Title: The Architects Sketch
                  by John Cleese and Graham Chapman
            From: Monty Python's Flying Circus, 20 October 1970
  Transcribed By: Dawn Whiteside


     Scene: A large posh office.  Two clients, well-dressed city gents, sit
            facing a large table at which stands Mr. Tid, the account manager
            of the architectural firm. (original cast: Mr Tid, Graham Chapman;
            Mr Wiggin, John Cleese; City Gent One, Michael Palin; Client 2:,
            Terry Jones; Mr Wymer, Eric Idle)

   Mr. Tid: Well, gentlemen, we have two architectural designs for this new
            residential block of yours and I thought it best if the architects
            themselves explained the particular advantages of their designs.

            There is a knock at the door.

   Mr. Tid: Ah! That's probably the first architect now. Come in.

            Mr. Wiggin enters.

Mr. Wiggin: Good morning, gentlemen.

   Clients: Good morning.

Mr. Wiggin: This is a 12-story block combining classical neo-Georgian features
            with the efficiency of modern techniques.  The tenants arrive here
            and are carried along the corridor on a conveyor belt in extreme
            comfort, past murals depicting Mediterranean scenes, towards the
            rotating knives.  The last twenty feet of the corridor are heavily
            soundproofed.  The blood pours down these chutes and the mangled
            flesh slurps into these...

  Client 1: Excuse me.

Mr. Wiggin: Yes?

  Client 1: Did you say 'knives'?

Mr. Wiggin: Rotating knives, yes.

  Client 2: Do I take it that you are proposing to slaughter our tenants?

Mr. Wiggin: ...Does that not fit in with your plans?

  Client 1: Not really. We asked for a simple block of flats.

Mr. Wiggin: Oh. I hadn't fully divined your attitude towards the tenants. You
            see I mainly design slaughter houses.

   Clients: Ah.

Mr. Wiggin: Pity.

   Clients: Yes.

Mr. Wiggin: (indicating points of the model) Mind you, this is a real beaut.
            None of your blood caked on the walls and flesh flying out of the
            windows incommoding the passers-by with this one.  (confidentially)
            My life has been leading up to this.

  Client 2: Yes, and well done, but we wanted an apartment block.

Mr. Wiggin: May I ask you to reconsider.

   Clients: Well...

Mr. Wiggin: You wouldn't regret this. Think of the tourist trade.

  Client 1: I'm sorry. We want a block of flats, not an abattoir.

Mr. Wiggin: ...I see.  Well, of course, this is just the sort of blinkered
            philistine pig-ignorance I've come to expect from you non-creative
            garbage.  You sit there on your loathsome spotty behinds squeezing
            blackheads, not caring a tinker's cuss for the struggling artist.
            You excrement, you whining hypocritical toadies with your colour TV
            sets and your Tony Jacklin golf clubs and your bleeding masonic
            secret handshakes. You wouldn't let me join, would you, you
            blackballing bastards.  Well I wouldn't become a Freemason now if
            you went down on your lousy stinking knees and begged me.

  Client 2: We're sorry you feel that way, but we did want a block of flats,
            nice though the abattoir is.

Mr. Wiggin: Oh sod the abattoir, that's not important.  (He dashes forward and
            kneels in front of them.)  But if any of you could put in a word
            for me I'd love to be a mason.  Masonry opens doors.  I'd be very
            quiet, I was a bit on edge just now but if I were a mason I'd sit
            at the back and not get in anyone's way.

  Client 1: (politely) Thank you.

Mr. Wiggin: ...I've got a second-hand apron.

  Client 2: Thank you.  (Mr. Wiggin hurries to the door but stops...)

Mr. Wiggin: I nearly got in at Hendon.

  Client 1: Thank you.

            Mr. Wiggin exits.  Mr Tid rises.

   Mr. Tid: I'm sorry about that.  Now the second architect is Mr. Wymer of
            Wymer and Dibble. (Mr. Wymer enters, carrying his model with great
            care.  He places it on the table.)

 Mr. Wymer: Good morning gentlemen.  This is a scale model of the block, 28
            stories high, with 280 apartments.  It has three main lifts and
            two service lifts.  Access would be from Dibbingley Road. (The
            model falls over.  Mr Wymer quickly places it upright again.)
            The structure is built on a central pillar system with...
            (The model falls over again.  Mr Wymer tries to make it stand up,
            but it won't, so he has to hold it upright.) ...with cantilevered
            floors in pre-stressed steel and concrete.  The dividing walls on
            each floor section are fixed by recessed magnalium-flanged grooves.
            (The bottom ten floors of the model give way and it partly
            collapses.)  By avoiding wood and timber derivatives and all other
            inflammables we have almost totally removed the risk of.... (The
            model is smoking.  The odd flame can be seen.  Wymer looks at the
            city gents.)  Frankly, I think the central pillar may need
            strengthening.

  Client 2: Is that going to put the cost up?

 Mr. Wymer: I'm afraid so.

  Client 2: I don't know we need to worry too much about strengthening that.
            After all, these are not meant to be luxury flats.

  Client 1: Absolutely.  If we make sure the tenants are of light build and
            relatively sedentary and if the weather's on our side, I think we
            have a winner here.

 Mr. Wymer: Thank you.  (The model explodes.)

  Client 2: I quite agree.

 Mr. Wymer: Well, thank you both very much. (They all shake hands, giving the
            secret Mason's handshake.) Cut to Mr. Wiggin watching at the
            window.

Mr. Wiggin: (turning to camera) It opens doors, I'm telling you.