Michael Palin reminisces about “very competitive” and mischievous George Harrison
No matter how famous The Beatles became, they always retained a sense of humour. Whether it was during interviews, backstage clips, or stories passed down from generations, the Fab Four had laughter at the heart of everything they do. Famously, after the group split, George Harrison teamed up Monty Python, and got close to Michael Palin.
On his recent appearance on Tailenders hosted by former Maccabees guitarist Felix White, now in 86TVs, along with England international James Anderson and broadcaster Greg James, Palin talked about all things cricket, Monty Python, and working with Harrison.
The comedian recalled that Harrison was hesitant to watch the Monty Python boys at first as watching them work brought back memories of The Beatles, something he was trying to leave behind at that point in his life. Nevertheless, he eventually caved and became a super fan, who remortgaged his house to bankroll their movies.
“I got to know him pretty well because he loved sport and that kind of thing,” recalled Palin, “The Ripping Yarn about Barnestoneworth where they would lose 8-0 all the time, he used to love that. There’s a line in it where I come into it, or the supporter comes into the bar of the club, and there’s a man cleaning glasses. He says, ‘How’s Vera?’ ‘Oh, she’s alright, fartings stopped’.”
That whole episode of Ripping Yarn was close to his heart, as Palin remembers, “George, in fact, had a t-shirt which I gave him with all the names of all the players in Barnestoneworth, so I’ve got a picture of him wearing that.”
Palin went on to talk about Harrison’s competitive nature, which always came out in the studio. “He had a good sense of humour but he was very competitive,” he said, “Occasionally seeing him at work, he would do take after take until he got something right. And you listen to his songs post-Beatles, they were quite intricate.”
That being said, despite Harrison being serious in his own place of work, when it came to film sets, he was much more jovial, and allowed his playful side to be seen.
“I remember one wonderful time we were making a film called The Missionary, which George helped finance. There was a rumour that George was going to come on to the set and everyone was very, very excited, and George came along with Dennis O’Brien, his manager,” said Palin. “Dennis is quite a big bloke. And we’re doing a scene, and I notice in the bushes two faces peer out, and it’s George and Dennis. I was about to say something… he didn’t want to be seen; he just wanted to come in and watch it.”
In attempting to remain anonymous, Harrison hid in bushes, cupboards and wardrobes, meaning in some Monty Python films, if you see a wardrobe twitching, it might just be a member of The Beatles.
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