The gofundme campaign to pay for a statue of Terry Jones in his home town of Colwyn Bay has almost reached half the amount after being launched this week. The fund is hoping to raise £120,000 and has so far raised over £49,000 in pledges.
The campaign says: "Colwyn Bay gave us Terry and we are hoping to give something back."
Terry Jones had close connections with the area. He was the Welsh one in Monty Python, that comedy collective who were famous for having their film, Life of Brian, banned in Aberystwyth. Born in Colwyn Bay, Terry was a proud Welshman, forever proclaiming his Welshness in an accent straight out of Surrey. The idea for a statue came from Terry’s friends at Theatr Colwyn. Terry was their very first Patron and he’d often come to Colwyn Bay for screenings or fundraising events. After his death due to dementia in January 2020, Theatr Colwyn contacted Sally and Bill, Terry’s children, and asked if they thought a statue of Terry might be a good idea. They both thought it would be wonderful and so this campaign was born.
Sally and Bill Jones, pictured with Michael Palin said: “It would be wonderful if you could join us in becoming a supporter of A Python on the Prom. Terry loved Wales and we think he’d be incredibly proud that his home town wants to remember him in this way. We’ve started the ball rolling with a donation, but we can only reach our target with your help. Please donate now.”
Local artist Nick Elphick will bring Terry’s likeness to life. Nick is a passionate visionary who’s spent the better part of his career studying the human form. He’s gained countless headlines, and global recognition, for his beautifully crafted bronzes.
What the statue will look like has not been confirmed, but there has been a strong lobby on social media that it should be a bronze of terry in his famous "naked organist" post from Monty Python.
Eric Idle posted on X: "I have passed on to the family that the overwhelming choice of my Twitter folk is for the nude organist. Of course I’m not quite sure how Colwyn Bay will take to that but I think it should be somewhere for sure. Probably the most iconic Python image."
Donate to the fund here.
