Eric Idle has suffered issues in the wake of Brexit, which prevented the Monty Python legend from seeing his Spamalot comedy musical opening in Paris last year
Monty Python star Eric Idle has said Reform UK leader Nigel Farage being “taken seriously” is “appalling to me”.
It comes after post-Brexit issues prevented him from seeing his Spamalot comedy musical opening in Paris last year.
The 82-year-old comedian said he had now applied for a talent visa in France, where he has a home, in the hope it will help him avoid a similar issue happening again.
Claiming Brexit rules limited his options, he said: “Eight years ago, we could go and live in any country in Europe we wanted to and work, and I wasn’t even allowed to vote (in the EU referendum) because I lived here (in the US).
“I mean, (Brexit) was just a terrible con, it was a real con, and (the fact) that Nigel Farage still exists anywhere and is taken seriously is appalling to me.
“I was with somebody… she said, ‘I hope I never see him in a room, because I want to punch him’.”
Idle said he could only spend three months at the home he built in Provence due to Brexit.
He said: “I’ve applied for a talent visa in France, they have a little talent visa, and I feel I’m due one, because last year Spamalot won the Moliere, which is the equivalent of their Tony from Paris.
“And they love their Monty Python here (in France), we won that, we won the Jury Prize for The Meaning Of Life at the Cannes Film Festival, so they do know Python.
“So I’m hopeful that I’ll get a little bit of an extension so I don’t have to get kicked out, because I was kicked out two years ago, I had to leave, and I couldn’t go and see the opening in Paris because I didn’t have another day.
“I wrote to monsieur Macron, and offered him a ticket if he’d let me in, and I said, ‘only one ticket, because I don’t want to be accused of bribery’, but I never heard back.”
Spamalot is the stage adaptation of the Monty Python 70s film Holy Grail, which has previously seen acclaimed productions on Broadway and London’s West End.
Idle now lives in Los Angeles and thinks he could also be made to leave that country if he jokes about US President Donald Trump.
He said: “I think it’s quite likely, I’m only a green card holder, that I will be given the boot.”
The comedian will return to the UK in September for a solo tour, which will see him perform at venues including London’s Royal Albert Hall, Birmingham Symphony Hall and Glasgow’s Armadillo.
He is best known for his appearances in the Monty Python’s Flying Circus TV series alongside Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, and Terry Gilliam, and its spin-off films Holy Grail, Life Of Brian (1979) and The Meaning Of Life (1983).
Idle also created The Rutles with the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band’s Neil Innes, a parody band of The Beatles, which featured in two mockumentaries in All You Need Is Cash (1978) and The Rutles 2: Can’t Buy Me Lunch (2003).
Mr Farage’s Reform UK party have been contacted for comment.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
