- published: 28 Jun 2011
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Coordinates: 53°42′58″N 1°37′37″W / 53.716°N 1.627°W / 53.716; -1.627
Batley is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England. It lies 7 miles (11 km) southeast of Bradford, 7 miles (11 km) southwest of Leeds and 1 mile (2 km) north of Dewsbury, near the M62 motorway. It has a population of 49,448 (including Birstall). Other nearby towns include: Morley to the northeast, Ossett to the southeast and Brighouse westsouthwest. After undergoing a period of major growth in the 19th century through the success of the shoddy (recycled wool) trade, Batley has more recently undergone a period of decline. Batley is part of a special EU transformation zone.
The name Batley is derived from Danish, meaning either valley or homestead of bats, or more likely, homestead of the locally prominent Batte family. It is recorded in the Domesday Book as 'Bateleia'. After the Norman Conquest, the manor was granted to Ilbert de Lacy. It subsequently passed into the ownership of the de Batleys, and by the 12th century had passed by marriage to the Copley family. Their residence at Batley Hall was held directly from the Crown; at this time the district fell within the Duchy of Lancaster. The population at this time was 30 to 40 people. By the late 14th century, the population has increased to around 100.
Monty Python (sometimes known as The Pythons) was a British surreal comedy group who created Monty Python's Flying Circus, a British television comedy sketch show that first aired on the BBC on 5 October 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four series. The Python phenomenon developed from the television series into something larger in scope and impact, spawning touring stage shows, films, numerous albums, several books and a stage musical as well as launching the members to individual stardom. The group's influence on comedy has been compared to The Beatles' influence on music.
The television series, broadcast by the BBC from 1969 to 1974, was conceived, written and performed by members Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin. Loosely structured as a sketch show, but with an innovative stream-of-consciousness approach (aided by Gilliam's animation), it pushed the boundaries of what was acceptable in style and content. A self-contained comedy team responsible for both writing and performing their work, the Pythons' creative control allowed them to experiment with form and content, discarding rules of television comedy. Their influence on British comedy has been apparent for years, while in North America it has coloured the work of cult performers from the early editions of Saturday Night Live through to more recent absurdist trends in television comedy. "Pythonesque" has entered the English lexicon as a result.
Actors: John Daheim (actor), Keith Hitchcock (actor), Bud Abbott (actor), Henry Corden (actor), Harry Cording (actor), Wilson Benge (actor), Jimmy Aubrey (actor), Clyde Cook (actor), Reginald Denny (actor), John Dierkes (actor), Al Ferguson (actor), Arthur Gould-Porter (actor), Lou Costello (actor), Chuck Hamilton (actor), Boris Karloff (actor),
Plot: Slim and Tubby are American cops in London to study police tactics. They wind up in jail and are bailed out by Dr. Jekyll. Jekyll has been murdering fellow doctors who laugh at his experiments. He has more murders in mind. At one point the serum that turns Jekyll into the murderous Hyde gets injected into Tubby.
Keywords: abbott-and-costello, abbreviation-in-title, actor, animal-cage, baby-carriage, based-on-novel, baton-as-law-enforcement-tool, bookcase, breaking-down-a-door, breaking-glass