Tommaso Boddi/WireImage(LONDON) — Monty Python member Terry Jones, who also directed or co-directed the British comedy troupe’s classic films Monty Python and the Holy Grail, The Meaning of Life and Life of Brian, can no longer do interviews. According to a spokesperson, he’s been diagnosed with a form of dementia that makes it difficult for him to speak.
In a press release announcing that Jones was to receive an award from the British Academy of Film and Television arts, a spokesman for the performer said, “Terry has been diagnosed with Primary Progressive Aphasia, a variant of Frontotemporal Dementia. This illness affects his ability to communicate and he is no longer able to give interviews.”
However, continued the spokesperson, “Terry is proud and honored to be recognized in this way and is looking forward to the celebrations.”
Jones, who was born in Wales, will receive the Special Award for Outstanding Contribution to Film and Television from the Welsh branch of BAFTA. He’ll be honored October 2 at the British Academy Cymru Awards — “Cymru” is Welsh for Wales.
While Jones was a part of numerous classic Python sketches, he may be best known for portraying Mr. Creosote, the gluttonous man who ate so much he exploded, in The Meaning of Life.
Copyright © 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
