Myles Peter Carpenter Rudge (8 July 1926 – 10 October 2007) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...

, known for writing the lyrics for novelty songs. His songs " The Hole in the Ground" and "

Right Said Fred Right Said Fred are an English pop band formed by brothers Fred and Richard Fairbrass in 1989. They are best known for the hit 1991 song " I'm Too Sexy". Their achievements include number 1 hits in 70 countries including one US number 1, o ...

" were both British Top 10 chart hits in 1962, both recorded by

Bernard Cribbins Bernard Joseph Cribbins (29 December 1928 – 27 July 2022) was an English actor and singer whose career spanned over seven decades. During the 1960s, Cribbins became known in the UK for his successful novelty records " The Hole in the Groun ...

to music by

Ted Dicks Edward Dicks (5 May 1928 – 27 January 2012) was an English composer. He is best known for composing the music for the novelty songs "Right Said Fred" and " The Hole in the Ground". They were both Top 10 hits in the UK Singles Chart in 1962, rec ...

and produced by

George Martin Sir George Henry Martin (3 January 1926 – 8 March 2016) was an English record producer, arranger, composer, conductor, and musician. He was commonly referred to as the "Fifth Beatle" because of his extensive involvement in each of the B ...

for

Parlophone Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a German–British record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 192 ...

. Another of his songs, "

A Windmill in Old Amsterdam "A Windmill In Old Amsterdam" is a 1965 novelty song written by Ted Dicks and Myles Rudge. The song, about a mouse that wears clogs, and arranged in waltz time, was notably recorded by Ronnie Hilton in 1965 and issued on the His Master's Voice la ...

", was a hit in 1965 for

Ronnie Hilton Ronnie Hilton (born Adrian Hill; 26 January 1926 – 21 February 2001) was an English singer and radio presenter. According to his obituary in ''The Guardian'' newspaper, "For a time Hilton was a star – strictly for home consumption – with ...

, and won an

Ivor Novello Award The Ivor Novello Awards, named after the entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and composing. They have been presented annually in London by the Ivors Academy (formerly the BASCA) since 1956, and over 1,000 statuettes have been a ...

in 1966 for the Year's Outstanding Novelty Composition.

Life and career

Rudge was born in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

, England, where his father was an

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a product or service. Advertising aims to put a product or service in the spotlight in hopes of drawing it attention from consumers. It is typically used to promote a ...

copywriting Copywriting is the act or occupation of writing text for the purpose of advertising or other forms of marketing. The product, called copy or sales copy, is written content that aims to increase brand awareness and ultimately persuade a person or ...

clerk. He was educated at

Bristol Grammar School Bristol Grammar School (BGS) is a 4–18 mixed, independent day school in Bristol, England. It was founded in 1532 by Royal Charter for the teaching of 'good manners and literature', endowed by wealthy Bristol merchants Robert and Nicholas Thorn ...

, where a friend and classmate was playwright Peter Nichols. Rudge became an actor, working in at the

Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a fin ...

and

Liverpool Playhouse The Liverpool Playhouse is a theatre in Williamson Square in the city of Liverpool, England. It originated in 1866 as a music hall, and in 1911 developed into a repertory theatre. As such it nurtured the early careers of many actors and actress ...

. He served in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

during and immediately after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, from 1944 to 1947. He joined

RADA The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Senat ...

after the Navy, and worked in

repertory A repertory theatre is a theatre in which a resident company presents works from a specified repertoire, usually in alternation or rotation. United Kingdom Annie Horniman founded the first modern repertory theatre in Manchester after withdrawing ...

. Tall and blond, he delivered the line "Who's for tennis?" in

Julian Slade Julian Penkivil Slade (28 May 1930 – 17 June 2006) was an English writer of musical theatre, best known for the show ''Salad Days'', which he wrote in six weeks in 1954, and which became the UK's longest-running show of the 1950s, with over ...

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

Salad Days "Salad days" is a Shakespearean idiom referring to a period of carefree innocence, idealism, and pleasure associated with youth. The modern use, chiefly in the United States, describes a heyday, when a person is/was at the peak of their abilitie ...

'' at the

Vaudeville Theatre The Vaudeville Theatre is a West End theatre on the Strand in the City of Westminster. As the name suggests, the theatre held mostly vaudeville shows and musical revues in its early days. It opened in 1870 and was rebuilt twice, although each ...

. In 1957, he played an estate agent, in ''

You Pay Your Money ''You Pay Your Money'' is a 1957 British crime drama film directed by Maclean Rogers and starring Hugh McDermott (actor), Hugh McDermott, Jane Hylton and Honor Blackman. The thriller was one of the Butcher's Film Service's 1950s B movies, B film ...

''. He left acting to write comedy scripts for television and radio. With composer Ted Dicks, he wrote songs and sketches for West End revue shows, including ''And Another Thing'', which had a long run at the

Fortune Theatre The Fortune Theatre is a 432-seat West End theatre on Russell Street, near Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster. Since 1989 the theatre has hosted the long running play ''The Woman in Black''. History The site was acquired by author, playw ...

in 1960, featuring Bernard Cribbins,

Anna Quayle Anne Veronica Maria Quayle (6 October 1932 – 16 August 2019), known professionally as Anna Quayle, was an English actress. In 1963, she received a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance in the original product ...

, and

Lionel Blair Lionel Blair (born Henry Lionel Ogus; 12 December 1928 – 4 November 2021) was a Canadian-born British actor, choreographer, tap dancer, and television presenter. From the late 1960s until the early 1980s, he made regular appearances as a danc ...

and

Joyce Blair Joyce Blair (born Joyce Ogus; 4 November 1932 – 19 August 2006) was an English actress and dancer. She was the younger sister of Lionel Blair, with whom she often performed. Early life and education Blair was born in London, as the daughter ...

. One of the show's songs, "Folk Song", became a hit for Cribbins, produced by George Martin, and led to them collaborating on the top 10 hits in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, "The Hole in the Ground" and "Right Said Fred".

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time'' magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and ...

chose "The Hole in the Ground" as one of his records on ''

Desert Island Discs ''Desert Island Discs'' is a radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4. It was first broadcast on the BBC Forces Programme on 29 January 1942. Each week a guest, called a " castaway" during the programme, is asked to choose eight recordings (usu ...

'', saying he would pass the time on his

desert island A desert island, deserted island, or uninhabited island, is an island, islet or atoll that is not permanently populated by humans. Uninhabited islands are often depicted in films or stories about shipwrecked people, and are also used as stereot ...

by translating it into French.

Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Frankish language, Old Frankish and is a Compound (linguistics), compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language, Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' an ...

and

Fred Fairbrass Right Said Fred are an English Pop music, pop band formed by brothers Fred and Richard Fairbrass in 1989. They are best known for the hit 1991 song "I'm Too Sexy". Their achievements include number 1 hits in 70 countries including one US n ...

adopted "Right Said Fred" as the name of their pop group. Rudge and Dicks also wrote the theme song for the film ''

Carry On Screaming ''Carry On Screaming!'' is a 1966 British black comedy horror film, the twelfth in the series of 31 ''Carry On'' films (1958–1992). It was the last of the series to be made by Anglo-Amalgamated before the series moved to The Rank Organisat ...

'' (1966), and worked with

Kenneth Williams Kenneth Charles Williams (22 February 1926 – 15 April 1988) was an English actor of Welsh heritage. He was best known for his comedy roles and in later life as a raconteur and diarist. He was one of the main ensemble in 26 of the 31 Car ...

on an album entitled '' On Pleasure Bent'' (1967). Other songs written by Rudge were recorded by

Topol Topol may refer to: Missiles * RT-2PM Topol, a Russian intercontinental ballistic missile in service from 1985 * RT-2PM2 Topol-M, a Russian intercontinental ballistic missile in service from 1997 People * Topol (surname) * Chaim Topol, Israeli a ...

Val Doonican Michael Valentine Doonican (3 February 1927 – 1 July 2015) was an Irish singer of traditional pop, easy listening, and novelty songs, who was noted for his warm and relaxed style. A crooner, he found popular success, especially in the Un ...

Matt Monro Matt Monro (born Terence Edward Parsons, 1 December 1930 – 7 February 1985) was an English singer. Known as "The Man with the Golden Voice", he performed internationally during his 30-year career. AllMusic has described Monro as "one of the m ...

Joan Sims Irene Joan Marion Sims (9 May 1930 – 27 June 2001) was an English actress, best remembered for her roles in the ''Carry On'' franchise, appearing in 24 of the films (the most for any actress). On television, she is known for playing Gran i ...

Jim Dale Jim Dale (born James Smith; 15 August 1935) is an English actor, composer, director, narrator, singer and songwriter. In the United Kingdom he is known as a pop singer of the 1950s who became a leading actor at the National Theatre. In Britis ...

and

Petula Clark Petula Sally Olwen Clark, CBE (born 15 November 1932) is an English singer, actress, and composer. She has one of the longest serving careers of a British singer, spanning more than seven decades. Clark's professional career began during the ...

. Rudge wrote several scripts for BBC television in the 1960s, including scripts for the

soap opera A soap opera, or ''soap'' for short, is a typically long-running radio or television serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term "soap opera" originated from radio dramas originally being sponsored ...

Compact Compact as used in politics may refer broadly to a pact or treaty; in more specific cases it may refer to: * Interstate compact * Blood compact, an ancient ritual of the Philippines * Compact government, a type of colonial rule utilized in British ...

''. He also wrote two series of '' Stop Messing About'' (1969), a follow-on radio comedy to ''

Round the Horne ''Round the Horne'' is a BBC Radio comedy programme starring Kenneth Horne, first transmitted in four series of weekly episodes from 1965 until 1968. The show was created by Barry Took and Marty Feldman, who wrote the first three series. The fo ...

'' with Kenneth Williams, and (with Ronnie Wolfe) three series of ''Something to Shout About'' (1960–62), a BBC radio

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ne ...

set in an advertising agency. With

Vince Powell Vincent Joseph Powell (6 August 1928 – 13 July 2009) was a British television scriptwriter. He collaborated with a writing partner, Harry Driver, until 1973. Early life Powell was born as Vincent Joseph Smith to Roman Catholic parents in Mi ...

, he co-wrote a religious sitcom '' Father Charlie'' (1982), starring

Lionel Jeffries Lionel Charles Jeffries (10 June 1926 – 19 February 2010) was an English actor, director, and screenwriter. He appeared primarily in films and received a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy, Golden Globe Awa ...

and

. He also wrote

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...

scripts, particularly for the

Glasgow Citizens Theatre The Citizens Theatre, in what was the Royal Princess's Theatre, is the creation of James Bridie and is based in Glasgow, Scotland as a principal producing theatre. The theatre includes a 500-seat Main Auditorium, and has also included various ...

. Rudge was a volunteer for

the Samaritans Samaritans is a registered charitable organisation, charity aimed at providing emotional support to anyone in emotional distress, struggling to cope or at risk of suicide throughout the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, often through ...

References

External links

Obituary, ''The Daily Telegraph'', 29 October 2007Obituary, ''The Times'', 14 November 2007 Obituary, ''The Independent'', 14 November 2007
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rudge, Myles 1926 births 2007 deaths English songwriters English television writers People educated at Bristol Grammar School Musicians from Bristol Alumni of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art 20th-century English screenwriters Royal Navy personnel of World War II