'Very funny' naked statue of Monty Python's Terry Jones unveiled

A statue commemorating actor and writer Terry Jones has been unveiled in his birthplace.

Jones, best known for his part in the British comedy troupe Monty Python, died in 2020 aged 77 from a rare form of dementia.

His family backed a fundraising campaign to have him immortalised in bronze in Colwyn Bay, Conwy, as the nude organist, a recurring character played by Jones in Monty Python's Flying Circus.

Jones' fellow Python, Sir Michael Palin, attended the unveiling and said the late star would find the tribute "very funny indeed", adding Jones was a "brilliant man in so many ways".

Fellow Python Terry Gilliam also attended the unveiling of the statue on Saturday, which overlooked Colwyn Bay beach in north Wales.

"Mike and I were here last year and we talked to the designer and we captured the real Terry," said Gilliam.

"We've seen the work in progress and it's fantastic," he added.

"We can all fondle his bum, even in death. Children are going to do it and it will be the shiny bit.

"That was very important and we expanded that element when Michael and I were here."

Sir Michael said: "It's a great tribute. I know it's a bit silly to have a statue of a comedian, but knowing it's something Terry would like, a subversive statue, I'm quite pleased about that.

"Terry died at the start of Covid and didn't get the recognition he deserved... so now is a chance for people to catch up and say what they thought about Terry and what they liked about Terry.

"There was a tremendous amount of affection for him, quite reasonably."

The two other surviving Python members, John Cleese and Eric Idle, also supported the campaign.

"I'm quite surprised because we're a bit of a diverse lot. Nobody ever agrees on anything really, apart from what's funny, and we were always quite good at that," said Sir Michael.

Emma Thompson, Steve Coogan and Suzy Eddie Izzard were among the other celebrities who promoted the fundraising campaign, which attracted donations from around the world and hit its £120,000 target within six months.

Llandudno sculptor Nick Elphick, who regularly appears in the BBC series Extraordinary Portraits, created the design after consulting Jones' family.

He said the most challenging aspect was representing a larger-than-life character while making sure his smile was "just right for the family".

The life-sized sculpture shows the late star nude, wearing a flapping tie and with wild hair, grinning as he strikes the classic organist pose.

The organ merges into Terry's writing desk, loaded with nods to his multi-faceted career.

It reflects his work beyond Python including his medieval history books.

"I'm a perfectionist so I'm never happy, but I know that I've put my heart and soul into it," said Elphick.

"I've done literally 15-hour days for nearly a year and a half now, so I'm hoping that people love him."

Jones performed in, co-wrote and directed two Monty Python films: The Life of Brian and The Meaning of Life.

He co-directed The Holy Grail with Gilliam and also co-wrote the series Ripping Yarns with Palin, who he first met at Oxford University.

Sir Michael remembered: "Terry was the faster typist, so he would do most of the typing. And come to think of it, he also made the coffee depending where we were working."

He said Jones "would be the last person in the world to want a statue of him" but would "make an exception" for this design as "I think he'd find it very funny indeed".

Although Jones and his family relocated to Surrey when he was four, he maintained links with Colwyn Bay, becoming patron of Theatr Colwyn and backing its renovation in 2011.

Elphick said he hoped the public engaged with the statue.

"You will be completely and utterly interactive with him and I think it's going to make some iconic photographs, especially with that big soft bum he's got."