Seems like we’ve been through something like this before.

There are two issues of vital national interest in the cross hairs here.

1. Was Ollie Halsall a Rutle?
2. Who was Dirk McQuickly? Eric Idle or Ollie Halsall?

Here’s what various sites on the internets have to say:

‘Leppo, The Fifth Rutle’ (Stu Sutcliffe) — seen only in a still photograph in the film – the photo showed Ollie Halsall, who actually played and sang on the soundtrack. (Halsall, in real life, was one of the four musicians who performed all The Rutles’ music, the others being Innes, Halsey and Fataar. Idle did not actually play or sing on the soundtrack.)

The fourth ‘real’ Rutle, Ollie Halsall, died in Spain in 1992.

Ollie desperately wanted to portray ‘Paul’ in the Rutles, alongside Admiral’ John Halsey’s ‘Ringo’. The US backers needed a ‘star’ however, and the part of ‘Dirk McQuickly’ was taken by Rutles creator Eric Idle himself Ollie had to settle for the ‘walk-on’ part of Leppo (original bassist ‘Stuart Sutcliffe’). But Halsey recalls that, when it came to recording the soundtrack, Idle couldn’t quite handle the vocals parts so, Ollie, as well as creating the amazing BeatIe guitar pastiches, also sang ‘Paul’s’ part, speeded up slightly. In this and other respects, Halsall’s contribution the Rutles project has never been fully recognised.

Video after the fold.
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