Monty Python star John Cleese refused peerage to avoid England winter

Actor and comedian John Cleese said he turned down the opportunity to take a seat in the House of Lords because he could not face the idea of spending the winter in England.

The Monty Python and Fawlty Towers star said that he was offered a peerage by former Liberal Democrat leader Paddy Ashdown, but refused the honour

Lord Ashdown offered Cleese the chance of becoming the party whip in 1999.

But Cleese, a generous donor to the Liberal Democrats, declined, because remaining in England during the winter was "too much of a price to pay".

In an interview with The Sunday Telegraph on the eve of his first ever UK live tour, Cleese, who divides his time between the UK and California, said: "I turned down a peerage actually.”

He also said that he previously turned down a CBE in 1996 "because I think they are silly".

Cleese, 71, will embark on a two-month live tour, An Evening with the Legendary John Cleese, next month.