Eric Idle reveals the best part of his friendship with George Harrison
George Harrison was a close friend of Monty Python legend Eric Idle up until The former Beatle’s death in November 2001. The pair bonded initially in the mid-1970s through mutual appreciation. Idle’s passion for music meant he was invariably put in charge of Monty Python’s beloved comedy songs. Meeting Idle in the middle, Harrison was known to have a particularly sharp wit and was passionate about film.
Idle has also noted that his bond with Harrison was compounded by their shared status within their respective groups. “It occurred to me later that we both played similar roles inside our groups with big power blocks,” Idle told Rolling Stone. “Once I was moaning a little bit on [Life of] Brian, saying, ‘It was hard to get onscreen with Michael Palin and John Cleese.’ He said, ‘Well, imagine what it’s like trying to get studio time with Lennon and McCartney.’ I said, ‘All right. Absolutely. Got it. OK. Check. I’ll shut up now.’ Then it occurred to me that yes, in fact, we were slightly the outsiders, playing similar roles in our groups.”
In his 2018 memoir, Always Look on the Bright Side of Life: A Sortabiography, Idle described his first encounter with Harrison at a Monty Python and the Holy Grail screening in 1975. “I had heard that George wanted to meet me, but I was somewhat shy of meeting him.” Idle wrote. “I was shy and tried to avoid him, but he snuck up on me in the back of the theatre as the credits began to roll. I hadn’t yet learned he was unstoppable.”
“We began a conversation that would last about twenty-four hours,” he continued. “Who could resist his opening line? ‘We can’t talk here. Let’s go and have a reefer in the projection booth.’ No telling what the startled projectionist felt as a Beatle came in with one of the actors from the movie he had just projected and lit up a joint.”
Needless to say, the pair got on like a house on fire, and within months they were solid pals. The conversation of 24 hours for Idle says it all as far as Idle is concerned. With their shared interests, the pair never ran out of things to say, whether it was Harrison imparting his spiritual wisdom or Idle discussing his Monty Python ideas.
In a recent interview with Yahoo! Idle explained that it was Harrison’s conversational value that made the friendship so special. “He was a remarkable man,” Idle said. “He really changed my life. Because we just talked. I’d never had a friend like that.”
In the late 1970s, when Monty Python were gearing up to film Life of Brian, EMI withdrew from the project after becoming anxious about the potentially damaging anti-religion content. Lamenting in the run-up to the planned filming period, Idle called Harrison to share his woes.
Out of sheer kindness, passion for satirical comedy and a very heavy wallet, Harrison told Idle, “Look, I’ll pay for this. I’m going to set this up,” as Idle later quoted the Beatle as saying.
With Harrison’s $4m ($20m today) seed money, the production went ahead, and we were left with one of the finest comedies in cinema history. The former Beatle became deeply involved in the project as an executive producer and even appeared in a small cameo role. See below.
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