And Now For Something Completely Different: Python Sketches For Your Pocket [Review]

By

I'm sorry I have a cold
I'm sorry I have a cold

Readers, your desperate wish to have Monty Python in your pocket everywhere you go has finally – finally – been granted. With Python Bytes on your iOS device, you need never be far from a quick spurt of Pythonism whenever you feel the need for it.

So whether you must hear the Parrot Sketch while waiting for the bus, or would like to pass the time in dull corporate meetings by watching Michael Palin do the Lumberjack Song, or simply enjoy seeing John Cleese in a pink bra; whatever the circumstances, this is the app for you. Possibly.

What’s on offer? Python sketches. Loads of them. Well, 22 of them.

There’s Upper Class Twit of the Year, Me Doctor, Nudge Nudge, The Silly Voices Police Station, and yes, of course, the Dead Parrot.

Your wife. Does she go? Nudge nudge?

They play randomly, and you can shake your device to skip on to another random one. It’s fun for a little while. Moreso if you like Python stuff, obviously. With 22 sketches available you’ll get through all of them in about an hour, so you need to ask yourself if an hour of Python is worth paying three dollars for. Before buying, you should also make sure that you’re willing to forego 627MB of storage space on your device, because that’s how much this appfull of videos requires. It is possible to remove sketches you don’t want to see again.

Here’s a promo vid:

What gives the app a bit of extra life is commentary by some of the remaining Pythons. It’s interesting if you’re a fan, but slightly difficult to listen to, because tapping the Commentary On/Off switch doesn’t make anything play. Instead, you have to tap a tiny orange arrow to the right of the words “Sketch Commentary” – then the comments play. Unlike a DVD, the action isn’t watchable in the background. The comments are separate.

Perhaps the most innovative feature is something called App Signing, which will only be any use to you if you’re in London this coming Thursday (May 3rd), or if you should happen to bump into any live Pythons in future.

On Thursday, three of the Pythons (Palin, Gilliam and Jones) will be at the Apple Store on Regent Street in central London, happy to sign copies of this app using this feature.

Die-hard Python fans will love this. Hell, most people will get a few giggles out of it. It’s easy to criticise the Pythons for milking an old cash cow, but wouldn’t you do the same? They brought out LPs of their sketches when I was a kid, then CDs and DVDs. They’re just moving with the times.

Pro: Albatross!

Con: It is an ex-parrot.

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