Cleese clinging to life

Born in Weston-super-Mare, United Kingdom, on October 27, 1939, and consequently 80 years old at present, Mr. Cleese must still be breathing in and out, still standing on two legs and hopefully still with his brain fully working to reach next June 81 years old and not dead, so as not to disappoint those fans holding tickets.

Concert promoters reeling from a barren, diseased 2020 must be confident not only that Cleese will remain not dead but that a vaccine will have killed the “second wave” of COVID-19, because cancelled shows from this year by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Pearl Jam and Aerosmith have also been rescheduled.

Cave’s European and UK tour is set for Papp László Budapest Sportaréna next May 13, Pearl Jam is booked into the same venue on July 14 and Aerosmith at Puskás Aréna on July 12. Cleese will be at MOM Sport in District XII for two shows on June 13 and two on June 14. Tickets from the cancelled shows remain valid.

John Marwood Cleese went to Cambridge University to study law but spent much of his time there writing and performing with the university’s famed Footlights group, a hotbed of rising talent. Going on to become a member of “Monty Python’s Flying Circus”, he left after three series but contributed some writing for the fourth and final series.

He next co-created the hilarious sitcom “Fawlty Towers”, which ran for 12 episodes and is often listed among the best – if not the best – comedy series ever.

He never completely left “Monty Python”, however, and continued to appear in films made by the troupe, including the notorious “Life of Brian”. In the 1980s Cleese made an Emmy-winning guest appearance in the US sitcom “Cheers” and he received an Academy Award nomination for his screenplay for “A Fish Called Wanda, in which he co-starred.

In 1999 Cleese joined the James Bond franchise in “The World Is Not Enough”, initially playing “R”, Q’s assistant, after the death of Desmond Llewelyn, the beloved original Q.

Cleese’s character was promoted to the new Q for 2002’s “Die Another Day”, after which he quit, saying he thought the British humour of Bond was being sidelined by excessive action to please Asian audiences.

His appearances in the two Bond films and the first two “Harry Potter” films make him one of the few actors to have played major roles in the two biggest-grossing UK film series of all time.

An outspoken man when he chooses, he should have plenty to talk about for his audiences, live and alive, hopefully. The performances will be in English without subtitles or simultaneous interpreting.