Richard Bucket
Encyclopedia
Richard Bucket is a fictional character played by Clive Swift
in the British
comedy TV series Keeping Up Appearances
, which was aired from 1990 to 1995. Richard is the calm, tolerant and long-suffering husband of social climbing snob Hyacinth Bucket
, who insists their surname
is pronounced "Bouquet".
. As pointed out in the BBC documentary series Comedy Connections
, he is a foil to exploit Hyacinth's personality to the worst advantage, and after Hyacinth has behaved in a particularly snobbish fashion, Richard will mutter a dry, acerbic remark, that provides some of the show’s humour. He pronounces his last name as it is spelled (and as everyone else but Hyacinth pronounces it): "Bucket".
Unlike Hyacinth, Richard is fond of brother-in-law
Onslow
and sisters-in-law Daisy
and Rose
, and prefers their company to Hyacinth's other, but wealthier sister Violet's (this is stated in the last episode of series one, where Richard complains how Violet is "always moaning" in contrast to Onslow's and Daisy's cheerfulness). Unlike Hyacinth, Richard accepts Onslow and company as members of the family, not caring about their lower-class status, and he often tries to portray them positively to Hyacinth. In the fifth episode of series one, Richard says to Hyacinth: "You've got to admire Onslow's relaxed attitude to life".
Onslow sympathises with Richard (whom he calls "Dickie"), knowing he is at Hyacinth's beck and call day and night. He tries to rescue him on one occasion in series three, taking him to a pub
where they play pool together, and enjoy a round or two of beers. Other characters in the sitcom also sympathise with Richard, and wonder how he puts up with Hyacinth; neighbour Emmett
frequently asks sister Liz
, a longtime friend of the couple, "How does he live with her?" .
At the beginning of series three, Richard is forced to take early retirement from his position as a local government official (he answers the phone, "Finance and general purposes" but other than that we do not know his title). Some of his colleagues say how lucky he is, until they remember he will have to spend his retired life with Hyacinth.
Richard loves Hyacinth dearly, despite her faults, but cannot clearly explain her finer qualities to his dumbstruck friends. He favourably describes living with Hyacinth as being like his time in the Army, when every day everything was planned out for him and he never had to make any decisions (to which the vicar remarked, "But in the Army, they only sign up for thirty years!"). He does not appear to be particularly unhappy living with Hyacinth: as Patricia Routledge
pointed out in the Comedy Connections series, she keeps a good table, and irons his clothes.
However, on one occasion, he did manage to stand up for himself and yell at Hyacinth when she was being obnoxious about using a public phone box (which someone else was using) and didn't feel that she had to wait. Richard firmly ordered her back to the car, which astonished Hyacinth; Liz looked at him in admiration; and he earned a compliment from the man using the phone box for his courage.
Richard and Hyacinth also have a son named Sheridan, and with his materialistic wife and their equally self-absorbed son (who is never seen on camera), Richard frequently has an empty wallet. Richard and Sheridan are not close—Richard is almost never seen talking to him on the telephone, and often voices his displeasure to Hyacinth when their son does call, usually due to his belief that Sheridan is calling only for money (a fact that is clear to nearly everyone but Hyacinth, who can believe no wrong of his dear boy). Richard does have concerns for Sheridan, however, and has the idea that Sheridan may be homosexual.
Richard drives a light blue metallic 1987 Rover 216S, a conventional, slightly upmarket family saloon which fits in well with Hyacinth's pretentious image. (He is very careful to clean and polish the exterior whenever he must chauffeur Hyacinth anywhere, as she is extremely meticulous about their image and would never venture into public in a slightly tarnished vehicle.)
Clive Swift
Clive Walter Swift is an English character comedy actor and songwriter. He is best known for his role as character Richard Bucket in the British television series Keeping Up Appearances. He is less known for his role as character Roy in the British television series The Old Guys...
in the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
comedy TV series Keeping Up Appearances
Keeping Up Appearances
Keeping Up Appearances is a British sitcom created and written by Roy Clarke for the BBC. Centred on the life of eccentric, social-climbing snob Hyacinth Bucket , the sitcom portrays a social hierarchy-ruled British society...
, which was aired from 1990 to 1995. Richard is the calm, tolerant and long-suffering husband of social climbing snob Hyacinth Bucket
Hyacinth Bucket
Hyacinth Bucket, who insists her last name is pronounced "Bouquet" , is the main character in the BBC sitcom Keeping Up Appearances , played by Patricia Routledge.-Personality:...
, who insists their surname
Surname
A surname is a name added to a given name and is part of a personal name. In many cases, a surname is a family name. Many dictionaries define "surname" as a synonym of "family name"...
is pronounced "Bouquet".
Character overview
Unlike Hyacinth, Richard is content to live a normal life and does not aspire to mingle with the aristocracyAristocracy
Aristocracy , is a form of government in which a few elite citizens rule. The term derives from the Greek aristokratia, meaning "rule of the best". In origin in Ancient Greece, it was conceived of as rule by the best qualified citizens, and contrasted with monarchy...
. As pointed out in the BBC documentary series Comedy Connections
Comedy Connections
Comedy Connections was a BBC One documentary series produced by BBC Scotland that aired from 2003 to 2008. The show looked at the stories behind the production of some of Britain's comedy television programmes, showing how they tied in with the production of other comedy shows...
, he is a foil to exploit Hyacinth's personality to the worst advantage, and after Hyacinth has behaved in a particularly snobbish fashion, Richard will mutter a dry, acerbic remark, that provides some of the show’s humour. He pronounces his last name as it is spelled (and as everyone else but Hyacinth pronounces it): "Bucket".
Unlike Hyacinth, Richard is fond of brother-in-law
Onslow
Onslow (Keeping Up Appearances)
Onslow is a fictional character in the British 1990s comedy series Keeping Up Appearances, portrayed by actor Geoffrey Hughes. Onslow is a working class relative of the social-climbing snob, Hyacinth Bucket...
and sisters-in-law Daisy
Daisy (Keeping Up Appearances)
Daisy is a fictional character in the British situation comedy, Keeping Up Appearances, portrayed by actress Judy Cornwell. Daisy is the lower-class sister of social-climbing snob Hyacinth Bucket, who lives with her apathetic slob husband, Onslow, promiscuous sister Rose, and her senile father...
and Rose
Rose (Keeping Up Appearances character)
Rose is a fictional character in the British sitcom Keeping Up Appearances. She is portrayed by two actresses: Shirley Stelfox in Series One, and the late Mary Millar from Series Two onwards...
, and prefers their company to Hyacinth's other, but wealthier sister Violet's (this is stated in the last episode of series one, where Richard complains how Violet is "always moaning" in contrast to Onslow's and Daisy's cheerfulness). Unlike Hyacinth, Richard accepts Onslow and company as members of the family, not caring about their lower-class status, and he often tries to portray them positively to Hyacinth. In the fifth episode of series one, Richard says to Hyacinth: "You've got to admire Onslow's relaxed attitude to life".
Onslow sympathises with Richard (whom he calls "Dickie"), knowing he is at Hyacinth's beck and call day and night. He tries to rescue him on one occasion in series three, taking him to a pub
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
where they play pool together, and enjoy a round or two of beers. Other characters in the sitcom also sympathise with Richard, and wonder how he puts up with Hyacinth; neighbour Emmett
Emmet Hawksworth
Emmet Hawksworth is a fictional character in the British comedy series Keeping Up Appearances portrayed by actor David Griffin, and introduced into the series at the beginning of series two...
frequently asks sister Liz
Elizabeth Warden
Elizabeth Warden is a fictional character in the British situation comedy series Keeping Up Appearances, that first aired from 1990 to 1995. She is played by actress Josephine Tewson, and lives next-door to social-climbing snob Hyacinth Bucket...
, a longtime friend of the couple, "How does he live with her?" .
At the beginning of series three, Richard is forced to take early retirement from his position as a local government official (he answers the phone, "Finance and general purposes" but other than that we do not know his title). Some of his colleagues say how lucky he is, until they remember he will have to spend his retired life with Hyacinth.
Richard loves Hyacinth dearly, despite her faults, but cannot clearly explain her finer qualities to his dumbstruck friends. He favourably describes living with Hyacinth as being like his time in the Army, when every day everything was planned out for him and he never had to make any decisions (to which the vicar remarked, "But in the Army, they only sign up for thirty years!"). He does not appear to be particularly unhappy living with Hyacinth: as Patricia Routledge
Patricia Routledge
Katherine Patricia Routledge, CBE is an English character comedy actress and singer. She is best known for her role as character Hyacinth Bucket in the British television series Keeping Up Appearances and Hetty Wainthropp in the British television series Hetty Wainthropp Investigates...
pointed out in the Comedy Connections series, she keeps a good table, and irons his clothes.
However, on one occasion, he did manage to stand up for himself and yell at Hyacinth when she was being obnoxious about using a public phone box (which someone else was using) and didn't feel that she had to wait. Richard firmly ordered her back to the car, which astonished Hyacinth; Liz looked at him in admiration; and he earned a compliment from the man using the phone box for his courage.
Richard and Hyacinth also have a son named Sheridan, and with his materialistic wife and their equally self-absorbed son (who is never seen on camera), Richard frequently has an empty wallet. Richard and Sheridan are not close—Richard is almost never seen talking to him on the telephone, and often voices his displeasure to Hyacinth when their son does call, usually due to his belief that Sheridan is calling only for money (a fact that is clear to nearly everyone but Hyacinth, who can believe no wrong of his dear boy). Richard does have concerns for Sheridan, however, and has the idea that Sheridan may be homosexual.
Richard drives a light blue metallic 1987 Rover 216S, a conventional, slightly upmarket family saloon which fits in well with Hyacinth's pretentious image. (He is very careful to clean and polish the exterior whenever he must chauffeur Hyacinth anywhere, as she is extremely meticulous about their image and would never venture into public in a slightly tarnished vehicle.)