The Monty Python sketch titled "Witch Trial" is a humorous portrayal of a mock trial scene set during the time of witch trials in England. The sketch begins with a group of villagers, led by a Witchfinder, accusing a woman named Mrs. Premise of being a witch. The villagers present various absurd and comical arguments as evidence of her alleged witchcraft, such as her ability to float and her possession of a broomstick. Throughout the sketch, the absurdity of the accusations and the villagers' ignorance are highlighted. The Witchfinder, played by John Cleese, demonstrates a lack of understanding as he questions the accused woman and interprets innocent actions as signs of witchcraft.
Witch trial monty python
Monty Python
Witch Scene Script
Cast:
(V) Sir Vladimir
(King) King is Arthur, King of the Britains!
(W) 'Witch' woman
(P1,P2,P3) Peasants one, two and three
Peasants: We have found a witch! (A witch! a witch!)
Burn her burn her!
Peasant 1: We have found a witch, may we burn her?
(cheers)
Vladimir: How do you known she is a witch?
P2: She looks like one!
V: Bring her forward
(advance)
Woman: I'm not a witch! I'm not a witch!
V: ehh. but you are dressed like one.
W: They dressed me up like this!
All: naah no we didn't. no.
W: And this isn't my nose, it's a false one.
(V lifts up carrot)
V: Well?
P1: Well we did do the nose
V: The nose?
P1: . And the hat, but she is a witch!
(all: yeah, burn her burn her!)
V: Did you dress her up like this?
P1: No! (no no. no) Yes. (yes yeah) a bit (a bit bit a bit) But she has got a wart!
(P3 points at wart)
V: What makes you think she is a witch?
P2: Well, she turned me into a newt!
V: A newt?!
(P2 pause & look around)
P2: I got better.
(pause)
P3: Burn her anyway! (burn her burn her burn!)
(king walks in)
V: There are ways of telling whether she is a witch.
P1: Are there? Well then tell us! (tell us)
V: Tell me. what do you do with witches?
P3: Burn'em! Burn them up! (burn burn burn)
V: What do you burn apart from witches?
P1: More witches! (P2 nudge P1)
(pause)
P3: Wood!
V: So, why do witches burn?
(long pause)
P2: Cuz they're made of. wood?
V: Gooood.
(crowd congratulates P2)
V: So, how do we tell if she is made of wood?
P1: Build a bridge out of her!
V: Ahh, but can you not also make bridges out of stone?
P1: Oh yeah.
V: Does wood sink in water?
P1: No
P3: No. It floats!
P1: Let's throw her into the bog! (yeah yeah ya!)
V: What also floats in water?
P1: Bread
P3: Apples
P2: Very small rocks
(V looks annoyed)
P1: Cider
P3: Grape gravy
P1: Cherries
P3: Mud
King: A Duck!
(all look and stare at king)
V: Exactly! So, logically.
P1(thinking): If she ways the same as a duck. she's made of wood!
V: And therefore,
(pause & think)
P3: A witch! (P1: a witch)(P2: a witch)(all: a witch!)
V: We shall use my largest scales.
(V jumps down)
----------------------------end?---------------------------------
(walk over while cheering)
(push her into scale)
V: Right, remove the stops!
(wait while scales remains still)
All: A witch! burn her burn her!!
Monty Python and the Holy Grail – "And therefore… a witch!"
Within seconds of Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), one cannot help but legitimately laugh out loud. We are introduced to King Arthur (Graham Chapman) pretending to ride a horse through the English countryside, with his trusty valet Patsy (Terry Gilliam) following along as a private Foley studio creating the clatter of hooves with two halves of a coconut. In 1975, The Beatles of British comedy, Monty Python (Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones, Michael Palin) decided that the Arthurian legends were some fertile ground for their particular brand of absurdist nonsense by way of incisive class satire. Thus, Monty Python and the Holy Grail was conceived on a break between the third and fourth series of Monty Python’s Flying Circus. Holy Grail sees King Arthur assemble the Round Table Knights before being tasked with finding the grail, by God no less.
On King Arthur’s early search for Knights, he comes upon an angry mob, attempting to burn a witch (Connie Booth) at the stake. The Knight/Magistrate, in his nonsensical musical accent, asks to take a look. When Booth’s witch gets brought to him she straightforwardly tells the Knight/Magistrate that she’s not a witch and that the mob has dressed her like one, even by forcing her to wear a false nose (that looks very much like a colour drained carrot on a string). Of course in the deranged and muddied peasant horde are the instantly recognisable faces of Idle, Cleese, Jones and co. The Knight/Magistrate inspects the nose, sees that it’s false and the mob admits to the fact that they too made her wear the hat, but that’s all – she is most definitely a witch.
Some embedded content has been omitted:
She's a witch! by NM05
Monty Python is creating their micro version of The Crucible, playwright Arthur Miller’s metaphor for McCarthyism using the Salem witch trials. It’s challenging to describe how perfect this kind of rationalisation of witchery plays. We’re meant to accept an Arthur who doesn’t have a horse, whose been interrogated about where his valet got those coconuts? We’re meant to casually accept this mob rationalisation after Arthur casually fights off the infamous Black Knight – who after his arm is lopped off, deflects that it’s a flesh wound. It’s just another perfect calibration of penetrating and ridiculous; walking in step with layer upon layer of absurd contradiction. It’s the Python instinct to infuse these setups for hope and rationality in this satirical scenario; before they take great perverse pleasure in the ludicrous and pervert the entire line of rational questioning. The mob’s desperation for this witch hunt and exasperation at any of the questions from the Knight/Magistrate as to the validity of their prisoner’s witchy qualities continues to be hilarious. The more they’re confused by his logic, you realise that you’re pulling a similarly confounded expression. Set up for hope, NONSENSE NONSENSE NONSENSE, “And therefore. A witch!”
– Blake Howard
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Witch trial monty python
This page is part of the website
by Burkard Polster and Marty Ross
17:03
- Crowd: A witch! A witch! A witch! We found a witch! We've got a witch! A witch! A witch! We have found a witch. May we burn her?
- How do you know she is a witch
- She looks like one.
- Bring her forward.
- I'm not a witch! I'm not a witch !
- But you are dressed as one.
- They dressed me like this. - No, we didn't.
- And this isn't my nose. It's a false one.
- Well? - We did do the nose.
- The nose? - And the hat. But she is a witch !
- Did you dress her up like this? - No, no!
- Yes. A bit.
- She has got a wart.
- What makes you think she's a witch?
- She turned me into a newt!
- A newt?
- I got better.
- Burn her anyway!
- Quiet! Quiet!
- There are ways of telling whether she is a witch.
- Are there? What are they? Tell us. - Do they hurt?
- Tell me, what do you do with witches?
- Burn them!
- And what do you burn, apart from witches?
- More witches! - Wood!
- So why do witches burn?
- 'Cause they're made of wood? - Good!
- How do we tell if she is made of wood? - Build a bridge out of her.
- But can you not also make bridges out of stone?
- Oh, yeah.
- Does wood sink in water?
- No, it floats. - Throw her into the pond!
- What also floats in water?
- Bread. - Apples.
- Very small rocks. - Cider! Great gravy.
- Cherries. Mud. - Churches.
- Lead. - A duck!
- Exactly.
- So, logically--
- If she weighs the same as a duck.
- she's made of wood.
- And therefore?
- A witch!
- A duck! A duck! - Here's a duck.
- We shaIl use my largest scales.
- Burn the witch !
- Remove the supports!
- A witch!
- It's a fair cop.
- Who are you, who are so wise in the ways of science?
- I am Arthur, king of the Britons.
The Witchfinder, played by John Cleese, demonstrates a lack of understanding as he questions the accused woman and interprets innocent actions as signs of witchcraft. The scene escalates into a series of chaotic events as other characters, including a knight in armor and a man holding a duck, enter the courtroom. The sketch uses satire and humor to critique the irrationality and hysteria surrounding historical witch trials.
It highlights the absurdity of accusing someone based on superstitious beliefs and flimsy evidence. The villagers' absolute belief in the accusations, despite their lack of logic, serves to expose the irrationality of mass hysteria and the dangers of blindly following popular opinion without critical thinking. The Monty Python sketch "Witch Trial" is a classic example of the group's ability to use comedy to make social and historical commentary. By poking fun at the serious subject of witch trials, the sketch prompts viewers to question the irrationality and injustice of such events throughout history. It serves as a reminder to approach historical events with a critical eye and to guard against the dangers of mob mentality and blind belief..
Reviews for "Monty Python's Witch Trials: A Lesson in Comedy and History"
1. Emily - 1/5 stars - I couldn't stand "Witch Trial Monty Python." The humor felt forced and the sketches were disjointed. The whole concept of making fun of witch trials just seemed tasteless to me. The jokes were predictable and lacked the cleverness that I usually associate with Monty Python. Overall, I was extremely disappointed with this production and wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
2. John - 2/5 stars - I wanted to like "Witch Trial Monty Python" but it just didn't live up to my expectations. The sketches were hit or miss, with some being mildly amusing but most falling flat. It felt like they were trying too hard to be edgy and controversial, but it just came off as trying to shock for the sake of shock. The humor lacked the wit and cleverness that Monty Python is known for. While there were a few moments that made me chuckle, it wasn't enough to salvage the overall disappointment of this production.
3. Sarah - 2/5 stars - I found "Witch Trial Monty Python" to be quite disappointing. The jokes were often tasteless and relied too heavily on shock value. It felt like they were trying too hard to be controversial and provocative, without actually being funny. The sketches felt disjointed and lacked any cohesive theme. I'm a fan of Monty Python's previous works, but this one was a miss for me. I would recommend skipping this one and revisiting their classics instead.
4. David - 1/5 stars - "Witch Trial Monty Python" was a complete letdown. The humor was crass and offensive, without any real cleverness or wit. It felt like they were trying to shock the audience rather than make them laugh. The sketches were poorly executed and lacked any substance. I expected more from Monty Python, but they really dropped the ball on this one. I wouldn't waste my time or money on this production.