The legendary comedy troupe Monty Python had a little show called Monty Python’s Flying Circus that began in 1969, which made Monday their 40th birthday. The group is composed of gods of the comedic realms John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, Michael Palin and of course, Graham Chapman, who passed away in 1989.

All five of the remaining members are gearing up for one of their rare gatherings on October 15, when they will head to New York City and receive an award for Outstanding Contribution to Film and Television from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA).

Celebrations for the event were underway back in July when it was announced that four of the six members would be reuniting for a new show based on Life of Brian called Not The Messiah (He’s a Very Naughty Boy) (Read: Monty Python To Reunite For Their 40th Anniversary; Documentary To Follow). Palin, Idle, Gilliam, and Jones are will appear in the special event, while Cleese was unable to commit due to a conflicting schedule.

The boys of legendary comedy troupe Monty Python rarely get together anymore. Reunions have been rumored many times, but in the past ten-plus years, the group has only gathered together two times: once for a group interview in 1998, and a second time in 2002 for the George Harrison memorial.

Now The Independent is reporting that of the six-man group, four will reunite for a live stage show based on their very own Life of Brian called Not The Messiah (He’s a Very Naughty Boy). Python members Michael Palin, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Terry Gilliam will appear in the show, while John Cleese can’t make it due to a scheduling conflict and of course Graham Chapman passed away in 1989.

The show, which will reference many classic sketches, stars Eric Idle, who also wrote it with John Du Prez. The rest of the Monty Python guys — including another Flying Circus regular Carol Cleveland with Neil Innes — will make appearances within the production.

Monty Python fans rejoice!

iTunes has launched the Monty Python iTunes Store [link launches iTunes application], which has five of the comedy troupe’s films — including Monty Python and the Holy Grail — as well as all 45 episodes of their comedy sketch show Monty Python’s Flying Circus, available for purchase.

Along with Holy Grail are other classics film Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life and Monty Python’s Life of Brian, plus their 1982 live performance Monty Python: Live At The Hollywood Bowl as well as Terry Gilliam’s medieval satire Jabberwocky.

The Flying Circus television series is available in several variations: by episode, by season (Series 1-4), by “Personal Best” from each cast member (Graham Chapman, Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones, John Cleese, Michael Palin), or by the best of compilation Parrot Sketch Not Included: 20 Years of Monty Python; there’s also two pre-Python collections: Do Not Adjust Your Set, and At Last The 1948 Show.

Also available as a free download exclusively through iTunes is the Why I Love Monty Python, a short documentary featuring interviews with today’s top American comedy creators like Judd Apatow, Paul Rudd, as well as South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, about their love of Python and how the British sketch comedy show influenced their lives and creations.