What John Philip Sousa march was used as the show's opening theme?

The John Philip Sousa march used as the show's opening theme was “The Liberty Bell.” The familiar recording accompanied the animated opening of Monty Python's Flying Circus and became one of the series' most recognizable sounds.

Sousa composed the march in 1893 for a patriotic production called America, but it was later named after the Liberty Bell. The television series used a performance by the Band of the Grenadier Guards rather than a recording by Sousa himself. The march's bright, ceremonial character creates a deliberately comic contrast with the show's surreal sketches.

A common mix-up is “The Stars and Stripes Forever,” another famous Sousa march and arguably his best-known composition. “Semper Fidelis” and “The Washington Post” are also genuine Sousa marches, but neither served as the regular Flying Circus theme. The opening visuals varied between series, while the march remained the musical signature most viewers associate with the program.