Sarah Palin, the running mate of Republican White House hopeful John McCain, is to change her surname to avoid any further confusion with the ex-Monty Python comedian, Michael Palin.
Hundreds of writers all over the world have drawn the logical, if not, simple conclusion that the two are related, but Mrs Palin is not amused.
She told delegates at a Republican meeting today about how she is constantly approached and asked if her 'brother' could possibly obtain a Norwegian Blue - a parrot that a shopkeeper, played by Michael Palin, steadfastly refuses to replace in Python's The Dead Parrot sketch.
Another frequently posed question is, whether or not her 'husband' is still a lumberjack, and she is often congratulated for her uncle's stance on masturbation, which he publicised in the song 'Every Sperm Is Sacred' in the film The Meaning Of Life.
Mrs Palin has now become exhausted from rebuffing the inane grillings, and has decided to change the family surname choosing, instead, the relatively innocuous Idle.
When asked why she had chosen this name, in particular, she became visibly frustrated, and fumed:
"Oh, for Christ's sake! I didn't expect the Spanish Inquisition!"
