MICHAEL Palin and Terry Gilliam will unveil a statue of their friend and fellow Python Terry Jones, in his hometown of Colwyn Bay next month.
The statue, celebrating him as the Nude Organist from Monty Python’s Flying Circus, will be unveiled on Saturday, 25th April by Palin and Gilliam, on the promenade between Porth Eirias and the Pier. They will be joined by Terry Jones’s family and some very special guests.
Hosted by Theatr Colwyn, Conwy Arts Trust and the family of Terry Jones, the event promises to be a Pythonesque afternoon of silliness, with the organisers expecting to welcome fans from all across the UK and around the world.
The unveiling day revelry kicks off at midday, with marauding Vikings, Knights and their coconut-clopping Squires, a recreation of the ‘Spam Cafe’ set, and even a ‘Silly Olympics’ for fans to compete in. Visitors are encouraged to dress as anything Terry or Python, with official merch, donated by Monty Python themselves, for the most imaginative costumes.
Sally Jones, Terry’s daughter, said: “We want this celebration to reflect Dad’s eclectic interests, from his wonderful children’s books to his passion for Medieval history, which influenced so much of Python.
“We also want to champion local artists and creatives, who will run workshops and create artworks inspired by Dad and his work. To this end, we are enormously grateful for funding from Arts Council of Wales and Bay of Colwyn Town Council, helping us to really celebrate creativity in all its forms, just as Dad did!”
Comedy fans worldwide donated to the “A Python On The Prom” campaign to create a statue of Terry. Launched in September 2024 by Conwy Arts Trust and Terry’s children, Sally and Bill Jones, the fundraiser hit its target within six months. Sculptor Nick Elphick has since been hard at work creating the bronze statue of Terry as his iconic Python character, ‘The Nude Organist’.
Nick, based in Llandudno, said: “I hope rubbing his bum for luck will become a new tradition!”
Sally Jones added: “We are so excited to unveil the statue of Dad. It’s been fascinating talking with Nick throughout the whole process, trying to come up with imaginative ways to represent the many disparate aspects of Dad’s multi-faceted career.”
The statue presents Terry as the organist, nude apart from a flapping tie and ‘exploded’ hair, grinning as he strikes the classic pose.
Nick Elphick added: “It was so important to me to get Terry’s smile right. So I did 10 portraits playing with different expressions and I hope I have done him justice.
“I feel like I’m the luckiest sculptor ever, a little bit of being in the right place, at the right time, to bring Terry Jones back to north Wales.”
Dilwyn Price, Chair of Conwy Arts Trust (CAT) said: “Conwy Arts Trust have been privileged to be partners in this exciting project to pay tribute to the acclaimed actor, author and historian who never forgot his Welsh heritage and especially his Colwyn Bay and Old Colwyn roots. The inspirational statue will be a lasting testimony to Terry Jones and a reminder to everyone who sees the statue that we have not forgotten him. I must say that Conwy County Borough Council have been incredibly supportive throughout the campaign, and on behalf of CAT we are delighted to be able to donate the statue to them and the people of Colwyn Bay.”
Previously, Michael Palin, Terry’s lifelong friend, said: “Terry always insisted on doing his own stunts, and I think that sitting stark naked (apart from a tie) on Colwyn Bay promenade, in all weathers, is the ultimate tribute to the lengths he was always prepared to go to for comedy. I hope his wonderfully generous bottom will become an emblem of the town he loved so much.”
- The £120,000 A Python on the Prom campaign was run through fundraising platform GoFundMe
- Launched on 5 September 2024 by Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam, who visited the seaside resort to make the announcement
- The campaign reached its target in just 6 months with over 1000 donations from comedy fans around the world; with a donation from Suzy/Eddie Izzard taking the campaign beyond its target
- Artist Nick Elphick, was commissioned to make the sculpture by Terry’s children Sally and Bill and the Conwy Arts Trust,
- As a charity dedicated to supporting the Arts in Conwy county, Conwy Arts Trust ran the fundraising campaign, and will be donating the statue to Conwy County Borough Council
- Terry was born in Colwyn Bay and lived there for the first 5 years of his life until his family moved to Surrey
- He was a Patron of Theatr Colwyn for 18 years, a place where his grandfather, mother and aunt all appeared on stage as both amateurs and professionals. Terry would return to the town often to help with fundraising and other special events to support Theatr Colwyn and the arts in Colwyn Bay
- Terry died after suffering from a rare dementia and donations are still being accepted at www.gofundme.org/terryjonesstatue and are split between the Conwy Arts Trust and The National Brain Appeal, which runs a support service for sufferers of rare dementia.
- Official campaign t-shirts are still available at a-python-on-the-prom.teemill.com
For more information please contact terryjonesstatueappeal@gmail.com
For more info on the charities see:
nationalbrainappeal.org
raredementiasupport.org
conwyartstrust.org
