Michael Palin Books in Order
Michael Palin has written 46 books, published between 1976 and 2026. The first book is Dr. Fegg's Encyclopeadia of All World Knowledge (1976) and the newest is In Nigeria (2026). Publication order is the reading order below.
- Books
- 46
- Published
- 1976–2026
- Pages on record
- 6,810 in 32 of 46 books
- Reading time
- 114–170 hours
Reading time is an estimate, not a recorded figure: 6,810 pages at 300 words a page, read at 200–300 words a minute, covering the 32 of 46 titles with a page count on record.
Michael Palin is an English actor, comedian, writer and television presenter, born on 5 May 1943, and a member of the Monty Python comedy group. Palin appeared in Monty Python's Flying Circus from 1969 to 1974, after early television work that included The Frost Report and Do Not Adjust Your Set. Honours include the BAFTA Fellowship in 2013 and a knighthood in 2019. The catalogue lists 46 books from 1976 to 2026, among them the Palin's Travels and Palin Diaries series, with In Nigeria (2026) the newest title. Early entries include Bert Fegg's Nasty Book For Boys And Girls (1976) and Ripping Yarns (1978).
How many Michael Palin books are there?
Michael Palin has 46 books, released between 1976 and 2026. They include 2 series and 24 titles listed outside any series.
Michael Palin Books in Publication Order
The table lists all 46 Michael Palin books in the order they were published, with the release year, the page count where one is on record, and how many independent book listings confirm each title. Catalogue data as of September 2026.
- 1Dr. Fegg's Encyclopeadia of All World Knowledge1976 · 96 pages · confirmed 1/41976961/4
- 2Bert Fegg's Nasty Book For Boys And Girls1976 · 64 pages · confirmed 1/41976641/4
- 3Monty Python and the Holy Grail1977 · 92 pages · confirmed 1/41977921/4
- 4Ripping Yarns1978 · 112 pages · confirmed 1/419781121/4
- 5The Life of Brian1979 · 101 pages · confirmed 1/419791011/4
- 6More Ripping Yarns1980 · 95 pages · confirmed 1/41980951/4
- 7Time Bandits1981 · 232 pages · confirmed 1/419812321/4
- 8Small Harry And The Toothache Pills1982 · 32 pages · confirmed 1/41982321/4
- 9Monty Python's The Meaning of Life1983 · 124 pages · confirmed 1/419831241/4
- 10The Missionary1983 · confirmed 1/41983–1/4
- 11Limericks1985 · 80 pages · confirmed 1/41985801/4
- 12The Mirrorstone1986 · 32 pages · confirmed 1/41986321/4
- 13Cyril and the Dinner Party1986 · 28 pages · confirmed 1/41986281/4
- 14Cyril and the House of Commons1988 · 28 pages · confirmed 1/41988281/4
- 15The Complete Monty Python's Flying Circus: All the Words: Volume 1Monty Python #31989 · confirmed 1/41989–1/4
- 161989–1/4
- 1719902621/4
- 18The Complete "Ripping Yarns"1990 · 288 pages · confirmed 1/419902881/4
- 191992–1/4
- 2019941751/4
- 21The Weekend1994 · 87 pages · confirmed 1/41994871/4
- 22The Fairly Incomplete and Rather Badly Illustrated Monty Python Song BookMonty Python #61994 · 96 pages · confirmed 1/41994961/4
- 23Hemingway's Chair1995 · 288 pages · confirmed 1/419952881/4
- 2419973201/4
- 2519992551/4
- 26Michael Palin Travels The World1999 · confirmed 1/41999–1/4
- 272000–1/4
- 282000–1/4
- 2920022721/4
- 30The Pythons' Autobiography By The Pythons2003 · confirmed 1/42003–1/4
- 3120043201/4
- 3220066501/4
- 3320072881/4
- 3420097041/4
- 35The Truth2012 · 261 pages · confirmed 1/420122611/4
- 3620122881/4
- 3720146271/4
- 38Monty Python at Work2014 · 241 pages · confirmed 1/420142411/4
- 39A Sackful of Limericks2016 · 96 pages · confirmed 1/42016961/4
- 40Erebus2018 · confirmed 1/42018–1/4
- 4120191761/4
- 422022–1/4
- 43Great-Uncle Harry2023 · confirmed 1/42023–1/4
- 442024–1/4
- 452025–1/4
- 462026–1/4
Michael Palin books grouped by series
Each title below is a row in the publication-order table above. None of these groups has a reading-order page of its own on this site.
Palin's Travels in order
12 booksPalin Diaries in order
4 booksMonty Python in order
3 booksA Pocketful of Python in order
2 booksChronicles Abroad in order
1 book- 1. Cairo
Standalone books
24 books24 Michael Palin titles here are not listed as part of any series.
Do you have to read Michael Palin books in order?
You only need to read Michael Palin books in order within each series: the books listed here span 2 separate series, and each series has its own publication order.
Where to start with Michael Palin
Start with Dr. Fegg's Encyclopeadia of All World Knowledge (1976), the earliest published title.
What is the newest Michael Palin book?
In Nigeria (2026) is the newest Michael Palin book released so far.
Is there a new Michael Palin book coming?
No next Michael Palin book is announced in the catalogue, which is a gap in the listings it merges rather than a sign that the run has ended.
Michael Palin at a glance
- Still publishing
- Michael Palin published a book as recently as 2026.
- Release pace
- Michael Palin books have appeared about one a year on average.
- Length
- 6,810 pages across the 32 of 46 books with a recorded length, a median of 176 pages each.
- Busiest decade
- Most Michael Palin books, 11 of 46, were published in the 1980s.
What the Michael Palin books are about
37 of the 46 Michael Palin books carry subject tags in Open Library's catalogue. The subjects below are the ones that recur across them, most frequent first: travel is tagged on 10 of 37. The subjects are cataloguers’ headings, not a plot summary.
- Travel 10 of 37 books
- English wit and humor 7 of 37 books
- Monty python (comedy troupe) 6 of 37 books
- Diaries 4 of 37 books
- Voyages around the world 4 of 37 books
- Actors and actresses 3 of 37 books
- Comedians 3 of 37 books
- Journeys 3 of 37 books
- Pictorial works 3 of 37 books
- Television personalities 3 of 37 books