Ronnie Hazlehurst: Difference between revisions
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==Early life== |
==Early life== |
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Ronald Hazlehurst was born in [[Dukinfield]], [[Cheshire]], in 1928, to a [[rail transport|railway]] worker father and a piano [[teacher]] mother.<ref name="Indy">{{Cite news|url=http://news.independent.co.uk/people/obituaries/article3021298.ece|title=Obituary - Ronnie Hazlehurst|first=Spencer|last=Leigh|work=[[The Independent]]|date=3 October 2007|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102184203/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/ronnie-hazlehurst-395793.html|archive-date=2 November 2012}}</ref><ref name="Tele Obit">{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=&xml=/news/2007/10/04/db0402.xml|title=Obituary - Ronnie Hazlehurst|first=Spencer|last=Leigh|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=4 October 2007}}{{dead link|date=July 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Having attended [[ |
Ronald Hazlehurst was born in [[Dukinfield]], [[Cheshire]], in 1928, to a [[rail transport|railway]] worker father and a piano [[teacher]] mother.<ref name="Indy">{{Cite news|url=http://news.independent.co.uk/people/obituaries/article3021298.ece|title=Obituary - Ronnie Hazlehurst|first=Spencer|last=Leigh|work=[[The Independent]]|date=3 October 2007|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102184203/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/ronnie-hazlehurst-395793.html|archive-date=2 November 2012}}</ref><ref name="Tele Obit">{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?view=DETAILS&grid=&xml=/news/2007/10/04/db0402.xml|title=Obituary - Ronnie Hazlehurst|first=Spencer|last=Leigh|work=The Daily Telegraph|date=4 October 2007}}{{dead link|date=July 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Having attended [[Clarendon Sixth Form College|Hyde County Grammar School]], he left at the age of 14 and became a [[clerk]] in a [[cotton mill]] for £1 a week.<ref name="Indy"/><ref name="Tele Obit"/> From 1947 to 1949 he did his [[National service#United Kingdom|National Service]] as a [[Band (rock and pop)|bandsman]] in the [[4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards]].<ref name="Tele Obit"/> |
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During his spare time, he played in a band, and soon became a professional musician earning £4 a week.<ref name="Indy"/> The band appeared on the [[BBC Light Programme]], but Hazlehurst left when he was refused a pay rise.<ref name="Indy"/> Moving to [[Manchester]], he became a [[Freelancer|freelance]] musician until he was offered a place in another band at a nightclub in London.<ref name="Indy"/> Ronnie Hazlehurst worked at [[ITV Studios|Granada]] for about a year in 1955 and, after he left there, worked on a market stall in [[Watford]] to make ends meet.<ref name="Indy"/><ref name="Tele Obit"/> |
During his spare time, he played in a band, and soon became a professional musician earning £4 a week.<ref name="Indy"/> The band appeared on the [[BBC Light Programme]], but Hazlehurst left when he was refused a pay rise.<ref name="Indy"/> Moving to [[Manchester]], he became a [[Freelancer|freelance]] musician until he was offered a place in another band at a nightclub in London.<ref name="Indy"/> Ronnie Hazlehurst worked at [[ITV Studios|Granada]] for about a year in 1955 and, after he left there, worked on a market stall in [[Watford]] to make ends meet.<ref name="Indy"/><ref name="Tele Obit"/> |
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He also recorded some LPs and CDs with his orchestra including a 2-CD box set of [[Laurel and Hardy]] film music; his orchestra also backed singer [[Marti Caine]] on an album that was released on CD. |
He also recorded some LPs and CDs with his orchestra including a 2-CD box set of [[Laurel and Hardy]] film music; his orchestra also backed singer [[Marti Caine]] on an album that was released on CD. |
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== Selected Credits == |
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{{Div col|colwidth=30em}} |
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*[[The Likely Lads]] |
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*[[It's a Knockout]] |
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*[[Comedy Playhouse]] |
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*[[The Illustrated Weekly Hudd]] |
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*[[Beggar My Neighbour (TV series)|Beggar My Neighbour]] |
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*[[Cilla (1968 TV series)|Cilla]] |
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*[[The Gnomes of Dulwich]] |
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*Harry Worth (Series 4 only) |
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*[[Me Mammy]] |
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*The Roy Castle Show |
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*[[That's Your Funeral]] |
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*[[The Liver Birds]] (Series 1-5) |
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*[[The Two Ronnies]] |
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*[[Now Look Here]] |
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*[[Are You Being Served?]] |
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*[[Tarbuck's Luck]] |
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*[[The Generation Game]] |
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*[[Last of the Summer Wine]] |
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*Look Mike Yarwood! |
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*[[Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em]] |
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*[[Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?]] |
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*The Tarbuck Follies |
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*Frost's Weekly |
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*[[Eurovision Song Contest|Eurovision Song Contest]] |
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*[[Happy Ever After (British TV series)|Happy Ever After]] |
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*It's Cliff and Friends |
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*[[Seaside Special]] |
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*[[I Didn't Know You Cared]] |
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*[[The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin]] |
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*[[The Other One (1977 TV series)|The Other One]] |
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*[[Are You Being Served? (film)|Are You Being Served?]] (Film) |
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*[[Citizen Smith]] |
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*[[Rosie (TV series)|Rosie]] |
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*[[The Boys and Mrs B]] (TV Movie) |
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*[[The Val Doonican Show]] |
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*[[Wodehouse Playhouse]] |
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*Mike Yarwood in Persons |
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*[[Butterflies (TV series)|Butterflies]] |
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*[[Blankety Blank]] |
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*[[To the Manor Born]] |
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*[[The Paul Daniels Magic Show]] |
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*[[Sink or Swim (TV series)|Sink or Swim]] |
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*[[Yes Minister]] |
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*The Marti Cane Show |
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*Coming Home |
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*[[Only Fools and Horses]] |
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*[[Sorry! (TV series)|Sorry!]] |
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*Roger Doesn't Live Here Anymore |
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*[[Three of a Kind (1981 TV series)|Three of a Kind]] |
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*[[The Little and Large Show]] |
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*[[L for Lester|L For Lester]] |
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*[[Solo (TV series)|Solo]] |
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*[[Goodbye, Mr Kent|Goodbye, Mr. Kent]] |
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*[[The Keith Harris Show]] |
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*[[Then Churchill Said to Me]] |
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*Odd One Out |
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*[[By the Sea (1982 film)|By the Sea]] (TV Movie) |
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*[[Wogan]] |
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*[[Top of the Pops]] |
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*Jack of Diamonds |
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*Pinkerton's Progress |
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*[[Sweet Sixteen (TV series)|Sweet Sixteen]] |
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*[[No Place Like Home (TV series)|No Place Like Home]] |
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*[[Potter (TV series)|Potter]] (Series 3 only) |
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*[[Just Good Friends]] |
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*[[The Magnificent Evans]] |
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*[[Leaving (TV series)|Leaving]] |
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*The Hello Goodbye Man |
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*[[Comrade Dad]] |
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*[[Lame Ducks (TV series)|Lame Ducks]] |
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*[[The District Nurse]] |
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*[[Yes Prime Minister]] |
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*[[The Les Dawson Show]] |
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*[[Three Up, Two Down]] |
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*[[All in Good Faith]] |
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*[[Dear John (British TV series)|Dear John]] |
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*[[The Ritz (TV series)|The Ritz]] |
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*[[Wyatt's Watchdogs]] |
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*[[Luv (TV series)|Luv]] |
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*[[The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin|The Legacy of Reginald Perrin]] |
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{{div col end}} |
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==Later years== |
==Later years== |
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[[Category:BBC people]] |
[[Category:BBC people]] |
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[[Category:English conductors (music)]] |
[[Category:English conductors (music)]] |
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[[Category: |
[[Category:English male conductors (music)]] |
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[[Category:Eurovision Song Contest conductors]] |
[[Category:Eurovision Song Contest conductors]] |
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[[Category:English television composers]] |
[[Category:English television composers]] |
Latest revision as of 21:55, 28 April 2024
Ronnie Hazlehurst | |
---|---|
Born | Ronald Hazlehurst 13 March 1928 Dukinfield, Cheshire, England |
Died | 1 October 2007 St Martin, Guernsey | (aged 79)
Occupations |
|
Years active | 1947–2006 |
Known for | British television theme songs |
Spouse | Jean Fitzgerald |
Children | 2 |
Ronald Hazlehurst (13 March 1928 – 1 October 2007) was an English composer and conductor who, having joined the BBC in 1961, became its Light Entertainment Musical Director.
Hazlehurst composed the theme tunes for many well-known British sitcoms and gameshows of the 1970s and the 1980s, including Yes Minister, Are You Being Served?, I Didn't Know You Cared and Last of the Summer Wine.
Early life[edit]
Ronald Hazlehurst was born in Dukinfield, Cheshire, in 1928, to a railway worker father and a piano teacher mother.[1][2] Having attended Hyde County Grammar School, he left at the age of 14 and became a clerk in a cotton mill for £1 a week.[1][2] From 1947 to 1949 he did his National Service as a bandsman in the 4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards.[2]
During his spare time, he played in a band, and soon became a professional musician earning £4 a week.[1] The band appeared on the BBC Light Programme, but Hazlehurst left when he was refused a pay rise.[1] Moving to Manchester, he became a freelance musician until he was offered a place in another band at a nightclub in London.[1] Ronnie Hazlehurst worked at Granada for about a year in 1955 and, after he left there, worked on a market stall in Watford to make ends meet.[1][2]
BBC career[edit]
Hazlehurst joined the BBC in 1961, and became a staff arranger; his early works included the incidental music for The Likely Lads, The Liver Birds and It's a Knockout.[1][3] In 1968 he became the Light Entertainment Musical Director and, during his tenure, he composed the theme tunes of many sitcoms, including Are You Being Served?; Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em; Last of the Summer Wine (where he also wrote all the instrumental music for the show); I Didn't Know You Cared; The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin; To the Manor Born; Yes, Minister; Yes, Prime Minister; Just Good Friends; and Three Up, Two Down.[1][3][4][5] He also arranged the themes for Butterflies, Sorry!, and the first series of Only Fools and Horses.[3] In addition, he wrote the theme tunes for the sketch show The Two Ronnies, the game shows Blankety Blank, Odd One Out and Bruce Forsyth's The Generation Game and the chat show Wogan.[1][3] His theme tunes often included elements designed to fit the programmes, such as a cash till in Are You Being Served?, rises and falls in The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin and the Big Ben chimes for Yes Minister.[1][2] For Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em, Hazlehurst used Morse code to spell out the programme's title.[4][6] During his BBC career he composed the music for the opening of the BBC's coverage of the 1976 Olympics.[1] He left the BBC in the 1990s.[2]
Other work[edit]
Hazlehurst was also involved with the Eurovision Song Contest and was the musical director when the event was hosted by the United Kingdom in 1974, 1977 and 1982.[1] He also conducted the British entry on seven occasions, in 1977, 1982, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991 and 1992.[4][7] In 1977, as well as conducting the British entry, he also conducted the German entry.[3][7] To conduct the British entry that year, Lynsey de Paul and Mike Moran, he used a closed umbrella instead of a baton and wore a bowler hat.[2][3]
He also arranged and conducted two singers' performances of their voice-overs for opening credits, Clare Torry for Butterflies ("Love Is like a Butterfly") and Paul Nicholas for Just Good Friends.[1]
He also recorded some LPs and CDs with his orchestra including a 2-CD box set of Laurel and Hardy film music; his orchestra also backed singer Marti Caine on an album that was released on CD.
Selected Credits[edit]
- The Likely Lads
- It's a Knockout
- Comedy Playhouse
- The Illustrated Weekly Hudd
- Beggar My Neighbour
- Cilla
- The Gnomes of Dulwich
- Harry Worth (Series 4 only)
- Me Mammy
- The Roy Castle Show
- That's Your Funeral
- The Liver Birds (Series 1-5)
- The Two Ronnies
- Now Look Here
- Are You Being Served?
- Tarbuck's Luck
- The Generation Game
- Last of the Summer Wine
- Look Mike Yarwood!
- Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em
- Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads?
- The Tarbuck Follies
- Frost's Weekly
- Eurovision Song Contest
- Happy Ever After
- It's Cliff and Friends
- Seaside Special
- I Didn't Know You Cared
- The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin
- The Other One
- Are You Being Served? (Film)
- Citizen Smith
- Rosie
- The Boys and Mrs B (TV Movie)
- The Val Doonican Show
- Wodehouse Playhouse
- Mike Yarwood in Persons
- Butterflies
- Blankety Blank
- To the Manor Born
- The Paul Daniels Magic Show
- Sink or Swim
- Yes Minister
- The Marti Cane Show
- Coming Home
- Only Fools and Horses
- Sorry!
- Roger Doesn't Live Here Anymore
- Three of a Kind
- The Little and Large Show
- L For Lester
- Solo
- Goodbye, Mr. Kent
- The Keith Harris Show
- Then Churchill Said to Me
- Odd One Out
- By the Sea (TV Movie)
- Wogan
- Top of the Pops
- Jack of Diamonds
- Pinkerton's Progress
- Sweet Sixteen
- No Place Like Home
- Potter (Series 3 only)
- Just Good Friends
- The Magnificent Evans
- Leaving
- The Hello Goodbye Man
- Comrade Dad
- Lame Ducks
- The District Nurse
- Yes Prime Minister
- The Les Dawson Show
- Three Up, Two Down
- All in Good Faith
- Dear John
- The Ritz
- Wyatt's Watchdogs
- Luv
- The Legacy of Reginald Perrin
Later years[edit]
Hazlehurst moved from Hendon, North London, to Guernsey in about 1997.[4] In 1999, he was awarded a Gold Badge from the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters.[4]
Music was Hazlehurst's life and passion as well as his work and he continued to work right up to his heart bypass operation in October 2006.[4] On 27 September 2007 he suffered a stroke and, without regaining consciousness, died on 1 October in Princess Elizabeth Hospital, St Martin, Guernsey.[5][8] Having been married twice, with two sons from his second marriage, at the time of his death his partner was Jean Fitzgerald.[4]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Leigh, Spencer (3 October 2007). "Obituary - Ronnie Hazlehurst". The Independent. Archived from the original on 2 November 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f g Leigh, Spencer (4 October 2007). "Obituary - Ronnie Hazlehurst". The Daily Telegraph.[dead link]
- ^ a b c d e f "Obituary - Ronnie Hazlehurst". The Times. 3 October 2007.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Theme tune writer Hazlehurst dies". BBC. 2 October 2007.
- ^ a b "TV tunes composer Ronnie Hazlehurst dies, 79". The Daily Telegraph. 3 October 2007.
- ^ "Does the Frank Spencer music have Morse code?". BBC Magazine. 4 October 2007.
- ^ a b O'Connor, John Kennedy (2007). The Eurovision Song Contest: The Official History. UK: Carlton Books. ISBN 978-1-84442-994-3.
- ^ "Last of the Summer Wine composer dies". Daily Express. 3 October 2007.