Michael Palin

Writer and star of  numerous TV programmes and films, from Monty Python and Ripping Yarns to The Missionary and The Death of Stalin, Sir Michael Palin has also made several much-acclaimed travel documentaries, his journeys taking him to the North and South Poles, the Sahara Desert, the Himalayas, Eastern Europe and Brazil.

Sir Michael Palin spoke to Dr Kate Walchester about his fascinating career, and his new book “Michael Palin in Venezuela”, at a sold-out event at Ullet Road Unitarian Church.

His books include accounts of his journeys, novels (Hemingway’s Chair and The Truth) and several volumes of diaries. From 2009 to 2012 he was president of the Royal Geographical Society. He received a BAFTA fellowship in 2013, and a knighthood in the 2019 New Year Honours list.

In February 2025, Michael Palin travelled to Venezuela to get a sense of what life is like in one of South America’s most culturally rich, vibrant but also troubled nations. In the journal he kept during his trip he gives a vivid account of the towns and cities he visited, the landscapes he travelled through, and the people he met. Illustrated throughout with colour photographs taken on the trip, and permeated with his warmth and humour, this is a vivid and varied portrait of a complex country.

This event was supported by RILCH, Liverpool John Moores University and Liverpool City Council.