Namechecks in the chorus of "Hello" by the Beloved.
Created | Updated Aug 10, 2007
Catchy electronic beats, relaxed, breathy vocals and spacy lyrics combine in the work of Jon Marsh and Steve Waddington, better known as The Beloved.
One of their best, and best known, singles is their first, a cheerful welcoming 'Hello' to the saints and sinners of the world, some of whom the band then proceed to name check in each chorus...
"Hello Peter, hello Paul"
Presumably this line refers to the two little sparrows from the children's nursery rhyme - or possibly, of course, Saints Peter and Paul.
"saints and sinners, welcome all
Tommy Cannon and Bobby Ball"
As with many of the celebrities named in the song, it's not clear which category these guys fall into - saints or sinners. Tommy Cannon and Bobby Ball were the stage names of Thomas Derbyshire and Robert Harper. They were a popular comedy double act on British television in the late seventies and early eighties.
"Little Richard, Little Nell"
Little Richard is Richard Wayne Penniman, most famous for his 1955 hit single "Tutti Frutti", the most famous and nonsensical line of which now falls foul of the h2g2 profanity filter.
Little Nell is a character from Charles Dickens' novel 'The Old Curiosity Shop', although it is far more likely that the song is referring to Laura Elisabeth Campbell, who under her stage name of Little Nell created the role of Columbia in the original Rocky Horror Show and its film adaptation.
"Willy Wonka and William Tell"
Willy Wonka is the proprietor of the chocolate factory in Roald Dahl's novel 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'. He has been portrayed on film by Gene Wilder and Johnny Depp.
William Tell is a Swiss folk hero who defied a local ruler by refusing an order to bow to his hat. For this insult, Tell was sentenced to death, along with his son. Cruelly, the ruler decreed that he could go free if he could shoot an apple off his son's head with a crossbow. Tell did so with a single shot. The historical authenticity of this story is disputed, much like the similar British folk tales of Robin Hood.
"Salman Rushdie and Kym Mazelle"
Salman Rushdie is an Indian-born British novelist who came to greater prominence in 1988 when the publication of his fourth novel, 'The Satanic Verses', sparked violent protests and book-burnings by Muslims in Britain and a death sentence from the then leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khomeini.
Kym Mazelle was a soul singer in the early eighties who performed with Soul II Soul and as a solo artist. Her best known work is probably the cover of 'Young Hearts Run Free' from the movie 'Romeo + Juliet'.
"Mork and Mindy, Brian Hayes"
Mork and Mindy were the title characters of a 1978 sitcom spinoff from 'Happy Days'. Mindy McConnell was played by Pam Dawber, and Mork, an alien from the planet Ork, was played with manic energy by Robin Williams, in his breakthrough role.
Brian Hayes is a radio presenter who presented the morning phone-in show on LBC Radio between 1976 and 1990. He has won several Sony awards and currently works for the BBC on Radio 5 Live.
"Barry Humphries and Paris Grey"
Barry Humphries is an Australian comedian and satirist best known to audiences as his alter-ego Dame Edna Everage. He also frequently appears as the 'Australian Cultural Attache', Sir Les Patterson.
Paris Grey is an American singer best known as the voice of the band Inner City, who had a big hit in the eighties with 'Good Life'.
There's some dispute about the exact words of the next line. Some versions have it as:
"little neepsie, chris and do", which could be references simply to friends of the band.
Personally, the author hears this line as:
"Little Nietzsche, Christendom", which refers to the German existentialist philosopher, then the whole population of the Christian world. It's possible that this interpretation is a mondegreen.
"Billy Corkhill, Vince Hilaire"
Billy Corkhill was a character in 'Brookside' the long-running UK soap opera set in Liverpool.
Vince Hillaire was a footballer who played for Crystal Palace, Luton Town, Portsmouth and Leeds United.
"Freddie Flintstone, Fred Astaire
Fred Flintstone was the lead character in the 1960s Hanna-Barbera cartoon sitcom 'The Flintstones', voiced by Alan Reed who created the well-known catchphrase "Yabba Dabba Doo!".
Fred Astaire was an actor, singer, choreographer, and the most influential dancer in the history of film. His career spanned over seventy years, and he is most often associated with Ginger Rogers, with whom he made ten films. He was famously summed up by an RKO talent scout thus: "Can't sing. Can't act. Balding. Can dance a little."
"Desmond Tutu, Steve and Claire"
Archbishop Desmond Tutu is a cleric and noted anti-apartheid campaigner. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984.
The identities of 'Steve and Claire' are unknown. They are possibly friends of the band.
"Charlie Parker, Charlie Brown"
Charlie 'Bird' Parker was a saxophone player and one of the greatest jazz musicians ever. He was a founder of the movement known as bebop.
Charlie Brown is the main character in the strip cartoon 'Peanuts' by Charles Schultz. He is the owner of the beagle, Snoopy, arguably the better known character.
"Leslie Crowther, come on down"
Leslie Crowther was a comedian and TV presenter who presented many, many shows in a long career, including Crackerjack, the Black and White Minstrel Show, and the first three seasons of 'Stars in their Eyes'. The line in the song refers to his stint as the first presenter on British TV of the show 'The Price Is Right', where audience members selected to participate are invited by the host to 'come on down'.
"Mary wilson, Di and Flo"
This is a name-check for one of the most successful all-female bands of all time, the Supremes. Mary Wilson, Diana Ross and Florence Ballard had twelve American number ones in the 1960s.
"Sir Bufton Tufton, Jean Paul Sartre"
Sir Bufton Tufton is a fictional character used by the satirical magazine Private Eye to lampoon a certain kind of stuffy, old fashioned Tory MP. The name was a play on the name of an actual Tory MP, Sir Tufton Victor Hamilton Beamish, Baron Chelwood.
Jean Paul Sartre was a French existentialist philosopher whose works include The Transcendence of the Ego, Being and Nothingness and Critique of Dialectical Reason.
"Zippy, Bungle, Jeffrey Archer"
Zippy, Bungle and Jeffrey were the main characters (along with George) in the 70s children's show 'Rainbow'.
Jeffrey Archer is a well known convicted criminal, former Conservative MP and chairman of the Conservative Party, former Conservative candidate for mayor of London and sometime novelist. Around the time the song was released, he was best known for denying he had ever met the prostitute Monica Coghlan, who claimed he had paid her £2,000 to keep her quiet. It clearly didn't work, and for some time afterwards the sum of £2,000 was known as "an Archer".
"André Previn and the LSO"
André Previn is a pianist and composer who won Academy and Grammy Awards for his various film scores. He was principle conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra (the LSO) throughout the seventies, and is undoubtedly best known in Britain for appearing as 'Mr. Andrew Preview' with Morecambe and Wise, where Eric Morecambe attempted to play Grieg's piano concerto. 'Preview' angrily told him that he was playing all the wrong notes, to which Morecambe replied "I am playing the right notes. Not necessarily in the right order..."
The Beloved's 'Hello' is an interesting snapshot of the time, a cross-section of randomly selected 'celebrities' from a time before the modern obsession with celebrities.
One of their best, and best known, singles is their first, a cheerful welcoming 'Hello' to the saints and sinners of the world, some of whom the band then proceed to name check in each chorus...
"Hello Peter, hello Paul"
Presumably this line refers to the two little sparrows from the children's nursery rhyme - or possibly, of course, Saints Peter and Paul.
"saints and sinners, welcome all
Tommy Cannon and Bobby Ball"
As with many of the celebrities named in the song, it's not clear which category these guys fall into - saints or sinners. Tommy Cannon and Bobby Ball were the stage names of Thomas Derbyshire and Robert Harper. They were a popular comedy double act on British television in the late seventies and early eighties.
"Little Richard, Little Nell"
Little Richard is Richard Wayne Penniman, most famous for his 1955 hit single "Tutti Frutti", the most famous and nonsensical line of which now falls foul of the h2g2 profanity filter.
Little Nell is a character from Charles Dickens' novel 'The Old Curiosity Shop', although it is far more likely that the song is referring to Laura Elisabeth Campbell, who under her stage name of Little Nell created the role of Columbia in the original Rocky Horror Show and its film adaptation.
"Willy Wonka and William Tell"
Willy Wonka is the proprietor of the chocolate factory in Roald Dahl's novel 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'. He has been portrayed on film by Gene Wilder and Johnny Depp.
William Tell is a Swiss folk hero who defied a local ruler by refusing an order to bow to his hat. For this insult, Tell was sentenced to death, along with his son. Cruelly, the ruler decreed that he could go free if he could shoot an apple off his son's head with a crossbow. Tell did so with a single shot. The historical authenticity of this story is disputed, much like the similar British folk tales of Robin Hood.
"Salman Rushdie and Kym Mazelle"
Salman Rushdie is an Indian-born British novelist who came to greater prominence in 1988 when the publication of his fourth novel, 'The Satanic Verses', sparked violent protests and book-burnings by Muslims in Britain and a death sentence from the then leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khomeini.
Kym Mazelle was a soul singer in the early eighties who performed with Soul II Soul and as a solo artist. Her best known work is probably the cover of 'Young Hearts Run Free' from the movie 'Romeo + Juliet'.
"Mork and Mindy, Brian Hayes"
Mork and Mindy were the title characters of a 1978 sitcom spinoff from 'Happy Days'. Mindy McConnell was played by Pam Dawber, and Mork, an alien from the planet Ork, was played with manic energy by Robin Williams, in his breakthrough role.
Brian Hayes is a radio presenter who presented the morning phone-in show on LBC Radio between 1976 and 1990. He has won several Sony awards and currently works for the BBC on Radio 5 Live.
"Barry Humphries and Paris Grey"
Barry Humphries is an Australian comedian and satirist best known to audiences as his alter-ego Dame Edna Everage. He also frequently appears as the 'Australian Cultural Attache', Sir Les Patterson.
Paris Grey is an American singer best known as the voice of the band Inner City, who had a big hit in the eighties with 'Good Life'.
There's some dispute about the exact words of the next line. Some versions have it as:
"little neepsie, chris and do", which could be references simply to friends of the band.
Personally, the author hears this line as:
"Little Nietzsche, Christendom", which refers to the German existentialist philosopher, then the whole population of the Christian world. It's possible that this interpretation is a mondegreen.
"Billy Corkhill, Vince Hilaire"
Billy Corkhill was a character in 'Brookside' the long-running UK soap opera set in Liverpool.
Vince Hillaire was a footballer who played for Crystal Palace, Luton Town, Portsmouth and Leeds United.
"Freddie Flintstone, Fred Astaire
Fred Flintstone was the lead character in the 1960s Hanna-Barbera cartoon sitcom 'The Flintstones', voiced by Alan Reed who created the well-known catchphrase "Yabba Dabba Doo!".
Fred Astaire was an actor, singer, choreographer, and the most influential dancer in the history of film. His career spanned over seventy years, and he is most often associated with Ginger Rogers, with whom he made ten films. He was famously summed up by an RKO talent scout thus: "Can't sing. Can't act. Balding. Can dance a little."
"Desmond Tutu, Steve and Claire"
Archbishop Desmond Tutu is a cleric and noted anti-apartheid campaigner. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984.
The identities of 'Steve and Claire' are unknown. They are possibly friends of the band.
"Charlie Parker, Charlie Brown"
Charlie 'Bird' Parker was a saxophone player and one of the greatest jazz musicians ever. He was a founder of the movement known as bebop.
Charlie Brown is the main character in the strip cartoon 'Peanuts' by Charles Schultz. He is the owner of the beagle, Snoopy, arguably the better known character.
"Leslie Crowther, come on down"
Leslie Crowther was a comedian and TV presenter who presented many, many shows in a long career, including Crackerjack, the Black and White Minstrel Show, and the first three seasons of 'Stars in their Eyes'. The line in the song refers to his stint as the first presenter on British TV of the show 'The Price Is Right', where audience members selected to participate are invited by the host to 'come on down'.
"Mary wilson, Di and Flo"
This is a name-check for one of the most successful all-female bands of all time, the Supremes. Mary Wilson, Diana Ross and Florence Ballard had twelve American number ones in the 1960s.
"Sir Bufton Tufton, Jean Paul Sartre"
Sir Bufton Tufton is a fictional character used by the satirical magazine Private Eye to lampoon a certain kind of stuffy, old fashioned Tory MP. The name was a play on the name of an actual Tory MP, Sir Tufton Victor Hamilton Beamish, Baron Chelwood.
Jean Paul Sartre was a French existentialist philosopher whose works include The Transcendence of the Ego, Being and Nothingness and Critique of Dialectical Reason.
"Zippy, Bungle, Jeffrey Archer"
Zippy, Bungle and Jeffrey were the main characters (along with George) in the 70s children's show 'Rainbow'.
Jeffrey Archer is a well known convicted criminal, former Conservative MP and chairman of the Conservative Party, former Conservative candidate for mayor of London and sometime novelist. Around the time the song was released, he was best known for denying he had ever met the prostitute Monica Coghlan, who claimed he had paid her £2,000 to keep her quiet. It clearly didn't work, and for some time afterwards the sum of £2,000 was known as "an Archer".
"André Previn and the LSO"
André Previn is a pianist and composer who won Academy and Grammy Awards for his various film scores. He was principle conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra (the LSO) throughout the seventies, and is undoubtedly best known in Britain for appearing as 'Mr. Andrew Preview' with Morecambe and Wise, where Eric Morecambe attempted to play Grieg's piano concerto. 'Preview' angrily told him that he was playing all the wrong notes, to which Morecambe replied "I am playing the right notes. Not necessarily in the right order..."
The Beloved's 'Hello' is an interesting snapshot of the time, a cross-section of randomly selected 'celebrities' from a time before the modern obsession with celebrities.
