He's not the Messiah, he's a very naughty boy. Statue of Terry Jones to be unveiled.

A statue of Terry Jones, celebrating him as the Nude Organist from Monty Python's Flying Circus, will be unveiled on the seafront of his home town of Colwyn Bay next year.

The comic actor and writer, 77, died from a rare form of dementia in 2020 and his family said there had been no shortage of ideas to pay tribute.

What would become a recurring character of Jones as the nude organist first appeared in a Python episode in 1972.

A Python On The Prom, which will be unveiled next April, was conceived by the sculptor Nick Elphick, after consultation with Pythons Michael Palin and Terry Gilliam, the Jones family and local groups.

Comedy fans from across the world raised £120,000 in six months.

'Wonderfully generous bottom'
The designs for the statue have been shared for the first time.

Michael Palin, Jones's lifelong friend, said: "Terry always insisted on doing his own stunts, and I think that sitting stark naked (apart from a tie) on Colwyn Bay promenade, in all weathers, is the ultimate tribute to the lengths he was always prepared to go to for comedy.

"I hope his wonderfully generous bottom will become an emblem of the town he loved so much."

Jones's daughter, Sally, said: "Once we decided the best way to remember him was in character, it was so obvious that it had to be the Nude Organist.

"Dad's approach to comedy and life in general was non-conformist and convention-defying; and the Nude Organist is perfect, as it was such a shock in those early days of television."

Sally says that when Python burst on the scene, in the late 1960s, "they played with the structure of comedy, defying the convention of gag and punchline".

Graham Chapman would dress as a field marshal and declare sketches "too silly" to continue, while her father - naked and blowing up a Hammond organ in a remote field - "symbolises what made Python so special, captivating and new."