 The head of comedy at the BBC said that the title had to include the  word "Circus", because the people at the BBC had referred to the six  cast members wandering around the BBC offices as a circus, so they  added "Flying" to make it sound less like a real circus and more  like something out of the first world war. And in front of that,  added "Monty Python" because it sounded like a really bad theatrical  agent, and also that the large, constricting snake was appropriate  imagery.