Tim the Enchanter

Tim the Enchanter is a fictional character from Monty Python's 1975 movie Monty Python and the Holy Grail played by John Cleese. In the play Spamalot based on the movie, the part was originally played by Hank Azaria. Tim is a strange reclusive wizard or conjurer who wears ram horns on his skullcap and has a penchant for fire-based magic. Tim's overall presence is commanding, and observers of his magic often applaud after a display. He speaks with a Scottish accent.

Tim's name

His name derives from the following dialogue between him and King Arthur:

Arthur: What manner of man are you that can summon up fire without flint or tinder?

Tim: I... am an enchanter.

Arthur: By what name are you known?

Tim: There are some who call me... 'Tim'...?

Arthur: ...greetings, Tim the Enchanter.

On the UK release of the DVD, the actors explain that "Tim" was intended as a particularly unlikely and non-menacing name for such a powerful wizard.

In an interview with Shaun Micallef in 2007, John Cleese claimed that "we chose 'Tim' to annoy Tim Brooke-Taylor".

Tim's appearance in Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Tim is met by King Arthur and his knights in Scene twenty, where he stands on a mountain conjuring fireballs. When they ask him about the Holy Grail, he leads them to the Cave of Caerbannog. As he engages in dialogue with Arthur and his knights, Tim needlessly conjures up flames and fireballs in between responses. His warnings about the cave's guardian, the Rabbit of Caerbannog, are ignored, leading to the death of Bors, Gawain, and Ector, before the rabbit is killed with the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch. The events of Scene Twenty make it clear that Tim could probably destroy the Rabbit without much effort, but this apparently does not occur to him or any of the other characters.

Tim also appears earlier in the film in a scene restored in the 2001 re-release. His role in this scene is limited to joining several characters (before any of them are formally introduced) in shouting at the character Dingo to "get on with it!"

Appearances in popular culture

• One of the cheat codes of the role-playing video game Betrayal in Antara by Sierra Entertainment is "some call me Tim".

• In the trading card game Magic: The Gathering the Prodigal Sorcerer card is often affectionately called "Tim", because of his ability to damage any target (as Tim the Enchanter summons fiery explosions anywhere). There is also a card called "Ovinomancer" that has art that directly references Tim the Enchanter, as the character depicted is an elderly wizard with a long beard and horned skullcap. In the World of Warcraft Trading Card Game expansion, Through the Dark Portal, there is a card called "Tim," who has the same cost, stats, and ability as Prodigal Sorcerer. The flavor text for the card contains the quote "There are some who call me... Tim."

• According to Thomas Erdelyi in the liner notes of All for Nothing, The Replacements album Tim was named for the wizard.

• In the online comic strip "Bob and George", Tim was quoted by Bob when he used his fire attacks on Megaman and Bass to knock them off a tower.

• In the role-playing shooter game, Borderlands, there is an achievement labeled "There are some who call me...Tim".

• A popular overdrive guitar pedal by Paul Cochrane (Tim/Timmy) is named after Tim the Enchanter.

• In the PC game Terraria, there is an enemy spellcaster, named "Tim", who appears underground and attacks you with fireballs.