Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1678 in DVD
• Released on: 2004-10-11
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1

DVD Description
Michael Palin stars in this wickedly funny collection of spoof adventures which hysterically portray gloriously English eccentricity.

These are the complete classics from the pens of Michael Palin and Terry Jones.

Episode titles: Tomkinson's Schooldays, The Testing of Eric Olthwaite, Escape From Stalag Luft 112 B, Murder at Moorstones Manor, Across the Andes by Frog, The Curse of the Claw, Whinfrey's Last Case, Golden Gordon, Roger of the Raj.

Synopsis
RIPPING YARNS features three exciting tales from different eras starring comic actor extraordinaire Michael Palin. The films also star Gwen Watford, Ian Ogilvy, Roy Kinnear, and Bill Fraser. Stories include: Tomkinson's Schooldays, Escape From Stalag Luft 112B, and Golden Gordon.

Customer Reviews

Idiots
The reviewers who gave this 1 or 2 stars are complete idiots. This is pure comedy gold. Buy and enjoy

Boys Own Adventure Series
`Ripping Yarns' ran for three years with a pilot episode broadcast in 1976, a first series of five episodes broadcast in 1977 and a final run of three episodes in 1979. In a world hungry for more Monty Python it was an assured success.

Written by Michael Palin and Terry Jones, the Oxford University contingent of Python, whom were also to be it's stars although Jones took a back seat after the pilot to allow Palin to shine on his own. Each episode was a self contained story entirely shot on film which was perfection in every aspect except for an annoying laughter track which fortunately can be omitted when playing as from the DVD.

The stories were `Ripping Yarns' as they were on the main affectionate parodies of the `Boys Own' adventure type stories that were popular with schoolboys all over Britain with Adventures such as Quartermain and Hannay forever saving England from fiendish communist Jew threats of war and adventure.

The Quality is so high it is difficult to pick out favourites but I never tire of watching `Across the Andes by Frog', `The Testing of Eric Olthwaite' and `Golden Gordon'. Ripping Stuff.

Dissappointing
I am a huge fan of Michael Palin, he is my favourite of the Pythons and I love his travel shows. So having read some of the rave reviews about this series and also lived through the making of the series in reading his diaries I bought this DVD set with huge anticipation.

Sadly I was disspointed, although I had to watch about 5 episodes before I would admit to my wife that I found it as dull as she did. The plots were thin, and predictable, they failed to make me laugh. It didn't survive the test of time. I thought it would redeem itself when I watched the one episode I had seen before "Golden Gordon" which I had fond memories of, but even this failed to deliver. I will at some point try and watch the 3 or so episodes on the set which I haven't got round to watching yet, but it will have to be when my wife is asleep !