Comedian John Cleese asked the Pendulum Summit in Dublin: ‘Why don’t you Irish spell your names properly?”

An Englishman thinks it’s a shame
How an Irishman spells his own name
And can’t see our spelling
Is merely rebelling
Against England. They’re really to blame.

John Moynes

Pic: Getty

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36 thoughts on “A Limerick A Day

    1. scottser

      well they sure made a t1ts of our place names. ‘stradbally – there you go, paddy – fixed that for you’

  1. Clampers Outside !

    Stop, he was poking fun! ;0p’

    I liked the closing line of that linked piece… “As he talks about political correctness, Cleese spits in derision. Some of the audience clap. ”

    *applauds*

  2. Starina

    I doubt he really cares, he’s just having a friendly poke but it’s naturally irksome because he’s English. But leave Cleese alone. he’s a lovely old grump.

  3. Stan

    What kind of idiot pays a fortune to attend something like this in the first place? Boris Johnson??? As someone said here, and as I’ve stolen many times since, BJ is a stupid person’s idea of what a clever one sounds like. This summit sounds like a thicko’s idea of what something interesting might look like.

  4. Shayna

    “There’s something playful about the Irish?” . Perhaps I’m missing something because I live in Ireland. “Playful”, well – that appears to me as a comment that could be made by anyone who watched John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara in the movie. I expected more from JC – I know!

    1. Clampers Outside!

      He apparently said it after a witty reply from a taxi driver, and in reference to Ireland punching above its weight with creative writers… in fairness.

      1. Shayna

        I’ve got all the respect for John Cleese – leave Ireland out of it. I met Michael Palin a few times on The Goldhawk Road, London – we both like Vietnamese croissants. I just said, “Hey” – I disappointed myself.

  5. Nullzero

    From the nation that gave us the surname Cholmondeley (chumley for the confused). It’s awful how non English languages are difficult for the English to understand, particularly when they spent such a long time in the pursuit of the complete eradication of those primitive tongues. It must be difficult for an aging brilliantine stick insect like him to understand the clicks and clacks of the equatorial Irish language, i hope he had his shots before he arrived.

  6. ivan

    Without wanting to specifically have a pop at any of the Pythons, it’s an awful shame that Michael P is the only one that you’d probably want to go for a pint with.

    1. millie st murderlark

      I’ve met him before through work and I wholeheartedly agree. He’s a lovely, lovely man. Very interesting and a true gentleman.

      He also came to Dublin for his honeymoon, apparently. Little known fact.

    2. Junkface

      What! No Eric Idle or Terry Jones either? Poor Terry Jones has deteriorated lately, but I always found these two brilliantly funny and lovely gents. They’d be great to have a pint with. The Eric Idle interview on the Colbert Late show recently had the best last line of an interview I’ve heard in a long time. So funny.

      1. millie st murderlark

        Special place in my heart reserved for Eric Idle. He was my favorite Python for such a long time.

        1. ivan

          Stop me if you’ve heard this one before but if you go to Michael Palin’s website and order a book from it, he’ll dedicate it to you personally, which is awfully nice.

          There’s a great Eric Idle story where he’s at some swanky showbiz party in the early 70s (I think) and he’s talking away, moaning that he feels a trifle sidelined in Python, that Cleese and Palin are writing so much stuff and he’s kinda left to his own devices, that they occasionally throw him a bone but he feels rather unappreciated…and so George Harrison (for it is he) gives him a rueful smile….

          1. Otis Blue

            Harrison formed Handmade Films to produce the Life of Brian. They later went on to produce Withnail and I.

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