Scrumpy & Western

The definitive guide to the West Country music

Len 'Uke' Thomas

"Wot's fink of 'ee den, wot's fink of dis?!"

biography | gallery | links | acknowledgments

Who Is Len 'Uke' Thomas?

The first I ever heard of Len 'Uke' Thomas was a mention from Adge Cutler on his Cutler Of The West album. In Adge's recorded introduction to his song Thee's Got'n Where Thee Cassn't Back'n, Hassn't, he paid tribute to Len, who was in the audience at the Webbington Country Club on that occasion. In Adge's words:

"...Before I start it, I'd like to pay tribute - we got a bloke yur tonight 'oo's very well known fer one or two of 'is Bristol ballads - you might 'ave 'eard of Wass Think Of 'Ee Den; Thee Bissn't Gonna Get'n Out Of I; and Thee's Better Keep Thee Eye On 'Ee. 'E's yur somewhere in the audience - Len 'Uke' Thomas, where is 'e?... Yayyyy!" [applause]

Intrigued by Adge's remarks, I searched for more information on Len 'Uke' Thomas without success at first. Fred Wedlock told me he knew Len's name but wasn't able to remember much about him. Then I was approached by two other people who were also seeking information on this seeming mystery man! After a few more enquiries and some help from people who contacted me, I was able to piece together a few details about him.

Len 'Uke' Thomas was a Bristol-based entertainer in the 1950s and 1960s and used to perform his own comic songs written in the Bristol dialect, accompanying himself on his 'uke' or ukulele. Sadly, Len is no longer with us so we are unable to hear him perform his songs in person. Although he performed locally many times, and appeared on the radio, he never made any commercial recordings. It is also sad that his songs were never recorded by anyone else - apparently Adge Cutler was keen to record some of Len's songs but this didn't happen.

The best-known of Len's songs is probably The Bristol Song (not to be confused with the Bob Barratt song of the same name later recorded by Adge Cutler). The song was also known as Wot's Fink Of 'Ee Den, and many Bristolians can still quote the chorus:

	Wot's fink of 'ee den
	Wot's fink of dis
	Wot's fink of 'ee den
	Likewise ow bist
	If dee castn't speak as well as thee coust
	Then try this song with me
	Wot's fink of 'ee den
	Wot's fink of 'ee!

© copyright Len 'Uke' Thomas

We at Scrumpy & Western have created this webpage as a tribute to Len, in the hope that his work will not be forgotten. In his lifetime Len was a major contributor to Scrumpy & Western culture and his work deserves to be more widely known. Let's hope this will somehow be possible one day.

 to top of this page

Len 'Uke' Thomas Links

• none we could find!

 to top of this page

Acknowledgements

Thanks to:

• Ray Thomas, Eric Brain and Stewart Pope for their help.

 to top of this page

please visit our sponsors