Hyacinth In Bloom
Presenting Patricia Routledge
"I was a plump girl with a loud voice. I used to ride my bike round the country lanes thinking great thoughts and spouting pieces of poetry."
– Patricia Routledge
She will forever be known and loved as Hyacinth Bucket, but a quick look beneath the surface shows both similarities and differences between Patricia Routledge and her most famous creation.
One thing actress and character do share is an adoration of their families, especially their fathers.
In Patricia's case, her father was a haberdasher named Isaac Edgar Routledge. He and his wife, Catherine, lived behind his shop in Birkenhead (a town in the north of England) and on February 29th, 1929, Mrs. Routledge gave birth to a daughter. They named her Katherine, but the child would grow up to be known more commonly by her middle name. Patricia and her brother Graham were youngsters when World War II broke out, so they were forced to spend a lot of time in the basement bunker.
The family was extremely close and both children grew up secure in the knowledge that they were well loved. Patricia attended Birkenhead High School, where she was in her words "the plump girl with a loud voice." She's the first to say that she was a bit of a disruptive show-off, but she must have enjoyed school because she came to think of her future being spent as the headmistress of a school, driving a red sports car and spending summers having romances all around Europe.
She studied English at Liverpool University, but her career plans were altered when she began to participate in the end-of-term plays. She so enjoyed the time spent on these productions that after University went to work as an unpaid assistant at Liverpool Playhouse. Her acting talent did not go unnoticed and she was asked to join the company, making her debut in 1952 as Hippolyta in A Midsummer Night's Dream. This sort of career seemed distinctly at odds with her parents, who were firm believers in the notion of "Northern Puritanism" and instilled in their daughter the virtues of hard work and discipline ("common sense - that's what was expected of me" she once said).
However, Routledge also admitted to an interviewer in 1998 that her outward "self-control had always masked an anarchic nature." Truer words have never been spoken. On the one hand, there's the proper, Puritanical, very hard working Patricia, who according to writer Alan Bennett possesses a "strong moral streak and firm views." On the other hand, there was the Patricia who worshipped Lucille Ball and grew up to be extraordinarily adept at farce and physical pratfalls. Still, her parents were a bit taken aback at her decision to go into drama.
At the age of 23, she left her family home to study at the Old Vic Theatre School in Bristol and made her debut on the London stage in 1954. In 1961, she appeared in three episodes of Coronation Street, but knew in her heart that this wasn't where she wanted to stay. Always a big believer in risk and not allowing herself to stagnate, she decided to move on. That she did, all the way to New York and the Broadway stage, where in 1966 she caught the attention of famed composer Jules Styne. He asked her to star in his musical Darling of the Day, for which she won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical.
Her career was then firmly established and built mainly between the stage and television, though Routledge did have roles in movies such as The Bliss of Mrs. Blossom and To Sir with Love. Her television roles seem to be divided between pure farcical silliness and the brilliant artistry of sophisticated writers like Alan Bennett. In 1982 he created A Woman of No Importance, a one-woman monologue that allowed her a tour de force to showcase her extensive theatrical skills.
In 1985, Routledge had her first big sitcom role in Marjorie and Men. She played Marjorie Belton, recently divorced and on the lookout for a new man. Unfortunately, Marjorie's mother (played by Patricia Hayes) also has her eyes peeled for a prospective son-in-law and desperately wants to see her daughter remarried. Since the two women now live together, the mother gets to be even more of an interfering busybody than normal. Each of the six episodes shows Marjorie encountering a new man in her life.
That same year she appeared with the wonderful Victoria Wood in Wood's series As Seen On TV. She had a small role as a recurring character called Kitty, a highly snobby woman who sat in a chair and spouted such platitudes as "What has China given the world? Can you really respect a nation that's never taken to cutlery?" Kitty would be good practice for the role that would become something of a blessing and a curse.
For despite a highly distinguished, varied career and her multitude of talents as an actress, comedian, and singer, Routledge will probably always remain best known for a single line: "The Bucket residence - the lady of the house speaking." That line is just one demonstration of her total mastery of all vocal pyrotechnics including timing, modulation and rhythm. Anyone without her innate musicality would not have been able to make that line soar as she did. She didn't so much say the line as she sang it. The whole character of Hyacinth Bucket was approached much the same way - tackled with an enthusiasm and gusto that would do any musical comedy or opera star proud.
Those years of watching Lucille Ball would also teach Routledge a thing or two about physical humor and even at a relatively advanced age she was able to pull off some remarkable stunts and pratfalls. Climbing over hedges and hanging off the backs of trucks were proof positive of her boundless energy. Hyacinth brought Routledge to a vast American audience and there's little doubt that this was a perfect match of character and actress. Like Hyacinth, Routledge is a hard-working perfectionist who doesn't suffer fools lightly. She can be very demanding, but the effort shows every time she's on the screen. On the other hand, Routledge is a very spiritual woman who doesn't like snobs and looked at the role as a way to poke fun at women who are like Hyacinth.
Why does everyone love this character? Perhaps because she represents the Britain we want to believe still exists - a sophisticated, cultured place full of women who use Royal Doulton china, wear posh hats, and uphold the old traditions of manners and etiquette. Then again, nah - maybe not. Hyacinth really is a larger-than-life snobbish monster on a par with Basil Fawlty. Be honest - would you really want to live next door to her? I didn't think so.
Perhaps we tune in simply because we all love to see snobs deflated and we secretly hope that one day Hyacinth will truly get hers. Many also tune in simply to marvel at Routledge's ability as a physical comedian. Her entire body is in perpetual motion, from the eyebrows to the legs and especially that mouth.
Alan Bennett once said of Patricia that if the role didn't conform to her "very firm moral streak" and "firm views" that she would tend to be very dubious about it. This comment may explain why Routledge liked the role so much. Hyacinth might not want to claim her family since they don't meet her exacting social standards, but in the end she loves them just as Routledge loved her own family.
Her complete domination of this character won her many awards, including Top Comedy Actress in 1991. She was also awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1993 as well as being named Personality of the Year by the Variety Club of Great Britain. Finally, in a poll to celebrate the BBC's 60th anniversary in 1996, she was voted Britain's all-time favorite comedy actress. This was clearly a character the public adored and Routledge claims that fans would often tell her that they were like Hyacinth, or they knew someone just like her. "Poor you," was her standard reply.
Much to the disappointment of KUA fans, her need for change caused Routledge to say good-bye to Hyacinth in 1994 and move on to new and different territory. Our favorite snob then transformed into ace detective Hetty Wainthrop in the series Hetty Wainthrop Investigates. Hetty was a bit like Hyacinth in that she could be bossy and domineering, but luckily, Hetty wasn't nearly as much of a burden to her husband as Hyacinth was to the long-suffering Richard. Writer David Cook developed Hetty from a number of Northern women he knew. Indeed, women who hail from the gritty, industrial north of England tend to have the same bossy, no nonsense, take no guff nature.
One has to think no further than the women of The Last of the Summer Wine - including the infamous Nora Batty - to know what I'm speaking about. Routledge was keen to play Hetty because she liked how the scripts dealt with important topical issues such a schizophrenia and violence. She also liked the fact that Hetty was in her 60s, but still had plenty of energy and a strong determination to reach her potential despite her age.
She first played Hetty in a 13-part radio adaptation of Cook's novel Missing Persons. This worked into a series that lasted from 1995-1998. Routledge was keen to continue playing the sleuth with the young sidekick, but the series was abruptly canceled (apparently without a word to its star) in an effort to make room for shows that weren't quite so geared toward a middle-class, suburban audience.
In something of a contradiction, however, there was a desire for more Keeping Up Appearances, perhaps due to its popularity in America. Routledge wasn't interested, though, feeling that it had been taken as far as it could go and that the scripts were starting to recycle themselves. Since then, Routledge has concentrated on stage work. In 1996 she played Beatrix Potter in Beatrix at the Chichester Festival Theater.
Last year her association with Chichester continued when she appeared as Lady Bracknell in a production of The Importance of Being Earnest that later transferred to the West End. This role garnered her great reviews with one reviewer praising her "richly comic authority."
Interestingly enough for someone who has fond memories of her childhood and a strong belief in the family, Routledge has not created a family of her own. In a scenario more suited to Rose than Hyacinth, she had a youthful affair with a married man that broke her heart. She has had other relationships since then (one with a man who died suddenly of a heart attack), but for the most part, she has immersed herself in a remarkably rich and varied career.
Patricia Routledge is now 71 years old, but this formidable woman appears to have plenty of exuberance and energy left. She is still driven and claims she can "hardly spell" the word retirement. Her stated ambition has always been to do "good work with good people." There is no doubt she has achieved this goal.
The Insider | June 2000
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