The funny, warm and moving diaries of a man at the centre of one of the world's most influential comedy troupes. Titles in this set:1. The Python Years: Diaries 1969-1979 (Volume 1)2. Halfway To Hollywood: Diaries 1980-1988 (Volume 2)3. Travelling to Work: Diaries 1988–1998 (Volume 3)Description: The Python Years: Diaries 1969-1979 (Volume 1)Michael Palin's diaries begin when he was newly married and struggling to make a name for himself in the world of television comedy. But Monty Python was just around the corner . . .This engaging volume is a window into the world of Monty Python, from the group's early cult success to the global superstardom that followed. Amongst tales from the making of THE HOLY GRAIL and LIFE OF BRIAN are stories of the three-day week and the various trials of a peripatetic life, told with Michael's trademark warmth and good humour.Halfway To Hollywood: Diaries 1980-1988 (Volume 2)After a live performance at the Hollywood Bowl, The Pythons made their last performance together in 1983 in the hugely successful MONTY PYTHON'S MEANING OF LIFE. Writing and acting in films and television then took over much of Michael Palin's life, culminating in the smash hit A FISH CALLED WANDA (for which he won a BAFTA for Best Supporting Actor), and the first of his celebrated television journeys for the BBC. He co-produced, wrote and played the lead in THE MISSIONARY opposite Maggie Smith, who also appeared with him in A PRIVATE FUNCTION, written by Alan Bennett. Such was Michael's fame in the US that he was enticed into once again hosting Saturday Night Live (with his mother making a highly successful surprise guest appearance). Over the course of these diaries he films several more journeys for television and becomes chairman of the pressure group Transport 2000. His family remains a constant as his and Helen's children enter their teens. Travelling to Work: Diaries 1988–1998 (Volume 3)A rollercoaster ride driven by the Palin hallmarks of humour, curiosity and a sense of adventure. Michael Palin was not the BBC's first choice for the travel series AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS, but after its success, the public naturally wanted more. Palin, however, had other plans. There was his film AMERICAN FRIENDS, a role in Alan Bleasdale's award-winning drama GBH, the staging of his West End play THE WEEKEND, a first novel, HEMINGWAY'S CHAIR, and a lead role in FIERCE CREATURES. This third volume of Michael's diaries delves further into his richly varied career, including the two further travel series he recorded for the BBC in the 1990s - POLE TO POLE and FULL CIRCLE - and the bestselling books he wrote to accompany their release. The story of these ten years lived in different directions yields up riches on every page.