‘The laughs are all on me’: Michael Palin unable to walk unaided following fall

Monty Python star Michael Palin has said he still cannot walk without assistance after falling and breaking his ribs at home.The 83-year-old actor had to cancel a number of events including his In The Philippines travel book tour after a fall in his bathroom in October left him with three broken ribs and a cracked pelvis.Palin shared a health update on Instagram which featured a photograph of him standing in a disabled road bay.He wrote: “It’s now exactly a month since I thudded to my bathroom floor – returning from a pee at 3.30 in the morning. I still can’t walk without a Zimmer.READ MORE“The laughs are all on me. Zimmers were used in Monty Python when we wanted to play slow-moving elderly people.“Now I’m an elderly person for real, having to move very slowly as I have three broken ribs and a cracked pelvis. Bones take time to heal and I’m probably doomed to play this particular Python character for a few weeks more.”He went on to say he was recovering with a “stack of books” to read as well as by watching the spy thriller Slow Horses and This City Is Ours.Referencing a well-loved Monty Python sketch starring Palin and John Cleese, the actor added: “If things get really low, the Fish Slapping Dance.”[ Michael Palin: ‘Monty Python didn’t pay particularly well — to start with, anyway’Opens in new window ]He said: “I promise not to go to the bathroom ever again, and I shall try and find some other show dates next year.“Thank you all for your patience. Here’s to the next time.” – PA