Chapman

Graham Chapman was born in the market, and pork pie manufacturing, town of Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire on the 8th of February 1941.

His father was a 'pretty easy going' policeman and John, his elder brother by four years, was a doctor. Graham used to read his brother's medical books as a child and decided that he'd quite like to become a doctor too, and after seeing an excerpt of a Footlight's show on the television, decided that Cambridge would be the ideal place to study medicine.

He met John Cleese at university whilst they were both auditioning for the Footlights, where they eventually met Eric Idle who was elected a year later. Being two years older than Idle, and Cleese joining two years late, Chapman left Cambridge first and continued his medical studies at St. Bartholomew's Hospital.

As his moonlighting career of silly entertainer and actor took off, Chapman, now a qualified doctor, decided medicine wasn't something he could see himself doing for the rest of his life. Through working with John Cleese and Eric Idle, on fellow Footlight-er David Frost's "Frost Report", he met Michael Palin and Terry Jones.

Graham Chapman was an alcoholic and drank heavily throughout his university years, but was at his worst and lowest point during the filming of Holy Grail. It was then he realised he was killing himself and letting down his friends. He vowed to stop and did so, being tee-total and in the best possible health (that a life-time of alcohol abuse can leave you in) by the filming of The Life Of Brian.

In both films he brilliantly portrayed the lead roles of the bemused heroes King Arthur and Brian Cohen, showing what an acting talent he held.

Post Python, Chapman worked on the swashbuckling comedy "Yellowbeard" that he'd co-written with Peter Cook and Bernard McKenna years earlier. He also co-wrote the brilliant semi-autobiographical "The Liars Autobiography".

Graham lived for twenty years with partner David Sherlock, a relationship he claimed was like a marriage.

A pipe smoker all his life, he died of throat cancer on the 4th October 1989, on the eve of the Python's 20th anniversary. He was cremated, yet still manages to appear at most Python reunions....

The Graham Chapman Archives is very silly.