I asked back in this post if anyone — figuring it would be my friend Kim "Howard" Johnson if he's still reading this blog — knew the origin of the Pope and Michelangelo sketch that the Monty Python boys often perform at live shows. Here then is the message from Kim "Howard" Johnson…
Yes, of course I still read you — just not always on weekends.
Michelangelo and the Pope/The Penultimate Supper (they were never very good at titling their sketches) was one of those non-Python sketches that eventually became a part of the Python stage shows in order to include some less-familiar material for the fans. John Cleese and Graham Chapman wrote it, and it was first performed by John and Jonathan Lynn in the 1976 Amnesty International show, A Poke in the Eye (With a Sharp Stick). When the Pythons did it, Eric Idle always played Michelangelo, most notably in Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl and last summer's Monty Python Live (One Down, Five to Go). The version you posted (with Ade Edmondson) is from 1989's Secret Policeman's Biggest Ball.
Thanks. It's one of my favorite Python sketches. (And if you're interested in Monty Python — or just in good comedy — keep an eye on Kim's blog. He knows his stuff.