‘Goodbye campers!’ Tributes to ‘one of a kind’ Ruth Madoc as Hi-de-Hi! Star dies
Hi-de-Hi! actress Ruth Madoc has died aged 79, her agent has confirmed in a statement.
Best known for playing Gladys Pugh in 1980s holiday camp sitcom Hi-de-Hi!, she had been due to star in the Christmas pantomime Aladdin in Torquay, but had been forced to pull out earlier this week following a fall.
Hi-de-Hi! stars (L-R): Su Pollard, Simon Cadell, Michael Knowles and Ruth Madoc
Phil Belfield of talent agency Belfield & Ward Ltd, described her as “one of a kind and a unique talent loved by many”.
He said: “It is with much sadness that we have to announce the death of our dear and much-loved client Ruth Madoc.
“Ruth passed away on the afternoon of Friday 9 December while in hospital following surgery for a fall she had earlier in the week, which had led her to have to withdraw from panto in Torquay.
“From film work such as Fiddler On The Roof and Under Milk Wood with Richard Burton and her iconic TV performance as Gladys Pugh in Hi De Hi! and more recently in Little Britain and on stage with Calendar Girls (the play and the musical), plus recent acclaim in short films Skinny Fat and Cardiff, she was truly a national treasure and was looking forward to getting back on the road in 2023 with The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.
“A real legend of the British entertainment scene, she was one of a kind and a unique talent loved by many. She is gone far too soon. Our hearts are broken!
“Thoughts are with her daughter Lowri, her son Rhys and all of her family.”
One of the first stars to pay tribute was Blackadder actor Sir Tony Robinson, who had performed with her in 2009.
Robinson wrote on Twitter: “So sad to hear my lovely friend Ruth Madoc has passed. She was not only funny and highly intelligent, she was smart, kindly, a loyal trade unionist, and wore her heart on the left. She’ll be much missed.”
Madoc had a lead role in long-running BBC comedy Hi-de-Hi!, for which she was BAFTA-nominated. Set in the late 50s in the fictional holiday camp Maplins, the show ran for nine series, and 58 episodes, from 1980 to 1988.
Her character, Gladys, was the chief Yellowcoat, famed for her camp tannoy announcements preceded by three signature notes played on a mini xylophone, followed by her saying, “Hello campers,” and then the title phrase, “Hi-de-Hi!”
Her recurring storyline centred around her unrequited love for camp entertainment manager Jeffrey Fairbrother, played by Simon Cadell. She later played the role in a touring stage version of the show.
Calling her “a very lovely person” and “wonderfully gifted actress,” broadcaster Gyles Brandreth wrote on Twitter: “I was lucky enough to get to know her through my best friend from school, Simon Cadell.
“In Hi-De-Hi they were irresistible. RIP Ruth Madoc & thanks for the memories. Goodbye campers!”
Former Family Fortunes presenter Les Dennis wrote on Twitter: “So very sad to hear that lovely Ruth Madoc has passed away. She was such a talented and lovely woman. Thoughts with her family.”
Madoc had been due to play the empress in the pantomime Aladdin, which at the Princess Theatre in Torquay, alongside EastEnders actor Ricky Norwood and X Factor star Jay Edwards, but she had to withdraw from the role the week before opening night after suffering a fall.
The theatre had tweeted on Thursday: “Following an accident earlier this week, after medical assessment, regretfully Ruth Madoc is no longer able to appear in this year’s pantomime of Aladdin at the Princess Theatre in Torquay.”
Madoc arriving at the press night for the Full Monty in 2014
Following news of her death, they wrote: “We are devastated to hear of the news of Ruth’s passing. Everyone at the theatre and ATG are sending all our love to Ruth’s family.”
A panto veteran, she had appeared in over 30, playing roles including principle boy in Dick Whittington in Edinburgh, the bad fairy in Sleeping Beauty in Rhyl and the fairy godmother in Cinderella in Mansfield.
A star of the stage and screen she had starred in an array of roles in theatre and musicals around the world, including Phantom of the Opera, Gypsy and Annie.
In 2018, she performed in the ladies’ version of The Real Full Monty alongside stars including Coleen Nolan, Victoria Derbyshire and Michelle Heaton, raising awareness about breast cancer.
A year later, she broke her hip in a fall while rehearsing for her role in Calendar Girls, but confounded doctors with her speedy recovery.
Born in April 1943 in Norwich, Madoc was brought up in Llansamlet near Swansea, largely by her grandparents.
She went on to train at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and got her break-out role playing Fruma Sarah in the film version of the musical Fiddler On The Roof in 1971.
Aside from Hi-de-Hi!, other highlights of her career include Mrs Dai Bread Two in 1972 comedy film Under Milk Wood and later the role of the mother of Daffyd Thomas, played by Matt Lucas, in the second series of Little Britain.
In 1984 she was presented with the big red book when she was the subject of a This Is Your Life episode.
Swansea University awarded her an honorary degree in 2006, and she was also a fellow of the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.
She married twice, first to Welsh actor Philip Madoc, with whom she had her two children. Married for 20 years, they divorced in 1981. Her second husband, John Jackson, died last year.
She had been due to join stars including Belinda Lang, Paul Nicholas and Tessa Peake-Jones in UK theatre tour of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, about a group of British retirees in India, in January 2023.
Madoc is survived by her daughter Lowri her son Rhys.
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John David Washington says he felt like he had to conceal his desire to act because of the external expectations of him being the child of Denzel and Pauletta Washington.
He tells Sky News it took some time for him to pursue an acting career, choosing football instead to assert his “independence” and create his own “identity” separate from his famous family.
“I’ve been wanting to do this my whole life… but I was hiding it,” he said.
“I had to conceal that passion based on my relationship to the world and more specifically, my folks being in the industry, so I chose ball.
“I loved ball, but I was sort of hiding my love for the arts under a helmet – literally an American football helmet – and so when I wanted to become an actor, when I decided to pursue it, that was a big shock to some people.”
The 40-year-old actor says when he decided to pursue an acting career, he kept the decision quiet.
“Some people didn’t know I was even pursuing it professionally until I got a job,” he said.
John David with fellow actor Danielle Deadwyler. Pic: David Lee/ Netflix
Since switching to acting, John David has starred in a number of notable roles including the protagonist in Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, Ron Stallworth in BlacKkKlansman and Joshua in The Creator.
He also led the stage revival of the 2022 Tony-nominated play The Piano Lesson on Broadway alongside Samuel L Jackson.
“He [Jackson] originated the role [I play] in 1987 at Yale with Lloyd Richards and August Wilson,” John David said.
“So it was of great importance for us to learn from both he and Michael Potts about August Wilson. It was a great blessing for me, I think, for all of us to have him present on set.”
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The Piano Lesson is the third August Wilson play to be adapted for the screen by Denzel Washington’s production company Mundy Lane Entertainment.
It is part of a pledge made by the Gladiator II actor to make all 10 of the playwright’s works into films.
The Netflix project is directed by another Washington family member, Malcolm, and stars most of the cast from the Broadway revival.
The Piano Lesson is Malcolm Washington’s directorial debut. Pic: Katia Washington/ Netflix
Set in 1936 Pittsburgh in the aftermath of the Great Depression, the film centres on a family heirloom, a piano, that is etched with the carvings of their family history made by their enslaved ancestor.
Malcolm says he started reading the play for the first time during the pandemic and immediately wanted to be involved in the film adaptation.
“I think with this movie, reclamation of story and identity is so central to the theme and it’s something that’s central to my life where I both acknowledge the fertile ground that I was raised on and who I am today.
“That’s what Wining Boy [played by Michael Potts] really is trying to do, he’s trying to build on that legacy, so that’s a story that really resonated with me.”
The filmmaker added: “I take all the gifts that my ancestors laid in front of me, and I’m trying to build something for the next generation to pass down – all of their gifts, plus mine to the next generation and let them build on it.”
Malcolm has dedicated his directorial debut to his mother, Pauletta Washington. Pic: David Lee/Netflix
Malcolm says his goal was to put family at the forefront of the production. By dedicating his feature debut to “Mama”, he is acknowledging the dedication and sacrifices that mothers make for the growth of their families.
“There’s so much pointing to my mother in particular, who inspired this adaptation so much. I see so much of her life in Berniece’s character [played by Danielle Deadwyler] – and that became a guiding light for me in this adaptation,” he said.
“As we made this thing and started reconnecting with our ancestors, my mum became like a kind of representative of them.
“She’s the matriarch of our family. She tells me about my grandparents and great-grandparents and the line that I come from, and I see them in her.
“And when the movie ends, I want people to kind of have that moment of reflection for their own lives. So in dedicating it to her, I was trying to dedicate it to all mums everywhere.”
The Piano Lesson is now available on Netflix.
Blockbuster Wicked has landed the largest opening weekend of 2024 at Vue International.
The film, starring Oscar-nominated actress Cynthia Erivo and Grammy-winning pop star Ariana Grande as Elphaba and Glinda, surpassed both Gladiator II and Paddington In Peru.
It has also had the largest opening weekend for a stage musical adaptation in the cinema chain’s history.
A boss for Vue International said it had seen a “sea of pink and green” over the weekend.
Ariana Grande (left) as Glinda and Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba in the film. Pic: PA
Pic: PA
Pic: PA
Released on Friday, Wicked is up 60% on Les Miserables’ opening weekend in 2012 and three times larger than the 2022 film adaptation of Matilda.
Founder and chief executive of Vue International Tim Richards said: “Vue has seen a sea of pink and green over the opening weekend of Wicked, which has shown continued high demand for the big screen experience.
“We saw record-breaking pre-sales for Wicked, followed by a chart-topping opening weekend – the biggest for 2024.”
The film is the first of two parts, with the second expected in November next year.
Wicked and Gladiator II – known together as Glicked – have reportedly failed to beat out Barbenheimer, Barbie and Oppenheimer, in its own opening weekend last summer.
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Glicked brought in £215m in worldwide ticket sales – with Wicked making the majority of that.
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