"Eric the Half-a-Bee" is a song by the British comedy troupe Monty Python. It first appeared on the LP Monty Python's Previous Record but is also on Monty Python Sings and The Final Rip Off 2-CD set. The song followed the routine called "Fish Licence" in which Mr Eric Praline, played by John Cleese, tried to obtain a pet licence for a halibut and numerous other pets, all called Eric. One such pet is half a bee. The song relates a tragic yet heartwarming tale, stemming from an accident on one summer's afternoon.
The lyrics raise philosophical questions as to the existence or not of half a bee: "Half a bee, philosophically, must ipso facto half not be. But half the bee has got to be, vis-à-vis its entity - d'you see? But can a bee be said to be or not to be an entire bee when half the bee is not a bee, due to some ancient injury?". The piece ends with a reference to the distinguished English philosopher Cyril Connolly.
It is one of John Cleese's personal favorites of the sketches that he has done.[1] On more than one occasion, Cleese has expressed his regret in not having the song follow "Fish License" in the sketch's airing on Monty Python's Flying Circus (Episode 23, "Scott of the Antarctic" 1970) as he describes himself as "most unmusical."[2]