Neil James Innes is an English writer and performer of comic songs, best known for his collaborative work with Monty Python, and for playing in the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band and later The Rutles.

Innes spent a good part of his childhood in post-war Germany during his Scottish father's military assignment as a Warrant Officer. He took piano lessons as a child. Neil has a brother, Iain, about 3 years older. Neil's parents were supportive of their sons' interests. His father drew and painted, and his mother loved horses.

He later attended Thorpe Grammar School and the Norwich School of Art. While he attended Goldsmith's School of Art, he met Yvonne Catherine Hilton, majoring in drama, and they married on March 3, 1966.

They have three sons, Miles (b. 1967), Luke (b. 1971),and Barney (b. 1977). They have at least two grandchildren.