And now for something completely different, sadly

[imastawka]

Actor and director Terry Jones, a founding member of Britain's zany Monty Python comedy team, has been diagnosed with a severe form of dementia.

Jones, 74, is a member of Monty Python's Flying Circus, formed in the late 1960s with John Cleese, Eric Idle, Graham Chapman, Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam.

A spokesperson for Jones said the comedian had been diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia (PPA), which is a variant of frontotemporal dementia.

"This illness affects his ability to communicate and he is no longer able to give interviews," the representative said in a statement on Thursday.

The National Aphasia Association describes primary progressive aphasia as a neurological disorder of language that commonly progresses to a near total inability to speak. It is not a form of Alzheimer's disease

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-09-24/monty-python-terry-jones-diagnosed-with-severe-form-of-dementi...

[lind9650]

Thank you, Icy.

Erica

[beakychew]

Very sorry to hear that.

Yesterday I was reminded of his film, Eric the Viking, and thought i should make sure my tennage son sees it (while I still have some influence!)

[imastawka]

I'd actually forgotten that one.

Must see if I can find it somewhere

[beakychew]

It's on Putlocker if you swing that way...

[electric*mayhem*band]

Dreadfully sad news. Such remarkable and off-the-wall wit and talent. 

I had to find this out on a Australian chat forum. Not a peep out of the BBC or ITV's news outlets. Shame on them.

[imastawka]

Well that just sucks,  emb.

What the hell is wrong with them all? 

[electric*mayhem*band]

I think they're more interested in the shenanigans of the no-mark, talentless, 'celebrities', and the wearisome contestants of the X Factor etc, Stawks.

And you can bet your sweet life if that had been a sportsman - in particular a football player - the sport obsessed BBC would have featured a whole programme on them, in dedication.

[*tippy*toes*]

---

@lind9650 wrote:

Thank you, tippy.

I am so glad to hear that the music remains in their heads. Liz and her husband Tony have hundreds of records and tapes of concerts. I must mention this to my DIL. She will be pleased to hear that something can keep her mother happy.

Erica

---

Back then when I worked in aged care most days we'd put records on of the old music that they would all know. Majority of them would sing along, even if they had advanced dementia. The ones that didn't sing still brightened right up. Some would be dancing in their chairs. You could tell they really enjoyed it. We had a whole stack of records, so we weren't playing the same ones every day. The piano mentioned earlier was actually a pianola and there were hundreds of rolls. We'd sit down and crank them out too. That would often get the mobile ones up and dancing. It was a very rewarding experience.

[davidc4430]

holy grail prince herbert, terry jones at his best playing prince herbert.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3YiPC91QUk

wot? the curtains lol