Ronnie Hazlehurst born 13 March 1928

Ronald Hazlehurst (13 March 1928 – 1 October 2007) was an English composer and conductor who, having joined the BBC in 1961, became its Light Entertainment Musical Director. 

Ronald Hazlehurst was born in Dukinfield, Cheshire, in 1928, to a railway worker father and a piano teacher mother. Having attended St John's Church of England primary then Hyde County Grammar School, he left at the age of 14 and became a clerk in a cotton mill for £1 a week. From 1947 to 1949 he did his National Service as a bandsman in the 4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards. 

Over the next few years he played the trumpet with the bands of George Chambers, Nat Allen, George Elrick, Harry Parry and Melville Christie and also had his first experience of arranging, before being called up for National Service in 1947. He served his time as a bandsman, and was the solo cornet with the band of 4th/7th Dragoon Guards, for which he also produced arrangements. During his time in the Army, Hazlehurst was nominated to attend Kneller Hall (the Royal Military School of Music near Twickenham) as a student. He was de-mobbed in 1949, and spent some time working for a series of dance bands, mostly in the north of England, and also developed his skills as an orchestrator. 

Ronnie Hazlehurst worked at Granada for about a year in 1955 and, after he left there, worked on a market stall in Watford to make ends meet. But by 1957 Hazlehurst had largely abandoned his role as a trumpeter in favour of orchestration and arrangement, mostly for Granada. In 1961 he moved to the BBC as a staff arranger and the following year undertook his first big job when he scored and arranged the programme for a concert at the Royal Albert Hall to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the BBC. 

From 1964 he worked mostly for BBC television, producing the music for The Likely Lads, Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais's sitcom which was first shown that December. The following year he provided the score for Dennis Potter's play Vote, Vote, Vote for Nigel Barton. He was to remain with the BBC until the 1990s, beginning with the title orchestrations manager, then as head of music for light entertainment and musical adviser (light entertainment). 

Hazlehurst's particular talent lay in his ability to combine a catchy theme with the tone appropriate for the programme. All this Hazlehurst achieved with remarkably limited resources; by the time the music had to be commissioned the programme makers had often overspent their budget. For Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em he had been asked to provide a Morse Code rendition of the title (a technique emulated by Barrington Pheloung for the Inspector Morse theme), but he had to fight hard to secure a second piccolo for the piece. 

                                  

One of his best-loved melodies, the theme for Last of the Summer Wine (1973), was initially rejected by the programme makers. But it proved so popular with viewers that a CD of music from the series was produced to mark the show's 25th anniversary. He also composed the music for Are You Being Served ?, The Rise and Fall of Reginald Perrin, Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister, Blankety and then Les Dawson and Lily Savage. 

Hazlehurst was also involved with the Eurovision Song Contest and was the musical director when the event was hosted by the United Kingdom in 1974, 1977 and 1982. He also conducted the British entry on seven occasions, in 1977, 1982, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1991 and 1992. In 1977, as well as conducting the British entry, he also conducted the German entry. To conduct the British entry that year, Lynsey de Paul and Mike Moran, he used a closed umbrella instead of a baton and wore a bowler hat. 

He also arranged and conducted two singers' performances of their voice-overs for opening credits, Clare Torry for Butterflies ("Love Is like a Butterfly") and Paul Nicholas for Just Good Friends. He also recorded some LPs and CDs with his orchestra including a 2-CD box set of Laurel and Hardy film music; his orchestra also backed singer Marti Caine on an album that was released on CD. Hazlehurst moved from Hendon, North London, to Guernsey in about 1997. In 1999, he was awarded a Gold Badge from the British Academy of Composers and Songwriters. 

Music was Hazlehurst's life and passion as well as his work and he continued to work right up to his heart bypass operation in October 2006. On 27 September 2007 he suffered a stroke and, without regaining consciousness, died on 1 October in Princess Elizabeth Hospital, St Martin, Guernsey at the age of 79. Having been married twice, with two sons from his second marriage, at the time of his death his partner was Jean Fitzgerald. 

(Edited from The Telegraph)