Michael Palin writes in his diary (May 18th 1973) about the importance of timing in the telling of a story. Two of his acting team consumed too much alcohol before they went on stage and it showed. Palin writes:“The unusual spectacle of Eric [Idle] not quite in control. The difference in his timing showed how crucial timing is.”
Michael Palin Diaries 1969-1979: The Python Years (London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2006, 117.