NOW THAT WAS UNEXPECTED...

The Spanish Inquisition

Three cardinals interrupt sketches at the utterance of the words ‘I didn’t expect a Spanish Inquisition’ Credit for one of Python’s most repeated phrases is laid firmly at the feet of Michael Palin.

‘When Mike first read The Spanish Inquisition out to me, I was gobsmacked – how on earth had he got to that?’ Jones recalls, while Palin himself says it just came naturally. As soon as he hit upon the ‘no-one expects’ line it fell into place.

The series of sketches are noteworthy for their final word. Having arrived at the Old Bailey just too late to utter his introductory phrase, Ximénez utters the expletive, ‘Bugger!’. In 1970, this was still a risqué word, even on late-night television, and its use was questioned by BBC management. Surprisingly, BBC Head of Comedy Michael Mills sanctioned it, having agreed it was a fitting expletive.