‘Monty Python' star Michael Palin, 82, details his will plans after losing wife: ‘I do think about death'

New York Post

2 days ago

Sir Michael Palin has plans in place for his inevitable death.
The 82-year-old star of the British comedy troupe Monty Python revealed that he's organized his will and instructed his loved ones on what to do when he dies following his wife's passing in 2023.
Speaking on the podcast 'On the Marie Curie Couch,' Palin got real about his end-of-life arrangements, noting that losing his significant other has helped his family be more open about the end.
15 Michael Palin attends the world premiere of the 'Ocean with David Attenborough' documentary.
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'I do think about death, and the family are rather wonderful about it: 'Have you made a will? Can I be in your will?'' the English comedian shared on Wednesday's episode of the podcast 'On the Marie Curie Couch.'
'I've made my will and all that. My family, my children, know where to find what they need to find should I die,' he added.
Palin made sure to note that he still finds the humor in his demise by revealing each of his three children — Thomas, 56, William, 54, and Rachel, 50 — has his passwords 'in case I get run over by a bus.'
15 Michael Palin lost his wife of over 50 years in 2023.
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15 The comedian noted that his wife's death has made his family more open about his last years.
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The actor and writer lost his wife, Helen Gibbins, in 2023 to chronic kidney disease. Palin, himself, has also gone through his own health battle.
In 2019, he underwent heart surgery to repair a mitral valve and shared how the experience made him more aware of his body.
'However fit you are, anything might happen,' Palin explained on the podcast. 'But I don't dwell on mortality. I dwell on life.'
15 Actor/Writer John Cleese, actress Jamie Lee Curtis, writer Michael Palin and wife Helen Gibbins attend 'A Fish Called Wanda' in 1988.
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15 John Cleese, Michael Palin and Graham Chapman in 'Life of Brian.'
©Warner Bros/Courtesy Everett Collection
15 Michael Palin in the 1979 flick 'The Life of Brian.'
©Orion Pictures Corp/Courtesy Everett Collection
While he stays active with work, the comedian noted that at 82, he's older than any of his other male relatives in the last 200 years.
However, he still feels his age at times.
'I kid myself that I'm going to be alright, and yet I know that I won't because you feel tired at certain times. You're slightly unsteady as you get out of bed, and you think, what's happening? Well, the old car's getting a bit rusty,' the star shared.
15 Michael Palin and Helen Gibbins in London on January 28, 1997.
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15 Michael Palin, Eric Idle and Carol Cleveland in Monty Python's 'The Meaning of Life.'
©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection
Palin also said that undergoing heart surgery 'saved my life, really.'
He explained: 'And so I've been through that, which I think is quite important – to know that your body is vulnerable. And the older you get, the more vulnerable it is.'
The legendary funnyman, who was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2019, opened up about his wife's death during the interview, too.
15 Rear from left: Michael Palin, Eric Idle, front from left: Graham Chapman as King Arthur, Terry Jones in 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail.'
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15 Terry Gilliam, Michael Palin, John Cleese, Eric Idle, John Oliver, and Terry Jones pose for a photo backstage at the 'Monty Python And The Holy Grail' special screening in 2015.
Stephen Lovekin
15 Eric Idle, Graham Chapman, Michael Palin, John Cleese, Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam in 1971.
The pair wed in 1966 and were married for 57 years when she passed away two years ago.
Palin admitted, 'There was a time when I didn't think it was going to get better. I thought, gosh, it's just going to be poignant days. I'm going to break into tears every now and then.'
However, he shared, 'It does get better and it does adjust. And after two years now I feel I could think of Helen. I'm surrounded by her anyway. I've got photos.
15 Another image of John Cleese, actress Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Palin and Helen Gibbins at 'A Fish Called Wanda' premiere.
Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images
'I haven't got rid of anything to do with her. The family embody what she was to them and that's all made it much, much easier.'
Calling losing the love of his life 'a sucker punch,' Palin said no one can predict the future.
'You absolutely don't know,' he reflected. 'You just don't know what's going to happen or how you're going to feel or how you're going to react.'
15 Eric Idle, John Cleese and Michael Palin in 'Monty Python and the Holy Grail.'
Python Pictures. Courtesy: Everett Collection.
15 Michael Palin, Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Jones in 'Monty Python's Flying Circus.'
When asked how he'd like to be remembered in life, Palin replied, 'I don't want to feel that I've been exalted on any sort of pinnacle in any shape or form.'
He credited his late wife for keeping his ego in check.
'Helen was very strong on that… She was obviously pleased that I had been successful at certain things, but didn't go on about it a lot. She was far more interested in whether I was going to be able to mend the tyre on the car,' he said.
Palin shared a silly example of their marriage dynamic, reminiscing about calling her from 12,000 feet in the air while filming in Tibet.
15 The Monty Python Troupe (1969) Bottom Row (l to r): Terry Jones, John Cleese, Michael Palin Top Row (l to r): Graham Chapman, Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam.
'I remember ringing up from the middle of the Tibetan Plateau,' he said. 'And I'm saying, 'Guess where I am?' She says, 'Well, I don't care where you are. Where's the plumber's number? The bathroom boiler's gone and it's making a terrible hissing noise.''
He noted that by the end of their conversation, 'I hadn't told her anything about the magnificent landscape… So there we are. That's sort of what life is, and I think that's what death is as well.'