Ruby Florence Murray (29 March 1935 – 17 December 1996) was a Northern Irish singer. One of the most popular singers in the British Isles in the 1950s, she scored ten 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 ...

between 1954 and 1959. She also made pop chart history in March 1955 by having five hits in the Top Twenty in a single week.

Child star

Ruby Florence Murray was born near the

Donegall Road The Donegall Road is a residential area and road traffic thoroughfare that runs from Shaftesbury Square on what was once called the " Golden Mile" to the Falls Road in west Belfast. The road is bisected by the Westlink – M1 motorway. The lar ...

in south

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

, the youngest child in a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

family. She had surgery at six weeks of age due to swollen glands, and as a result, had a very husky voice. Entering a public speaking contest run by Eglinton Young Farmers Club, Londonderry in March 1947, she won a special prize for the youngest competitor under 18. A performance at the Ballymena Variety Theatre in February 1948 received a wonderful reception and she then toured in Northern Ireland as a child singer. Murray first appeared on television at the age of 12, having been spotted by producer Richard Afton. Owing to laws governing children performing, Murray had to delay her start in the entertainment industry. She returned to Belfast and full-time education until she was 14.

Chart success

Murray kept busy on the variety stage in Northern Ireland in the early 1950s and in 1954 she joined a touring revue called "Yankee Doodle Blarney" which gave her very useful exposure on the English variety stages. Richard Afton offered her the position of resident singer on the BBC's ''Quite Contrary'' television show, to replace

Joan Regan Joan Regan (born Joan Bethel or Siobhan Bethel; 19 January 1928 – 12 September 2013) was an English traditional pop music singer, popular during the 1950s and early 1960s. Biography Regan was born in either Romford, Essex, or West Ham, London ...

. After being again spotted by Ray Martin on the first "Quite Contrary" show, Murray was signed to Columbia and her first single, "Heartbeat", reached No. 3 in the

in December 1954. " Softly, Softly", her second single, reached number one in early 1955. That same year Murray set a pop chart record by having five hits in the Top Twenty in one week, a feat unmatched for many years. In 2014, the '' Guinness Book of World Records'' issued three certificates confirming that at the date of issue, nobody had beaten this record, although it was shared with three other singers. The record by a female singer still stands at the date of 26 February 2019. The 1950s was a busy period for Murray, during which she had her own television show, starred at the

London Palladium The London Palladium () is a Grade II* West End theatre located on Argyll Street, London, in the famous area of Soho. The theatre holds 2,286 seats. Of the roster of stars who have played there, many have televised performances. Between 1955 a ...

with

Norman Wisdom Sir Norman Joseph Wisdom, (4 February 1915 – 4 October 2010) was an English actor, comedian, musician and singer best known for a series of comedy films produced between 1953 and 1966 featuring a hapless onscreen character often called Norman ...

, appeared in a

Royal Command Performance A Royal Command Performance is any performance by actors or musicians that occurs at the direction or request of a reigning monarch of the United Kingdom. Although English monarchs have long sponsored their own theatrical companies and commis ...

(1955), and toured the world. In a period of 52 weeks, starting on 3 December 1954 and lasting until the end of November 1955, Murray constantly had at least one single in the UK charts – this at a time when only a Top 20 was listed. Murray appeared in her only film role, as Ruby, in '' A Touch of the Sun'', a 1956 farce with

Frankie Howerd Francis Alick Howard (6 March 1917 – 19 April 1992), better known by his stage-name Frankie Howerd, was an English actor and comedian. Early life Howerd was born the son of soldier Francis Alfred William (1887–1934)England & Wales, Deat ...

and

Dennis Price Dennistoun Franklyn John Rose Price (23 June 1915 – 6 October 1973) was an English actor, best remembered for his role as Louis Mazzini in the film '' Kind Hearts and Coronets'' (1949) and for his portrayal of the omnicompetent valet Jeeve ...

. A couple of hits followed later in the decade; "

Goodbye Jimmy, Goodbye "Goodbye Jimmy, Goodbye" is a song written by Jack Vaughn and performed by Kathy Linden. It reached #11 on the ''Billboard'' pop chart in April 1959. The song was A Worchester Production and featured the Joe Leahy Orchestra. The single ranked ...

", a No. 10 hit in 1959, was her final appearance in the charts.

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...

put together a compilation album of her hits on CD in 1989, including songs that regularly featured in her act; " Mr. Wonderful", " Scarlet Ribbons" and "It's the Irish in Me". They updated this with the release of ''EMI Presents The Magic of Ruby Murray'' in 1997 and a four CD album, ''Anthology – The Golden Anniversary Collection'', in 2005, the 50th anniversary of her peak successes on the charts.

Legacy

Murray's popularity led to her name being adopted in

Cockney rhyming slang Rhyming slang is a form of slang word construction in the English language. It is especially prevalent among Cockneys in England, and was first used in the early 19th century in the East End of London; hence its alternative name, Cockney rhymin ...

as a rhyme for "

curry A curry is a dish with a sauce seasoned with spices, mainly associated with South Asian cuisine. In southern India, leaves from the curry tree may be included. There are many varieties of curry. The choice of spices for each dish in trad ...

". The phrase "have a ruby" appears in various episodes of the BBC TV comedy series ''

Only Fools and Horses ''Only Fools and Horses....'' is a British television sitcom created and written by John Sullivan (writer), John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom from 1981 to 1991, with sixteen sporadic Christmas ...

''. A play about Murray's life, ''Ruby'', written by the Belfast playwright

Marie Jones Sarah Marie Jones (born 1951) is a Belfast-based actress and playwright. Born into a working-class Protestant family, Jones was an actress for several years before turning her hand to writing. Her plays have been staged on Broadway as well as ...

, opened at the Group Theatre in Belfast in April 2000. A second play, by Michael Cameron, opened in Belfast on 13 February 2019 and was sold out at all performances.

Personal life

In 1957, while working in Blackpool, Murray met Bernie Burgess, a member of a successful television and recording vocal quartet, the Four Jones Boys. Shortly afterwards she left Northern Ireland to marry him and live with him in Northampton. Burgess, contrary to press reports, did not become her manager, but rather his role was that of a supporting husband. The couple included a song-and-dance segment in Murray's act during the 1960s. Murray struggled with alcoholism for most of her life and this contributed to the breakdown of her marriage in 1974. The divorce was finalised in 1976 and Murray moved to

Torquay Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paig ...

to live with an old friend, Ray Lamar, a former stage dancer and theatre impresario, who was 18 years her senior. They married in 1991 and spent the evening with a small party of friends and family at an Italian restaurant in Babbacombe. Murray had two children from her marriage to Burgess, Julie (b. 1960) and Tim (b. 1965). Tim died unexpectedly from a heart condition in July 2020, aged 55. Although her days as a major star were long over, Murray continued performing until close to the end of her life. Spending her last couple of years in Asprey's Nursing Home, she often delighted her carers with a song, and was visited by her friend

Max Bygraves Walter William Bygraves (16 October 1922 – 31 August 2012), best known by the stage name Max Bygraves (adopted in honour of Max Miller), was an English comedian, singer, actor and variety performer. He appeared on his own television shows, s ...

. She died of liver cancer on 17 December 1996, aged 61. Ray Lamar died on 3 August 2005 from complications of pneumonia, aged 87.

Singles discography

* "Heartbeat" (1954) – UK number 3 * " Softly, Softly" (1955) – UK number 1 * "Happy Days and Lonely Nights" (1955) – UK number 6 * " Let Me Go Lover" (1955) – UK number 5 * "If Anyone Finds This, I Love You" (1955) – UK number 4 † * "Evermore" (1955) – UK number 3 * "I'll Come When You Call" (1955) – UK number 6 * "The Very First Christmas of All" (1955) – UK number 9 (Record Mirror) * "You are My First Love" (1956) – UK number 16 * "Real Love" (1958) – UK number 18 * "

" (1959) – UK number 10 † Ruby Murray with Anne Warren For further discography, se
this page
on the official Ruby Murray website.

References

External links

Official website

45rpm.org.uk
BBC recording of interview in 1956
{{DEFAULTSORT:Murray, Ruby 1935 births 1996 deaths Musicians from Belfast 20th-century women singers from Northern Ireland Deaths from liver cancer Deaths from cancer in England Pop singers from Northern Ireland Presbyterians from Northern Ireland