‘Tis but a scratch’: John Cleese has cancerous tumour removed from his leg

Actor announced news of the procedure to his 5.7m Twitter followers

John Cleese at the German Comedy Awards, Cologne in 2019 (Rex Features)

John Cleese has revealed he had a cancerous tumour removed from his leg last week, with his surgeon telling him: “Tis but a scratch.”

The Monty Python and Fawlty Towers star, 80, told his fans on Twitter: “Had a minor operation on Friday. A surgeon cut a small cancerous bit out of my leg. Very minor.

“At my age this sort of thing happens about once a week.

“He did a beautiful job, sewed it up and said: ‘Tis but a scratch.’”

Despite the procedure, Cleese appears to be as energised as ever, as just three minutes later he tweeted a picture of himself with a cricket bat and the words: “Happy Monday to all the internet trolls! This old man still has his swing and is ready to give you a damn good thrashing!”

This is Cleese’s second publicly known health issue, after the actor had a prostate cancer scare in 1996, which left him vowing to “live on the basis that I might at any given moment fall under a bus”.

Cleese can next be seen in the Australian comedy The Very Excellent Mr Dundee, and will then play Mr Bridwell in a live-action adaptation of Clifford the Big Red Dog.