Ripping Yarns

Lore & Background

Ripping Yarns was created by Michael Palin and Terry Jones, both of Monty Python. The BBC commissioned a pilot in 1975, resulting in Tomkinson's Schooldays, a title suggested by BBC director Terry Hughes. Palin and Jones wrote and starred in multiple roles in the pilot, but Jones did not appear in further episodes after producer James Gilbert decided it should be a Michael Palin series. The series was nominated for a BAFTA in 1978 for Best Film Cameraman and won in 1980 for Best Light Entertainment Programme/Series.

Reader's Guide

Ripping Yarns remains significant as a distinctive parody of early 20th-century British boys' adventure literature, showcasing the comic talents of Palin and Jones outside Monty Python. Its nine episodes, each a self-contained spoof, were praised for superior production values and described by the Guardian as charming, insightful, and very silly. The series was repeated on BBC Four in 2014, preceded by a documentary examining the original boys' magazines it parodied. The scripts were published in book form, and a fully restored DVD set was released in 2004 with commentaries by Palin and Jones. Its legacy endures as a cult classic of British television comedy.

Did You Know?

• The pilot episode Tomkinson's Schooldays was shot on videotape in front of a studio audience, while all other episodes were shot on film.
• John Cleese makes a cameo appearance in the episode 'Golden Gordon'.
• The theme tune was Fanfare from the ‘Facade Suite No. 2' by Sir William Walton, played by the City of Birmingham Orchestra.
• Across the Andes by Frog originally appeared in Bert Fegg's Nasty Book for Boys and Girls, co-authored by Palin and Jones.