Sir Michael Palin has been forced to call off his forthcoming book tour following a domestic slip that left him injured, humorously describing the incident as a "comedy fall with no audience there to see it".
The 83-year-old Monty Python star had been scheduled to visit venues across the UK this month to promote his new travel book, In The Philippines. However, the nationwide tour alongside "any other events over the next few months" has now been cancelled.
Posting on Instagram on Tuesday, the actor offered his apologies to fans and detailed how a fall in his bathroom resulted in three broken ribs and a minor pelvic fracture.
He wrote: "My accident was quite unsensational, a slip in the family bathroom where I’ve walked for 58 years.
"I fell heavily on my left side resulting in three fractured ribs and a minor pelvic fracture.
"The recovery of bone fractures takes a long time, especially when you’re 83."
Alluding to a well-loved Monty Python sketch featuring John Cleese, the actor added: "It was a comedy fall with no audience there to see it. I shall stick to fish slapping dances from now on.
"Sincere apologies to everyone who has already put in a lot of work on the tour. I’d also like to say a huge thanks to the NHS for their incredible care."
A statement on Sir Michael’s website stated that ticket holders will be contacted with rescheduled dates "as soon as they are available".
The news comes after Palin revealed last year that he had been held at gunpoint while filming a Channel 5 travelogue in Venezuela.
The actor and his crew were detained by armed guards from the country’s intelligence service, SEBIN, while filming the three-part series Michael Palin in Venezuela.
In a “bizarre” turn of events, Sir Michael said the guards eventually found his name online through a Google search while the crew was “waiting to hear our fate” from SEBIN’s headquarters in Caracas.
First, they discovered an interview of Sir Michael and John Cleese in which they talked about their film The Life of Brian.
“They watched it and decided I wasn’t very funny,” Sir Michael said.
“Eventually they got on to Monty Python clips and they watched the fish-slapping dance, which is always a good thing to show people. Nearly everyone in the world, from North Korea to Venezuela, cracks up when they see that.”
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