Some quick notes before we delve - No actor's names are given, so we can't tell who's playing who in the cut sketches. Only the final two scripts are actually titled 'Monty Python', as per the series; the others are still called 'Monty Python's Flying Circus'. Only Show 2 has full writing credits on the front, presumably to note the Cleese input.

	Show 4: "The Golden Age Of Ballooning"  Rehearsal Script - Typed: 06/08/74 Show Recorded: 12/10/74 TX: 31/10/74

b) After the presenter of 'Derision' has finished his piece to camera updating the Montgolfier Brothers story, he originally turned back to his guests and said "But should just anyone be allowed to join these extermination squads?". In the tx it cuts straight back to the story.

c) A cut section, alluded to by a few commentators (including Pixley and Johnson) - an alternate 'Barry Zeppelin' story:

	VOICEOVER Ferdinand Von Zeppelin was born in Constance in 1838 - the brother of Barry Zeppelin, the least talented of the fourteen Zeppelin brothers. Barry Zeppelin spent most of his life changing moustaches and trying to put his shoes on. POSS ANIMATION HERE: QUICK MONTAGE OF STRANGE PHOTOGRAPHS RECORDING BARRY ZEPPELIN'S YOUTH VOICEOVER And at the age of 19, he was sent to the Royal Institute for Less Talented Younger Brothers at Weimar. It was here he met and befriended the man who was to change his life � Harpo Nietszche, the tiny-brained younger brother of the great philosopher. EXTERIOR OF BLEAK, COLDITZ-TYPE FORTRESS. 'ROYAL INSTITUTE FOR LESS TALENTED YOUNGER BROTHERS' IN GERMAN ON SIGNPOST (CAPTION TRANSLATES) INSIDE PRISON CELL. TWO BEDS. BARRY AND HARPO ARE SEATED AT A TABLE HARPO Barry? BARRY Yes, Harpo? HARPO Er�erm�oh�(PAUSE)�oh�no� (SILENCE) HARPO Barry, you know when� BARRY Yes? HARPO What? BARRY I said 'Yes?'. HARPO What for? BARRY I said 'Yes?' because you said 'Barry?'. HARPO I don't understand. BARRY You said 'Barry?', so I said 'Yes?'. Meaning you'd got my attention. I was listening. HARPO Oh. Er�(PAUSE)�Barry? Monty Python - Series 4, Show 1 (31/10/74)

In the tx Barry Zeppelin is played by Jones in a short black and white film which depicts him attempting to inflate a large balloon but succeeding only in inflating himself and floating off.

[NOTE: We've long had a theory that all the sketches in this first show were based around a specific theme - that of miscommunication or misunderstood conversations. The sketch quoted above is yet another example.]

	VOICEOVER (PALIN) Her daughter, Alice... AN OLD EDWARDIAN PHOTO OF ATTRACTIVE YOUNG GIRL IN THE NUDE ...suffered severe cerebral damage from the talented minister's... A PICTURE OF MAINTLITZ AGAIN ...heavy briefcase... AN EDWARDIAN PHOTO OF A BRIEFCASE ...but was nursed back to life ANOTHER EDWARDIAN EROTIC POSTCARD ...by an English doctor, Henderson. A MUYERBRIDGE PHOTO OF NUDE MAN. (TG STILL HAS MY COPY OF THE MUYERBRIDGE BOOK SO THIS IS A GOOD CHANCE TO GET IT BACK FROM HIM.) Eventually, they married... Monty Python - Series 4, Show 1 (31/10/74)

For 'Muyerbridge' read 'Muybridge', as in Eadweard J. Muybridge the eighteenth century photographer famed for his studies of life movement. The book in question was probably something along the lines of The Human Figure In Motion. The Gilliam animation of the Montgolfiers sharing a bath uses similar reference material, as does Series 3's 'Gay Boys In Bondage'. It's tempting to wonder whether Gilliam was lent the book in 1972 for Series 3 and still hadn't gotten round to returning it two years later!

[NOTE (1): Having said all this, the photo of the nude man as used in the show doesn't look much like Muybridge's usual work. Could be wrong though.]

[NOTE (2): On the subject of photos - a pic of Jones and Palin rehearsing the 'Bavarian Couple' sketch from Series 4, Show 1 (31/10/74) appeared on a Python trading card in 1994. It is unusual in that both actors are out of costume, and possibly out of character. Most 'stills' which appear in Python guide books (with the exception of the screen-grabs in Wilmut's scriptbooks) are taken from dress rehearsals, and were intended as publicity for the show. Most are from the Radio Times archive). It is unclear why the 'Bavarian Couple' sketch was singled out in this way, though it's possible that the photograph comes from a private collection.]

	Show 2: "Michael Ellis"  Rehearsal Script - Typed: 08/08/74 Show Recorded: 19/10/74 TX: 07/11/74

b) In the script for 'Buying An Ant' the second assistant (Palin) claims "Oh yes, the freshest haddock in London, second floor, third floor hardware, lingerie, cricket bats, fire escapes, mandolins, ground floor over there, Ribena, ants here, fudge and flamethrowers there, behind them our dinner-wagon exhibition closes at six. I manage them all.". In the tx this line was cut down slightly. Also, a slightly different exchange here:

	QUINN (IDLE) Is there anything else I'll need? ASSISTANT (PALIN) Yes, sir - you'll need an ant house. (HE PRODUCES A BIRDCAGE) This is the model we recommend, sir. QUINN Can't he get out? ASSISTANT Well it does need the freedom. QUINN What's the point of the cage then? ASSISTANT Well we all need a headquarters, don't we? A place to call our own. Monty Python - Series 4, Show 2 (07/11/74)

The above is in fact closer to the original Holy Grail version of the script. By the time of tx the exchange had been changed to the more predictably Pythonic: "Won't it get out of there?" / "Yes." / "Well what's the point of having the cage?" / "Well none at all really..."

c) 'The Icelandic Honey Week' sketch (which eventually ended up in Series 4, Show 6) features in this script, intended as a filmed piece. Here, it is longer / slightly different, and occurs as Quinn is leaving the store with his ant.

	HE PASSES THE ICELANDIC HONEY WEEK STALL ICELANDIC HONEY WEEK SALESMAN (CHAPMAN) A strong hive of bees contains approximately 75,000 bees. A single bee makes 154 trips for one teaspoon of honey. Hallo sir. QUINN (IDLE) Can you tell me who� IHWS Would you like to taste some of our honey, sir? QUINN No, I want to know who this Michael Ellis is. (HE POINTS RATHER TENTATIVELY TO HIS HEAD) IHWS Which would you like � Californian orange blossom, Mexican, New Zealand, Scottish heather? QUINN Look, I just want to know why everyone�keeps on� IHWS Come on, try some. QUINN Well could I try some Icelandic honey? I've never� IHWS There is no such thing. In Iceland it is so cold it freezes the little buggers solid in mid air. QUINN You don't make any honey at all? IHWS No, we must import it � every bleedin' drop. We are a gloomy people. It's so bleedin' cold and dark up there and only fish to eat. Fish and imported honey. Oh Christ! QUINN Well why do you have a week? IHWS Look, buster! In Reyjavick, it is dark for eight months of the year � cold enough to freeze your balls off and only bleedin' fish to eat. Administrative errors are bound to occur in enormous quantities. Look (POINTS AT SIGN), this is a mistake. I'm so pissed off. To gather a pound of honey, a bee flies a distance equivalent to three times round the world and then its wings wear out. Icelandic Honey Week, my life! (MAKES STRANGE GESTURE) QUINN Anyway, all I want to know is why everyone in this store thinks I'm someone called Michael Ellis. IHWS The leg of the worker honey bee is� QUINN Do you know this Michael Ellis? IHWS Look, cowboy, I got a job to do. It's a stupid pointless job but at least it keeps me away from Iceland. ...is comprised of four tiny segments � the honey is stored in the tibia� Monty Python - Series 4, Show 2 (07/11/74)

The "freezes the little buggers" line has been noticeably edited from the Show 6 performance of the sketch.

Most of the swearing doesn't survive the later rewrite. The various 'bleedin''s above transformed into 'bally', 'crikey' and 'golly'. 'Oh Christ!' is changed to 'Oh strewth!'. He also freezes his 'wrists' off rather than his 'balls'. 'I'm so pissed off' is substituted by 'it's a real pain in the sphincter'. It would be interesting to find out whether the softening of the language was at BBC insistance or whether the team still felt the presence of John Cleese shaking his head with dismay.

In the 'Michael Ellis' version there's a vague escalation of the concept as Quinn moves on and passes a 'German Clothes Prop Week' (accompanied by cries of 'I'm so pissed off!' from the German salesman).

c) Both Johnson and Pixley allude to a filmed-but-cut sequence in which a man makes a 'speech against the Papish' at the department store's 'Paisley Counter'. The rehearsal script features quite an involved bit of text filled with Ian Paisley clichés like 'Smash the Papist Swine', with the idea that the performers could jam around it during filming. The speech may only have been planned as background detail anyway since the sequence as originally planned does appear in the show (at least in the versions we've seen) - Chris Quinn (Idle) walks past the counter in question (which has a large sign above it) after buying his ant, noting several customers 'TALKING TO MIRRORS IN THICK IRISH ACCENTS' (strains of Series 3's 'Language Laboratory' here). He attempts to engage one of them in conversation but they're far too engrossed. We hear several characters repeat variations on the phrase "We must stamp out the Papist swine with the iron hoof of Protestant enlightenment!" before Quinn gives up and heads for the lift.

[NOTE (1): The Just For Words scriptbook mentions the 'thick Irish accents' but doesn't allude to anything remotely anti-Papal.]

[NOTE (2):Later in the show we see a photo of the Reverend Ian Paisley with a stick-on wig in the background of the 'Toupee Hall' sketch.]

e) Upon his return to the department store to complain about his faulty ant Quinn encounters a biologically-challenged lift operator (Palin) who proceeds to recite what's on offer at each floor. In the tx, as Idle leaves the lift and the doors close, we hear her say "Fourth floor... kiddies' vasectomies". This line has been (quite crudely) over-dubbed. Earlier drafts of the sequence - in both the version originally intended for the Holy Grail film, and in the rehearsal script, had the line as "kiddies' condoms".

f) Quinn attempts to complain about his faulty ant. He approaches the manager who is standing in a sack. There follows a very long section which was severely script edited by the time of the recording session:

	MANAGER Oh don't worry about this. It's er�it's for the sack race later on. It may appear rather childish, but it's all in good fun. QUINN Oh, I see. Well, it's about the ant I bought here this morning. It looks as though� MANAGER Normally of course I wouldn't dream of wearing this in office hours, but it all goes to charity. QUINN Oh yes. Well very good, I'm sure. Can I give something to the charity? MANAGER No, sir, no. Oh no. QUINN Well anyway, I bought this ant here this morning and I found�why can't I give something to the charity? MANAGER What sir? QUINN Why can't I give you something towards your charity? MANAGER Well, it's�it's not the kind of charity you'd probably be interested in, sir. QUINN Why? What is the charity? MANAGER Oh, nothing. Forget it. Very nice of you to offer, but really�forget it. Now, ants was it sir? QUINN What's so special about this charity? MANAGER Nothing! Nothing! QUINN Oh come on! MANAGER It's nothing special, sir. It's just that I feel it's probably not within�er�sir's� QUINN Within my what? (REACHES FOR WALLET) Look, there you are � there's a pound. MANAGER No, it's all right. Really. QUINN There's a pound. For your charity. MANAGER No, well quite frankly this isn't just your street corner buy-a-little-flag type charity. QUINN Look, that's a pound! (MANAGER LAUGHS PLEASANTLY) MANAGER No sir, really� QUINN Alright � there's five pounds. MANAGER No�please, sir�no. Now where we we? Little Marcus is damaged? Imperfect I believe? QUINN Look, twenty five pounds then. Twenty five pounds, all yours. MANAGER Please sir. Forget it. QUINN Twenty five pounds! For your charity! MANAGER No, please�people are looking, sir. QUINN Look, what kind of charity doesn't want twenty five pounds? MANAGER Sir, I have asked you� QUINN (PRODUCES WAD OF NOTES HIS MOTHER GAVE HIM TO BUY 'TELLIES'): Look, here's a hundred and eighty pounds! MANAGER Sir, if you persist in carrying on like this I shall have to ask our Mr Bailey to escort you. QUINN A hundred and eighty pounds. One hundred and eighty pounds! All for your charity. ENTER COLONEL COLONEL Excuse me. MANAGER Yes sir? COLONEL I'm trying to find the complaints please. MANAGER Oh yes, sir. Left, then straight along, then right by the thing, left up the little stairs, right, left, then right by where it's all gone soft, up to your left past that lot, and straight on and it's the door marked exit on your left as you go in. COLONEL Oh thank you. (DROPS COIN IN CHARITY BOX) MANAGER Thank you, sir. QUINN What is this? I� MANAGER Please sir, I have a sack race in twenty minutes. QUINN It's disgusting! MANAGER If you have a complaint about the service, sir, you can go and see the managing director. QUINN Right, I will � I jolly well will! (HE GOES OFF, STOPS, AND THEN COMES BACK RATHER SHEEPISHLY) QUINN Where is he? MANAGER In the toupee hall, sir. Monty Python - Series 4, Show 2 (07/11/74)

The 'Colonel' is of course the same one we see nearer the end of the episode, sitting at the burning complaints desk. In the shortened version of the scene Terry Jones' manager is still seen in a sack but the 'charity' aspect of the sack race isn't mentioned (in fact in the txd version the manager actively waves a collecting tin at Quinn before the ant-buying - and Quinn donates a few coins). The tx still ends with Quinn being directed to the Toupee Hall. A slightly rewritten version of the directions the manager gives the Colonel ("past the bit where it's gone all soft") were given to Palin's lift operator in the finished show.

e) Here's a bit cut from the 'End Of Show Department:

	ASSISTANT There is an ending which ties up the whole Michael Ellis thing, but� QUINN But what? ASSISTANT Nothing, nothing sir� QUINN Well, what is it? ASSISTANT Well�well�quite frankly it probably is a bit beyond your� QUINN Beyond my what? ASSISTANT Well it involved Michael Ellis being a spy in Russia � sleigh teams, wolves, battle on the ice� QUINN So? ASSISTANT Well the BBC couldn't afford it, sir. It's really for thirty-second adverts. Monty Python - Series 4, Show 2 (07/11/74)

In the tx Quinn simply says "Look, who is this Michael Ellis?". The above was probably filmed (the assistant goes on to say "What about summing up from the panel? That's cheap")

At the end there is a script note insisting that the blank screen after the 'sudden ending' should remain for 'AT LEAST TEN SECONDS PLEASE' before the show officially ends. Having heard an off-air audio recording of the show as it was originally broadcast we can confirm that this definitely happened. So Paramount Video have some explaining to do...