Benny Hill was mostly known for his sexually driven comedy show The Benny Hill Show. However, did you know he also had a worldwide number one hit song? Strange but true. It also happened as a bit of a fluke.
Before making it as a comedian, Benny Hill was a milkman. This job obviously stuck with him because he would write sketches about his time as a milkman for his program. He originally wrote the song Ernie (The Fastest Milkman in the West) for a sketch where he would sing the hero’s name as “Hernie” and the backup singers would correct him.
Not much was thought about the song, and it wasn’t used is repeats of the program because it was shot in black and white due to a technician’s strike. The next year Hill was making a musical comedy album, so he dusted off the song, punched up a few of the lyrics and released it on his 1971 album Words and Music.
Much to everyone’s surprise the song took off, racing up the charts and became a Christmas number one in the UK for 1971. Quickly a short film was made for the song with Benny taking the role of Ernie. The song and the clip became a number one hit in Australia as well.
It became one of the lasting parts of Hill’s legacy. He acknowledged this by re-recording the song for his 1992 album The Best Of. Sadly, Hill passed away not long after of kidney failure at the age of 68.