Benny Hill and his show. Biography and work of the English comedian Benny Hill

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Many lovers of a laugh could watch the British humorous program "The Benny Hill Show" broadcast on Russian TV channels. This show has been shown in more than 140 countries for thirty years, despite the fact that it was constantly criticized by viewers and persecuted by governments. What then is its popularity? Let's find out together. This article will also describe the biography of Benny Hill, the founder of the show, an English comedian and actor.

Story of the show

The program first appeared on the air in 1955. Throughout the entire period of its existence, it had the character of a sketch series, that is, it consisted of an indefinite number of short comedy scenes (an analogy can be drawn with one of the most popular TV shows in our time, Our Russia). Benny Hill appeared in his program not only as an actor performingmain roles, he also performed the functions of a musician, songwriter and director. The show's hallmark was fast-paced filming, and each episode usually ended with a scene where an angry mob quickly runs after Benny Hill's character.

The sketches of the show were not only on everyday topics, they often parodied famous artists and politicians. So, Benny Hill released parodies of such famous Hollywood actors as Elizabeth Taylor, Michael Caine, Richard Burton, Marlon Brando, popular performers - Bob Dylan, Cher, Mireille Mathieu, Liza Mineilli, the Rolling Stones and many others. He ridiculed the actor and politicians, including Enoch Powell, Margaret Thatcher, Harold Wilson.

Colleagues on set

Along with the creator of the show at different times, other actors worked on the set, including Jackie Wright, Sue Upton, Bob Todd, Bella Emberg, Jeremy Hawke, Andre Melly, Paul Eddington, Leslie Goldie, Patricia Hayes, Bettina Le Beau, Ronnie Brody and more.

Benny Hill respected all his colleagues and often helped them through life. It is known that when Jackie Wright was already old for filming, besides being seriously ill, Benny Hill inserted episodes from old films into new releases so that the elderly actor could still receive roy alties.

About the creator

For thirty years, the Benny Hill program has been the most popular program in the world. Benny Hill was to most countries what Evgeny Petrosyan was to Russia. Many of hisloved and respected, but there were also those who criticized his work, and the actor himself was called "a redheaded stupid old man." But the English comedian Benny Hill tried not to pay attention to such people and did his job for those to whom it brought joy.

In 1971, his work was recognized by the British Television Academy - the show to which he gave his life won the award in the category "Best Entertainment Television Program".

Few people know how cheerful and carefree Benny Hill was in reality. How did his personal life develop, what did he live for, what did he really strive for?

Ginger Comedian Life Story: Childhood

Alfred Hawthorne Hill was born on January 21, 1924 in a suburb of London (Teddington). It is known that Alfred Hill, the father of the future actor, participated in the First World War. Upon returning home, he met Helen Cave, with whom he tied the knot. A year after the wedding, their first son, Leonard, was born. Three years later, the second son, Hawthorne Hill, appeared in the family. The third child of the Hill family was the girl Diana, who was born in 1933.

Alfred Hill owned a medical store that sold condoms alongside drugs, which often became the subject of ridicule of his classmates at his children.

Hawthorne often laughed it off and over time, realizing that he had a good sense of humor, began to compose various jokes and entertain others.

Birth of "Benny Hill"

Love for funny Hawthorneinstilled by his grandfather. He often took his grandson to various performances and shows in parody theaters. Grandfather initiated Hawthorne's inclusion in the school's mini-theater group, and then helped him get into the comic troupe.

Hawthorne Hill served in the army during World War II and moved to London in 1946. There he began to make various radio plays and perform in various shows. The comedian guy borrowed his stage name from his favorite comedian Jack Benny. For the first time, a young comedian was invited to television in 1949 on the show "Hi everyone!". A few years later, Benny Hill got the idea to create his own show, and he immediately brought it to life. This is how the "Benny Hill Show" appeared, which managed to conquer the whole world.

Bennimania and creative block

In the early 1980s, "bennimania" swept the planet - people around the world repeated the facial expressions and gestures of their favorite humorist, and American police began to salute as one of his characters - with their palm turned upside down.

After thirty years of creativity, Benny Hill entered a period of crisis. Passers-by on the street teased him, laughed in his face, which began to annoy the actor. Hill became angry, rudely ridiculed the British government and the royal family in one of the episodes of his show. Margaret Thatcher did not tolerate the impudence of the actor and ordered that each episode of his show be subjected to the strictest censorship. As a result, over 150 hours of finished video material was rejected by the commission over ten years. Hill withdrew into himself, felldepressed, started drinking. At the same time, colleagues in the profession began to ridicule him, which further aggravated the comedian's internal state.

The show ended up canceling in 1991.

Private life

Benny Hill never married, had no children and, despite his huge fortune, never had his own apartment or car. People who knew him in life claimed that Hill was a very insecure person, he did not know how to communicate with women.

After the end of the show, the actor lost interest in life - he began to drink, eat immoderately, practically did not leave the house. In April 1992, one of the comedian's friends found him dead in an apartment he rented near a television studio. Doctors diagnosed a heart attack. It was not possible to determine exactly when death occurred. We found the actor in an armchair in front of the TV turned on among a mountain of dirty glasses and plates. Thus ended the life of one of the most popular comedians in the world. A few years after his death, the British government decided to show the audience all the films with Benny Hill, which had previously been banned. But they did it, according to Prime Minister Tony Blair, only so that everyone would know about him and quickly forget.