The Spanish Inquisition is a three-part sketch from the episode "The Spanish Inquisition" of Monty Python's Flying Circus. It involves three insane Spanish cardinals that appear whenever someone says: "I didn't expect the Spanish Inquisition."
The cardinals burst in, led by Cardinal Ximinex, who says, "NOBODY Expects the Spanish Inquisition!"
This results in many outrageous attempts to arrest people for being disloyal to the church. However, Cardinal Ximinex is held back by his inability to say what their weapons are, and his partners' sheer stupidity. All three seem to not have the ability to talk correctly. They appeared in three sketches:
- "Trouble at the Mill"
- "Pictures of Grandpa Frank"
- "Courtroom Sketch"
In their final appearence, the entire courtroom looks to the witness door after the judge on trial says the line, obviously expecting the Spanish Inquisition. The Credits then roll as they rush to the courtroom from their house, arriving just in time to say, "Nobody expects the--" before "THE END" flashes across the screen, which Ximinex responds, "Oh bugger."
- In a later episode, "The Buzz Aldrin Show", Ximenex appears, listing his favorite aftershave lotions. In the same episode, a chemist, after being threatened by Police Constable Pan-Am with arrest for heresy, comments, "I didn't expect the Spanish Inquisition," though the cardinals do not appear at this point.
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