Pepy's Diary

Album: Best Of Benny Hill (1961)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Samuel Pepys (1633-1703) was an MP who rose to be Chief Secretary to the Admiralty, but he is best remembered for his diary. Needless to say, Benny Hill treated him with less than the reverence he receives elsewhere. This song, which he wrote, was first recorded in 1961 (with this incorrect spelling on the label) as the B-side of "Gather In The Mushrooms." It begins with a spoken introduction, a short dialogue.
  • The song is more than a pun on Pepys' surname, ie "naughty Samuel peeps"..."and it's all written down in his diary." Hill appears to have rewritten it several times, according to one fan, (Shawn of Moncton, Canada on his Benny's Place tribute website).

    The man himself may well have been amused by this ditty because as suggested here, the married Pepys did have a number of affairs with women over the years, including Deborah Willet, a maid who was some seventeen years his junior. >>>
    Suggestion credit:
    Alexander Baron - London, England, for above 2

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Director Mark Pellington ("Jeremy," "Best Of You")

Director Mark Pellington ("Jeremy," "Best Of You")Song Writing

Director Mark Pellington on Pearl Jam's "Jeremy," and music videos he made for U2, Jon Bon Jovi and Imagine Dragons.

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions Answered

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions AnsweredSong Writing

10 Questions for the author of Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces

Greg Lake of Emerson, Lake & Palmer

Greg Lake of Emerson, Lake & PalmerSongwriter Interviews

Greg talks about writing songs of "universal truth" for King Crimson and ELP, and tells us about his most memorable stage moment (it involves fireworks).

Paul Williams

Paul WilliamsSongwriter Interviews

He's a singer and an actor, but as a songwriter Paul helped make Kermit a cultured frog, turned a bank commercial into a huge hit and made love both "exciting and new" and "soft as an easy chair."

Harry Wayne Casey of KC and The Sunshine Band

Harry Wayne Casey of KC and The Sunshine BandSongwriter Interviews

Harry Wayne Casey tells the stories behind KC and The Sunshine Band hits like "Get Down Tonight," "That's The Way (I Like It)," and "Give It Up."

Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath, Heaven And Hell

Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath, Heaven And HellSongwriter Interviews

Guitarist Tony Iommi on the "Iron Man" riff, the definitive Black Sabbath song, and how Ozzy and Dio compared as songwriters.