THE question has often been asked, is Michael Palin the nicest man in Britain or, indeed, in the whole wide world?

Audiences at Ledbury's Poetry Festival may have come to their own considered answer, in the affirmative. This said, the great man himself, the star of so many classic Monty Python sketches, referred disparagingly to the dreaded "N" word, as though the expectation of niceness is too great a burden for anyone to cope with.

In person, off the screen, Mr Palin is a lean and dapper man, smaller than many would expect, but with the unmistakable aura of geniality about him.

What were his impressions of Ledbury and its Festival, I asked.

"It couldn't be better," he replied, enthusiastically.

The train had been on time and he had enjoyed a "super tea" in the middle of town.

"The audience has been wonderful," he added.

It had been a packed Community Hall, and he knew how to work the crowds. When demand grew for more of his own, very amusing Limericks, he said, in mock-disappointment, his eyebrows raised, "Oh, I knew you weren't a serious audience!"

Laughter was the major key of the evening, and the audience sat in the palm of his hand

Most geniuses of comedy have the ability to be amusing by simply being themselves, or so it appears, and Palin has this unusual gift.

It is not that he does not exude intelligence. Intelligence beams from his face, but there is always a smile to go with it.

He was in Ledbury on Thursday, July 9 to discuss his Desert Island Poems with the former Minister for the Arts, Mark Fisher.

Naturally, even when Palin reads what may be taken as a very serious poem, wryly intelligent perhaps, the humour must take over.

Cavafy's classic, "Waiting for the Barbarians" almost became a Python sketch, as Palin brought the scenes to life with most subtle modulations of voice and changes of expression. The poem is about people in a Roman city waiting for Barbarians who never actually come, and in fact do not exist; and in Palin's rendition of the well-known poem, the ghosts of "The People's Front of Judea," from the Life of Brian, are never far away.

It was telling how he also chose to read DH Lawrence's poem, "The English are so nice", which begins, "The English are so nice, so awfully nice...." The poem was made for him, of course.

Michael Palin, it must be admitted, is a very nice man.

He may lie awake at night, worrying about being too nice. He may even contemplate being rude to a traffic warden or two, to prove he is not nice; but ultimately, he cannot escape his fate.

On stage, he even offered Mark Fisher a throat sweet from a tin, which he produced, with a flourish, from his own coat pocket. It was a kind and thoughtful gesture, of course, made just before the show began.

This said, I rest my case; after all, we all have our burdens to bear, even the curse of niceness.