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Knights Of The Round Table (monty Python Song)




The song uses a device of deliberately disregarding Meter for comedic effect. Words and phrases that happen to rhyme with "table" or "Camelot," no matter how dubiously, are repeatedly crammed into service regardless of syllables or stress. The song itself makes reference to this: "So many times we're given rhymes that are quite unsingable," with the last word rendered as "unsing-AY-ble."


IN THE FILM

After King Arthur rounds up all of his knights, the group reaches the fabled castle of Camelot (which Arthur's companion Patsy quite rightly describes as "only a model"). As Arthur and his knights ride toward the castle, we see a spectacular song and dance number in which several knights (played by the entire Monty Python group and a few locals of the filming location) dance and sing about their fantastic lives as "Knights of the Round Table." The cheery number includes knights dancing on tables, kicking over fruit, banging people on the head, a prisoner in the dungeon attempting to clap along despite being chained in manacles to a wall, and cat abuse. After the song ends, Arthur remarks, "On second thought, let's not go to Camelot. 'Tis a silly place."

The sequence, like most of the castle scenes in the film, was shot at Doune Castle . The Pythons only had one day to shoot the entire musical number.


IN OTHER FORMS


Lego

Featured as a supplementary feature on the ''Monty Python and The Holy Grail special edition DVD '', a version of the entire sequence is performed by Lego block figures. The short follows the sequence perfectly, only changing one thing; instead of stepping on the cat, a knight slams a parrot onto a table, though the cat sound effect from the film remains. This is a reference to the " Dead Parrot " sketch from '' Monty Python's Flying Circus .''


''Monty Python's Spamalot''

The Broadway production of '' Monty Python's Spamalot '' features a rendition of the song in its first act. The song is redone to make it seems more like a "glitsy Las Vegas show". The title of the show is taken from a lyric in the song about how the knights "eat ham and jam and Spam a lot."