- The 77-year-old actor and comedian died last night, his family announced day
- It was announced in 2016 that he had a rare form of frontotemporal dementia
- Condition sees dementia sufferers’ conditions get progressivelyĀ worse over time
- Jones directed Monty Python And The Holy Grail in 1975 alongside Terry Gilliam
- Fellow Python star Sir Michael Palin said Jones was ‘kind and generous’ man
- John Cleese today tweeted ‘two down, four to go’ referencing the Python clan
- Stephen Fry also paid tribute saying he was ‘a wonderful talent, heart and mind’
Monty Python star Terry Jones died last night at the age of 77 with his wife by his side after battling a rare form of dementia that robbed him of his speech, his family announced today.
The actor and comedian directed some of the comedy troupe’s most-loved works, including Life Of Brian.
Tributes have poured in for Jones including from fellow Python star Sir Michael Palin who said he was ‘kind, generous, supportive and passionate about living life to the full’.
He added: ‘Terry was one of my closest, most valued friends.Ā He was far more than one of the funniest writer-performers of his generation, he was the complete Renaissance comedian – writer, director, presenter, historian, brilliant children’s author, and the warmest, most wonderful company you could wish to have.
‘I feel very fortunate to have shared so much of my life with him and my heart goes out to Anna, Alison and all his family.’
A message from the official Monty Python Twitter account read: ‘Farewell dear Terry J. Two down, four to go. Love Terry G, Mike, John & Eric.’
In 2016 it was announced that Jones had been diagnosed with primary progressive aphasia, a rare form of frontotemporal dementia where symptoms get progressively worse over time.
Fellow Python star John Cleese, 80, also said: ‘It feels strange that a man of so many talents and such endless enthusiasm, should have faded so gently away.
‘Of his many achievements, for me the greatest gift he gave us all was his direction of Life of Brian. Perfection.’ He added: ‘Two down, four to go.’