Jackie Wright

Who was Jackie Wright?

John "Jackie" Wright was an Irish comedian, best known for being the bald-headed sidekick of Benny Hill on his television programme for one and a half decades. In many of the show's trademark accelerated-motion scenes, Hill would often pat Wright's bald head rapidly, the motion being accompanied by dubbed-in smacking sounds. Actress Suzy Mandel recently told Gram Pontante's website that "Jackie Wright was a chain smoker and he would often hide his cigarette in his mouth or behind his back during scenes. In fact, you could often see a little plume of smoke rising behind him if you looked close enough. Benny would slap his head to fan the smoke away." Wright's diminutive stature – he was only 4 feet 11 inches tall – and Northern Irish accent became assets to the comedy.