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Monty Python is often referred to as “The Beatles of comedy,” but does that mean that they have their very own Pete Best?

Monty Python’s Flying Circus wouldn’t exist without two other shows that came before it: At Last the 1948 Show, which starred both Graham Chapman and John Cleese, and Do Not Adjust Your Set, which featured Terry Jones, Eric Idle and Michael Palin (and its second season incorporated animated sequences from a young American named Terry Gilliam).

Do Not Adjust Your Set was technically a children’s show, but the surreal sketches seemingly resonated more with adults, and as word spread, grown-ups began “rushing home from the office” in order to watch it.

In addition to the future Pythons, Do Not Adjust Your Set also featured two other performers Denise Coffey and David Jason. Jason is perhaps best known for later going on to star in...

Michael Palin will exec-produce series of radio specials containing never-before-released audio from Monty Python as part of the 50th anniversary celebrations for the iconic comedy troupe. They will play on the BBC in the U.K. and then go out in the U.S.

Palin and his fellow Pythons – John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and the late Graham Chapman – will have their film, TV and radio work showcased to celebrate their group hitting the half-century mark. BBC Radio will premiere five specials, produced by Palin, in September. They will then go out on Sirius Xm in the U.S.

“Join Michael to find out what John’s mother thought about her care home, the extra unpleasant things that were planned for Eric’s Brave Sir Robin, what exactly Terry Jones is so worried about, and why the infamous Fat Ignorant Bastards have never been more relevant to the world today,...

Read More: Watch:'#Tbt The Funniest Part of 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail' Isn't in 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail' This Friday marks the launch of the Radio Times Festival in London. This year is an exciting one for Monty Python fans, as it marks the first chance to see the British comedy program that inspired it all, one that hasn't been seen since its original broadcast, 48 years ago. Last year, BFI rediscovered two episodes of the much-loved and highly influential comedy series, "At Last the 1948 Show." An anonymous member of the public has just come forward with a further two episodes starring John Cleese, Tim Brooke-Taylor, Marty Feldman, Graham Chapman, Bill Oddie, Eric Idle and “the lovely” Aimi Macdonald. One of the discoveries -- Episode 3, of the first series of "At Last the 1948 Show," which was only ever seen on March 1, 1967 -- will be screened at the Radio Times Festival at.

47 years on, some thought-lost pre-Monty Python John Cleese/Graham Chapman sketches have been found…

At Last The 1948 Show was a sketch comedy programme with John Cleese and Graham Chapman. Contrary to the name, it aired from 1967 to 1968. Predating Monty Python, this is where the immortal phrase ‘and now for something completely different’ was first uttered.

Two episodes, lost since their initial broadcast, have now been found. They turned up in the archive of the late, great David Frost, whose company produced the show. The BFI have assured us that the episodes will be aired again in due course.

Rediscovering some the first screen performances for the men who go on to build such a whopping cultural legacy can only be a good thing, and the BFI are understandably thrilled. Further fantastic comic talent also starred in the programme, namely Tim Brooke-Taylor, Aimi MacDonald and Marty Feldman.

Dick Fiddy from...

Lost episodes from a television sketch show that featured John Cleese and fellow member of Monty Python member Graham Chapman have been found after 47 years. The Radio Times reports that two episodes of an ITV sketch series At Last the 1948 Show were found in the archives of the late famed television interviewer David Frost. The British Film Institute (BFI) said that both episodes will be aired for the first time since 1967.  At Last the 1948 Show was a satirical sketch comedy show that ran for 13 episodes. Despite the title the show was first aired February 1967 and

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The BFI has confirmed that two lost episodes of pre-Monty Python sketch show At Last the 1948 Show have been re-discovered.

The first and last-ever episodes of At Last the 1948 Show were recently discovered on reels of 16mm film in the private collection of the late David Frost.

Frost executive produced the ITV sketch show in 1967 and 1968, with future Python members John Cleese and Graham Chapman, Marty Feldman, future Goodie Tim Brooke-Taylor and Aimi MacDonald in the cast.

Cleese will be presenting the episodes at BFI Southbank in London on Sunday, December 7 as part of the BFI's annual Missing Believed Wiped. These shows have not been seen in full since their original broadcasts.

BFI television consultant Dick Fiddy said: "This latest recovery is a crucial find. It represents a key moment in the history of British television comedy featuring the combined talents of some of its greatest exponents.

"These gifted comedians,...

Marty Feldman: The Biography Of A Comedy Legend

Written by Robert Ross | Published by Titan Books | Format: H/back, 320pp

“Mike Myers regards him as ‘a genius’, while John Cleese considers him a ‘true cultural icon’. A pioneer of comedy, he died aged only 48. His name was Marty Feldman, and here, at last, is the first ever biography. Paving the way for Monty Python, then becoming a major Hollywood star, Marty will be forever remembered as Igor in Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein.”

Acclaimed author Robert Ross, who has previously penned books on Monty Python and the Carry On films, draws from previously unpublished material that Feldman gathered together in preparation for an autobiography he never wrote. Ross combines this material with new interviews with many of Marty’s family and friends – including Monty Python’s Michael Palin and Terry Jones.

The book covers the entire of Feldman’s life...