Graham Chapman

Graham Chapman first met his long-term partner David Sherlock in 1966. Two years later, the couple moved to Belsize Park. In 1971, they adopted teenager John Tomiczek as their son. Tomiczek later died of a heart attack in 1992.

Chapman disclosed his homosexuality in public on a TV show in 1972. He was one of the first celebrities to come out of the closet.

He was a heavy drinker and smoker. By 1973, his drinking had begun to affect his performance. Chapman stopped drinking in 1977 and remained sober for the rest of his life.

Graham Arthur Chapman was born on January 8, 1941 in Leicester, England. His father Walter Chapman was a policeman while his mother Edith Towers was a housewife. He had an older brother, John Chapman, who was born in 1936.

He studied at the Melton Mowbray Grammar School. During this time, he showed a strong affinity for sports, science, and amateur dramatics.

In 1959, he started studying medicine at the Emmanuel College, Cambridge. During this period, he joined the club Cambridge Footlights, where he first began writing with John Cleese.

After graduation, Chapman became a part of a Footlights show called "Cambridge Circus" and toured New Zealand. After the tour, he enrolled at St Bartholomew's Medical College. At this juncture, he was very confused about whether to pursue a medical career or to venture into the field of entertainment. He finally decided to be a comedian.

Following their success with Footlights, Graham Chapman and Cleese began to write for the BBC. Chapman also wrote a radio series titled ‘I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again’ and proceeded to write for the series ‘The Illustrated Weekly Hudd,’ ‘This Is Tom Jones,’ and ‘This Is Petula Clark.’

Chapman, along with Tim Brooke-Taylor and Cleese, went on to appear in the TV comedy series titled ‘At Last the 1948 Show’. This show marked Chapman's first significant role as an actor and writer.

The upcoming comedy writer then again partnered with Cleese and wrote for the TV comedy series ‘Doctor in the House’. Chapman also co-wrote many episodes of its follow up titled ‘Doctor in Charge’.

In 1969, Chapman and Cleese collaborated with Eric Idle, Michael Palin, Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones to form the surreal comedy group Monty Python. The group performed on television, acted in stage shows, and also appeared in films.

In 1975, Chapman played the lead role in the Python film, ‘Holy Grail.’ That year, he also co-wrote a pilot for the TV series ‘Out of the Trees’. Soon after this, he started writing ‘Yellowbeard’, a pirate film which was eventually released in 1983. He also starred as Captain Yellowbeard in the movie.

Graham Chapman earned much fame for his contribution to Monty Python's Flying Circus sketch, the "Dead Parrot sketch". The sketch depicted a conflict between a disgruntled customer and a shopkeeper who argue over whether or not a recently purchased parrot is dead. The team performed different versions of the sketch for various television shows and live stage shows.