File:Monty_Python_and_the_Holy_Grail_Graham_Chapman_(1975_publicity_photo)_(cropped).jpg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
Graham Chapman
Sign in to saveAlso known as Gray Chapman, Graham Arthur Chapman
English actor, comedian and writer (1941–1989)
OverviewAI-generated
Graham Arthur Chapman was a British comedian, writer, actor, and screenwriter. Born in Leicester, Leicestershire, England, in 1941, he was a member of the group Monty Python. His professional career began in 1960 and continued until 1989. Chapman received the European Film Academy Lifetime Achievement Award. He was educated at Emmanuel College, Queen Mary University of London, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, and the University of Cambridge.
Chapman authored works including *Monty Python's Big Red Book*, *Brand New Monty Python Papperbok*, *Pythons' Autobiography by the Pythons*, *The fairly incomplete & rather badly illustrated Monty Python songbook*, and *Second Liars Autobiography Chapman*. He died of oropharynx cancer in Maidstone in 1989. Chapman is buried in Wales. He was male and identified as homosexual. His native language was English.
Synthesized by Vinony from 31 facts across 3 sources: Wikidata, Open Library, TMDb. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.
Person · Open Library
- Born
- 1941
- Died
- 1989
- Works
- 42
Top works
- Monty Python's Big Red Book
- Brand New Monty Python Papperbok
- Pythons' Autobiography by the Pythons
- The fairly incomplete & rather badly illustrated Monty Python songbook
- Second Liars Autobiography Chapman
via Open Library + Wikidata
Film & TV
Leicester, Leicestershire, England
Graham Arthur Chapman (January 8, 1941 – October 4, 1989) was an English comedian, physician, writer, and actor and one of the six members of the Monty Python comedy troupe. He was also the lead actor in their two narrative films, playing King Arthur in Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Brian in Monty Python's Life of Brian. He co-authored and starred in the film Yellowbeard. Chapman was born…
Known for
- Monty Python's Best Bits Celebrated — Self (archive footage)(uncredited)2021
- Python at 50: Silly Talks and Holy Grails — Self (archive footage)2019
- Monty Python's Best Bits (Mostly) — Self (archive footage)2014
- A Liar's Autobiography: The Untrue Story of Monty Python's Graham Chapman — Self (voice)2012
- Anatomy of a Liar — Self2012
- Monty Python: Almost the Truth (The Lawyer's Cut) — Self (archive footage)2009
- Life Of Brian Screenplay — Wise Man #2, Brian Cohen, Biggus Dickus2008
- Monty Python: Before the Flying Circus — Self (archive footage)2008
- Hitler: The Comedy Years — Joachim von Ribbentrop (archive footage) (uncredited)2007
- The Secret Life of Brian — Self / Brian (archive footage) (uncredited)2007
via TMDB
Key facts
- Born
- ( 1941-01-08 ) 8 January 1941, Leicester , England
- Died
- 4 October 1989 (1989-10-04) (aged 48), Maidstone, Kent , England
- Other name
- Gray Chapman
- Alma mater
- Emmanuel College, Cambridge , St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College
- Occupations
- Actor comedian writer
- Years active
- 1960–1989
- Known for
- One of six members of Monty Python
- Partner
- David Sherlock (1966–1989)
- Children
- 1 (adopted)
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- human
- Given name
- Arthur
- Family name
- Chapman
- Gender
- male
- Citizenship
- United Kingdom
- Place of death
- Maidstone
- Occupation
- television actor
- Educated at
- University of Cambridge
- Languages spoken
- British English
- Native language
- English language
- Image
- Graham Chapman on SNL Newsbreaks (cropped).jpg
Show 12 more facts
- date of birth
- 1941-01-08
- date of death
- 1989-10-04
- cause of death
- oropharynx cancer
- manner of death
- natural causes
- Commons category
- Graham Chapman
- sexual orientation
- homosexuality
- start of work period
- 1960-00-00
- member of
- Monty Python
- birth name
- Graham Arthur Chapman
- place of burial
- Wales
- nickname
- Gra
- end of work period
- 1989-00-00
Sources (8)
via Wikidata · CC0
~23 min read
Encyclopedic overview
Graham Chapman (8 January 1941 – 4 October 1989) was a British actor, comedian and writer. He was one of the six members of the surrealist comedy group Monty Python. He portrayed authority figures such as The Colonel and the lead role in two Python films, Holy Grail (1975) and Life of Brian (1979).
Chapman was born in Leicester and was raised in Melton Mowbray. He enjoyed science, acting, and comedy and after graduating from Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College, he turned down a career as a doctor to be a comedian. Chapman eventually established a writing partnership with John Cleese, which reached its critical peak with Monty Python during the 1970s. He subsequently left Britain for Los Angeles, where he attempted to be a success on American television, speaking on the college circuit and producing the pirate film Yellowbeard (1983), before returning to Britain in the early 1980s.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Graham Chapman” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.