {{ISBN|0-312-08162-6}}

== External links ==
{{Wikiquote}}
{{Commons}}
* {{Official website|https://www.johncleese.com/}}
* [http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/C/htmlC/cleesejohn/cleesejohn.htm John Cleese] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051110090632/http://museum.tv/archives/etv/C/htmlC/cleesejohn/cleesejohn.htm |date=10 November 2005 }} at the [[Museum of Broadcast Communications]]
* [https://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/people/john_cleese_person_page.shtml John Cleese] at the [[BBC]] Guide to Comedy
* {{IMDb name|id=0000092|name=John Cleese}}
* {{IBDB name}}
* {{Charlie Rose view|4275}}
* {{Guardian topic}}
* {{NYTtopic|people/c/john_cleese}}
* [http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,23304261-5006016,00.html Podcast to celebrate ''The Life of Brian'' (March 2008)] {{Webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20121230220735/http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,23304261-5006016,00.html |date=30 December 2012 }}
* [http://www.dailyllama.com/news/2002/llama143.html Daily Llama: John Cleese Visits Lemurs at San Francisco Zoo] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101216023151/http://dailyllama.com/news/2002/llama143.html |date=16 December 2010 }}
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PJaHSovyZ4 John Cleese Speaking at the American School in London]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DqUlaDnmqQ A Conversation with John Cleese at Cornell University (September 2017)]
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|prev=[[Desmond Llewelyn]]
|next=[[Ben Whishaw]]<br>{{small|([[Skyfall|2012]])}}
|list=[[Q (James Bond)|Q]]<br><small>([[James Bond in film|James Bond films]])<br>2001–2002</small>}}
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{{s-bef|before=[[Learie Constantine|Learie Nicholas Constantine, <br>Baron Constantine, Kt.]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Rector of the University of St Andrews]] | years=1970–1973}}
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{{Monty Python}}
{{Rectors of the University of St Andrews}}
{{Navboxes
| title = Awards for John Cleese
| list =
{{BAFTA Award for Best Actor 1980–1999}}
{{British Academy Television Award for Best Entertainment Performance}}
{{EmmyAward ComedyGuestActor 1976-2000}}
}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cleese, John}}
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