The highlight of my time on the sports desk of the Western Daily Press was trying to get hold of Monty Python and Fawlty Towers' comedian John Cleese.The man responsible for the Ministry of Silly Walks is also a lifelong Bristol City fan. But when, against the expectations of his UK agent, he picked up the phone in his Californian home and called the sports desk to talk about his love for the Robins, he also let slip a little gem that set the world newswires on fire.
Cleese, like much of America, has fallen under the spell of Democratic candidate Barack Obama and, should Obama win the nomination to run for President, the former Monty Python funny man intends to offer his services as a speech writer.
Sadly for me, the legend of British comedy called back two days after I had finished my placement and the call was taken by a colleague. But it has been entertaining seeing the story spread and reliving Monty Python's greatest hits in the comments sections of each newspaper website.
Follow the story's escalation from the Western Daily Press, to the New York Times to the LA Times and a nice link back to the original story. The Independent, the Scotsman and a wealth of websites around the world also enjoyed digging out their finest Python references for the occasion. Hold the Front Page also flagged it up within the journalism fraternity.
And John, if you're following it all, apologies for sparking what must be a number of calls to your PA all in the name of a quick chat about Bristol City's prospects of promotion to the Premiership.
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