The Spanish Inquisition sketch from Monty Python's Flying Circus television programme. Photo / Supplied
It was supposed to be a tribute to one of Monty Python's most famous moments, when the comedians took on religious figures incensed by their 1979 satire The Life of Brian.
But the writers and producers behind the BBC's forthcoming comedy drama, Holy Flying Circus, have angered rather than flattered
them.
The programme, to be screened on October 19, focuses on incidents including the 1979 television debate between Pythons John Cleese and Michael Palin, and the Bishop of Southwark and Malcolm Muggeridge.
More than 30 years later, Holy Flying Circus is billed as a "fantastical reimagining" of those events. However, Cleese and Iain Johnstone, who produced the original TV debate, have now protested at historical inaccuracies in the show.
A source close to Cleese said he offered to meet Holy Flying Circus' producers at an early stage but the meeting never occurred. Cleese had subsequently seen a copy of the script and was disappointed by its content, given it was not a fair reflection of the facts and was "full of inaccuracies".
