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Terry Jones: Biography, Facts and Career

Who is Terry Jones? An evergreen, sourced profile: biography, key facts and career.

By the Pop Culture Files editorial team4 min read✓ Fact-checked
Terry Jones
Eduardo Unda-Sanzana via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0

Terence Graham Parry Jones (1 February 1942 – 21 January 2020) was a Welsh actor, comedian, director, historian, writer and member of the Monty Python comedy troupe. After graduating from Oxford University with a degree in English, Jones and writing partner Michael Palin wrote and performed for several high-profile British comedy programmes, including Do Not Adjust Your Set and The Frost Report, before creating Monty Python's Flying Circus with Cambridge graduates Graham Chapman, John Cleese and Eric Idle, and American animator-filmmaker Terry Gilliam. Jones was largely responsible for the programme's innovative, surreal structure, in which sketches flowed from one to the next without the use of punch lines. He made his directorial debut with Monty Python and the Holy Grail, which he co-directed with Gilliam, and also directed the subsequent Python films Life of Brian and The Meaning of Life. His other directorial credits include Personal Services and The Wind in the Willows. Jones co-created and co-wrote with Palin the anthology series Ripping Yarns. He also wrote an early draft of Jim Henson's film Labyrinth and is credited with the screenplay. Jones was a well-respected medieval historian, having written or co-written several books and presented television documentaries about the period, as well as a prolific children's author. In 2016, Jones received a Lifetime Achievement award at the BAFTA Cymru Awards for his outstanding contribution to television and film. After living for several years with a degenerative aphasia, he gradually lost the ability to speak and died in 2020 from frontotemporal dementia.

Quick facts about Terry Jones

  • Full name: Terry Jones
  • Born: 1942-02-01
  • Nationality: United Kingdom
  • Known as: Actor
  • Wikidata ID: Q166159

Profile compiled from public Wikipedia and Wikidata data. Details can change over time.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Terry Jones?

Terence Graham Parry Jones (1 February 1942 – 21 January 2020) was a Welsh actor, comedian, director, historian, writer and member of the Monty Python comedy troupe. After graduating from Oxford University with a degree in English, Jones and writing partner Michael Palin wrote and performed for several high-profile British comedy programmes, including Do Not Adjust Your Set and The Frost Report, before creating Monty Python's Flying Circus with Cambridge graduates Graham Chapman, John Cleese and Eric Idle, and American animator-filmmaker Terry Gilliam.

What nationality is Terry Jones?

Terry Jones is United Kingdom.

When was Terry Jones born?

Terry Jones was born on 1942-02-01.

Sources

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