Hugo Rune
Encyclopedia
Hugo Rune, full name Hugo Artemis Solon Saturnicus Reginald Arthur Rune, is a fictional character appearing in several of Robert Rankin
's novels, generally being portrayed as a kind of anti-hero
, possessing a fundamentally good character with various assorted eccentricities.
, and has subsequently walked the Earth ever since. He stated in The Brightonomicon that he comes of Highland stock, and that his ancestors include the Rankins, but this fails to establish further details about how he became the man he is today. Despite two separate books stating that Rune is recorded as having died, penniless, in a Hastings boarding house in his ninetieth year, Rune is generally portrayed as being more or less immortal, simply faking his death at irregular intervals in an attempt to escape his debts (Although he was briefly killed by a shot to the head in "The Brightonomicon
", he was resurrected by Jesus Christ's last living descendent).
In the book Retromancer, he explains to his acolyte, Rizla
, that the evil Count Otto Black, Rune's arch-enemy had somehow persuaded angels to cut Black's name from the book that contained all the people who will ever live. As his name no longer appears in the book, it can no longer be crossed out, thus Black can never die. However as pages have two sides, the person whose name was on the other side also does not appear, and thus is also immortal. That other person was Rune.
upon his head, of great weight and colossal hands, the fingers of which are covered with silver rings covered with occult symbols. His trademark clothing is a suit of green Boleskine tweed, brown size-twelve Oxford shoes, and several watches, giving him the appearance of someone from the 1930s while still leaving him with a great sense of charisma.
.
His other theories include the Small Screw Phenomena- whereby the appearance of two small screws whenever an electric device is taken apart and put back together is explained by the fact that screws breed inside electrical appliances-, Spontaneously Generated Crowd Phenomena- crowd mentality is caused by spores that drift throughout Earth and form wherever a potentially crowd-causing situation occurs-, the Mystery of the Biro- Biros are actually sentient creatures that hate their role in life and constantly seek to escape-, the Forbidden Zones- the A-Z of London actually stands for 'Allocated Zones', referring to the zones where human beings are allowed to live, with other zones, the aforementioned 'Forbidden Zones', being used by the secret masters of the world- and other such theories.
, Uther Pendragon
(although he also reveals himself to have been Merlin
), Count Cagliostro and Rodrigo Borgia, can open a tin of sardines with his teeth, strike a Swan Vesta
on his chin, rope steers, drive a steam locomotive, hum all the works of Gilbert & Sullivan without becoming confused or breaking down in tears, was taught how to stop his heart by the Dalai Lama
(In exchange for teaching him how to play darts), once climbed Mount Everest
in a smoking jacket and plus-fours to win a bet with Oscar Wilde
, swam the Atlantic Ocean
to win a bet with Humphrey Bogart
, reinvented the ocarina
- thus giving it more holes and allowing it to open portals to the aforementioned 'Forbidden Zones'-, an expert swordsman, a gourmet chef, a world traveller, poet, painter, stigmatist, guru
to gurus and hater of Bud Abbott
.
Rune has also claimed the personal friendship of many well-known figures in history and society as a whole, his list including the likes of H.G. Wells/Arthur Conan Doyle
(Portrayed as the same person, with Wells being the 'real' identity due to an elaborate bet in university getting out of hand), Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, Sigmund Freud
(A conversation with Freud actually resulting in the Sultan of Brunei acquiring his wealth when Rune attempted to prove that one of the really wonderful things in this world is to be in the right place at the right time), Pope Pius XII
(Allegedly Rune was responsible for him joining the priesthood; he was originally interested in football, but he had a weak left foot), George Orwell
(Although Orwell was a member of the secret society that knew about the Forbidden Zones and hence was not entirely trustworthy), Albert Enstein (He claims to have taught Einstein everything he knew, but adds that Einstein made it all out to be more complicated than it really is to make himself appear smarter), Salvador Dali
, Ernest Hemingway
, and many others. He is also known as a detective, having been recorded as working with Sherlock Holmes
on at least one occasion- although he implies that there were other collaborations- and demonstrating some significant prowess at solving mysteries in "The Brightonomicon
" (Although many of these were solved thanks to Rune's knowledge of secret facts about the world that only he is truly aware of).
" and the grandson of the secret king of the world, who was conceived as a result of Rune's attempts to become a prince only for him to be killed at the conclusion of the novel-, although his active sexual lifestyle would suggest the possibility that there are other children out there. In "The Witches of Chiswick
" he summoned his descendents from the 25th century, Will Starling and Tim McGregor, into the Victorian Age, but exactly how they are related to Rune was never expressly stated.
The fate of Rune's parents and other immediate ancestors and siblings, if he has any, are unknown; the only even vague references to his upbringing to date include his comment that his father was in the brewery trade, and even that was later proven to be false, and another claim that he comes from a Highlander background with his ancestors among the Rankins (Which, while still questionable, is slightly more plausible when Rankin's decision to set Biblical events in Britain is taken into account). In "The Most Amazing Man Who Ever Lived
", having learned the secret of perpetual reincarnation- allowing himself to be reborn over and over again on his original birth date, retaining all his memories of his previous life-, Rune arranged for his soul to be reborn as quintuplets
, thus giving himself four identical brothers. Unfortunately, these four brothers all went evil, masterminding a plot to destroy all but a small percentage of the human race before they were defeated by Cornelius Murphy, leaving only the original Rune (Who had long since abandoned his other selves in pursuit of matters that would benefit mankind as a whole).
Robert Rankin
Robert Fleming Rankin is a prolific British humorous novelist. Born in Parsons Green, London, he started writing in the late 1970s, and first entered the bestsellers lists with Snuff Fiction in 1999, by which time his previous eighteen books had sold around one million copies...
's novels, generally being portrayed as a kind of anti-hero
Anti-hero
In fiction, an antihero is generally considered to be a protagonist whose character is at least in some regards conspicuously contrary to that of the archetypal hero, and is in some instances its antithesis in which the character is generally useless at being a hero or heroine when they're...
, possessing a fundamentally good character with various assorted eccentricities.
Rune's Origins
Rune's exact origins and the circumstances of his childhood are unknown; while some sources suggest he has lived a relatively normal life span- such as him mentioning in The Witches of Chiswick, during an appearance he made in the Victorian era, that his father was in the brewery trade, although this was later confirmed to be false-, Rune himself has been recorded as stating that he was actually the thirteenth disciple of Jesus Christ, who requested that his name be left out of the New TestamentNew Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
, and has subsequently walked the Earth ever since. He stated in The Brightonomicon that he comes of Highland stock, and that his ancestors include the Rankins, but this fails to establish further details about how he became the man he is today. Despite two separate books stating that Rune is recorded as having died, penniless, in a Hastings boarding house in his ninetieth year, Rune is generally portrayed as being more or less immortal, simply faking his death at irregular intervals in an attempt to escape his debts (Although he was briefly killed by a shot to the head in "The Brightonomicon
The Brightonomicon
The Brightonomicon is a novel by British Fantasy author Robert Rankin, the title parodying that of the fictional grimoire the Necronomicon from the Cthulhu Mythos. The author lives in Brighton and the book is set in an accurate depiction of the city...
", he was resurrected by Jesus Christ's last living descendent).
In the book Retromancer, he explains to his acolyte, Rizla
Jim Pooley
James Arbuthnot Pooley is a fictional character in The Brentford Trilogy written by fantasy/humour writer Robert Rankin. Jim tends to avoid regular employment, preferring to make his living by his wits and constantly seeking to make the perfect bet on racehorses that will give him all the wealth...
, that the evil Count Otto Black, Rune's arch-enemy had somehow persuaded angels to cut Black's name from the book that contained all the people who will ever live. As his name no longer appears in the book, it can no longer be crossed out, thus Black can never die. However as pages have two sides, the person whose name was on the other side also does not appear, and thus is also immortal. That other person was Rune.
Physical Appearance
Rune's physical appearance is the most obvious detail about him that makes him stand out from the crowd, being described as a large, bald man with a tattooed pentagramPentagram
A pentagram is the shape of a five-pointed star drawn with five straight strokes...
upon his head, of great weight and colossal hands, the fingers of which are covered with silver rings covered with occult symbols. His trademark clothing is a suit of green Boleskine tweed, brown size-twelve Oxford shoes, and several watches, giving him the appearance of someone from the 1930s while still leaving him with a great sense of charisma.
Personality
Personality-wise, Rune is best described as an eccentric genius, mainly due to his refusal to pay for anything from food to clothing; he argues that he offers the world his genius- which, to be fair to him, is indeed portrayed as being exceptional, if hard to follow at times-, and all he asks in exchange is that the world cover his expenses. He has also been shown to have a significant ego, causing him to often demand to see anything remotely related to him, and on one occasion even stated that he never disrobes in public for fear of inciting jealousy or lust from those around him. Despite his evident ego, Rune has been shown to be a very compassionate man in his way, mourning the deaths of his friends and generally genuinely driven by a desire to help the world. His intellect has led to him making extraordinary deductions and reaching equally remarkable conclusions about the world we live in, many of which fundamentally make no sense but, at the same time, are practically impossible to find fault with. For example, Rune has deduced that Earth's population is in decline due to one person requiring two parents, four grandparents, eight great-grandparents and so on simply for them to exist; the argument clearly cannot work, as Earth's population is constantly on the increase, but at the same time it is hard to find fault with his reasoningReductio ad absurdum
In logic, proof by contradiction is a form of proof that establishes the truth or validity of a proposition by showing that the proposition's being false would imply a contradiction...
.
His other theories include the Small Screw Phenomena- whereby the appearance of two small screws whenever an electric device is taken apart and put back together is explained by the fact that screws breed inside electrical appliances-, Spontaneously Generated Crowd Phenomena- crowd mentality is caused by spores that drift throughout Earth and form wherever a potentially crowd-causing situation occurs-, the Mystery of the Biro- Biros are actually sentient creatures that hate their role in life and constantly seek to escape-, the Forbidden Zones- the A-Z of London actually stands for 'Allocated Zones', referring to the zones where human beings are allowed to live, with other zones, the aforementioned 'Forbidden Zones', being used by the secret masters of the world- and other such theories.
Rune's Accomplishments
Rune's list of apparent accomplishments is equally remarkable. If all available sources are to be believed, he has walked the earth as NostradamusNostradamus
Michel de Nostredame , usually Latinised to Nostradamus, was a French apothecary and reputed seer who published collections of prophecies that have since become famous worldwide. He is best known for his book Les Propheties , the first edition of which appeared in 1555...
, Uther Pendragon
Uther Pendragon
Uther Pendragon is a legendary king of sub-Roman Britain and the father of King Arthur.A few minor references to Uther appear in Old Welsh poems, but his biography was first written down by Geoffrey of Monmouth in his Historia Regum Britanniae , and Geoffrey's account of the character was used in...
(although he also reveals himself to have been Merlin
Merlin
Merlin is a legendary figure best known as the wizard featured in the Arthurian legend. The standard depiction of the character first appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae, written c. 1136, and is based on an amalgamation of previous historical and legendary figures...
), Count Cagliostro and Rodrigo Borgia, can open a tin of sardines with his teeth, strike a Swan Vesta
Swan Vesta
Swan Vesta is a brand name for the most popular brand of 'strike-anywhere' matches currently available in the UK, shorter than regular pocket matches they are particularly popular with smokers and have long used the tagline "the smoker's match" although this has been replaced by the prefix "the...
on his chin, rope steers, drive a steam locomotive, hum all the works of Gilbert & Sullivan without becoming confused or breaking down in tears, was taught how to stop his heart by the Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Mongolian word далай meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word bla-ma meaning "teacher"...
(In exchange for teaching him how to play darts), once climbed Mount Everest
Mount Everest
Mount Everest is the world's highest mountain, with a peak at above sea level. It is located in the Mahalangur section of the Himalayas. The international boundary runs across the precise summit point...
in a smoking jacket and plus-fours to win a bet with Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
, swam the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
to win a bet with Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey DeForest Bogart was an American actor. He is widely regarded as a cultural icon.The American Film Institute ranked Bogart as the greatest male star in the history of American cinema....
, reinvented the ocarina
Ocarina
The ocarina is an ancient flute-like wind instrument. Variations do exist, but a typical ocarina is an enclosed space with four to twelve finger holes and a mouthpiece that projects from the body...
- thus giving it more holes and allowing it to open portals to the aforementioned 'Forbidden Zones'-, an expert swordsman, a gourmet chef, a world traveller, poet, painter, stigmatist, guru
Guru
A guru is one who is regarded as having great knowledge, wisdom, and authority in a certain area, and who uses it to guide others . Other forms of manifestation of this principle can include parents, school teachers, non-human objects and even one's own intellectual discipline, if the...
to gurus and hater of Bud Abbott
Bud Abbott
William Alexander "Bud" Abbott was an American actor, producer and comedian. He is best remembered as the straight man of the comedy team of Abbott and Costello, with Lou Costello.-Early life:...
.
Rune has also claimed the personal friendship of many well-known figures in history and society as a whole, his list including the likes of H.G. Wells/Arthur Conan Doyle
Arthur Conan Doyle
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle DL was a Scottish physician and writer, most noted for his stories about the detective Sherlock Holmes, generally considered a milestone in the field of crime fiction, and for the adventures of Professor Challenger...
(Portrayed as the same person, with Wells being the 'real' identity due to an elaborate bet in university getting out of hand), Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
(A conversation with Freud actually resulting in the Sultan of Brunei acquiring his wealth when Rune attempted to prove that one of the really wonderful things in this world is to be in the right place at the right time), Pope Pius XII
Pope Pius XII
The Venerable Pope Pius XII , born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli , reigned as Pope, head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City State, from 2 March 1939 until his death in 1958....
(Allegedly Rune was responsible for him joining the priesthood; he was originally interested in football, but he had a weak left foot), George Orwell
George Orwell
Eric Arthur Blair , better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English author and journalist...
(Although Orwell was a member of the secret society that knew about the Forbidden Zones and hence was not entirely trustworthy), Albert Enstein (He claims to have taught Einstein everything he knew, but adds that Einstein made it all out to be more complicated than it really is to make himself appear smarter), Salvador Dali
Salvador Dalí
Salvador Domènec Felip Jacint Dalí i Domènech, Marquis de Púbol , commonly known as Salvador Dalí , was a prominent Spanish Catalan surrealist painter born in Figueres,Spain....
, Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
, and many others. He is also known as a detective, having been recorded as working with Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
on at least one occasion- although he implies that there were other collaborations- and demonstrating some significant prowess at solving mysteries in "The Brightonomicon
The Brightonomicon
The Brightonomicon is a novel by British Fantasy author Robert Rankin, the title parodying that of the fictional grimoire the Necronomicon from the Cthulhu Mythos. The author lives in Brighton and the book is set in an accurate depiction of the city...
" (Although many of these were solved thanks to Rune's knowledge of secret facts about the world that only he is truly aware of).
Known Relatives
Throughout the books, Rune has been recorded as having at least two children- Cornelius Murphy, the hero of the Cornelius Murphy Trilogy, who rescues Rune from the 'Forbidden Zones' and helps to defeat the secret rules of the world, and the Campbell, the villain in "The Book of Ultimate TruthsThe Book of Ultimate Truths
The Book of Ultimate Truths is a novel by British author Robert Rankin. The plot revolves around the adventures of Cornelius Murphy and his companion Tuppe...
" and the grandson of the secret king of the world, who was conceived as a result of Rune's attempts to become a prince only for him to be killed at the conclusion of the novel-, although his active sexual lifestyle would suggest the possibility that there are other children out there. In "The Witches of Chiswick
The Witches of Chiswick
The Witches Of Chiswick is a novel by the British author Robert Rankin, the title parodying that of The Witches of Eastwick by John Updike.-Plot summary:...
" he summoned his descendents from the 25th century, Will Starling and Tim McGregor, into the Victorian Age, but exactly how they are related to Rune was never expressly stated.
The fate of Rune's parents and other immediate ancestors and siblings, if he has any, are unknown; the only even vague references to his upbringing to date include his comment that his father was in the brewery trade, and even that was later proven to be false, and another claim that he comes from a Highlander background with his ancestors among the Rankins (Which, while still questionable, is slightly more plausible when Rankin's decision to set Biblical events in Britain is taken into account). In "The Most Amazing Man Who Ever Lived
The Most Amazing Man Who Ever Lived
The Most Amazing Man Who Ever Lived is a novel by British author Robert Rankin. It is the third book in the Cornelius Murphy trilogy, sequel to The Book of Ultimate Truths and Raiders of the Lost Car Park. The central story revolves around a young 14 year-old schoolboy, Norman, who is killed while...
", having learned the secret of perpetual reincarnation- allowing himself to be reborn over and over again on his original birth date, retaining all his memories of his previous life-, Rune arranged for his soul to be reborn as quintuplets
Multiple birth
A multiple birth occurs when more than one fetus is carried to term in a single pregnancy. Different names for multiple births are used, depending on the number of offspring. Common multiples are two and three, known as twins and triplets...
, thus giving himself four identical brothers. Unfortunately, these four brothers all went evil, masterminding a plot to destroy all but a small percentage of the human race before they were defeated by Cornelius Murphy, leaving only the original Rune (Who had long since abandoned his other selves in pursuit of matters that would benefit mankind as a whole).
List of appearances
To date, Rune has appeared in the following novels:- The Book of Ultimate TruthsThe Book of Ultimate TruthsThe Book of Ultimate Truths is a novel by British author Robert Rankin. The plot revolves around the adventures of Cornelius Murphy and his companion Tuppe...
(Primarily behind the scenes) - Raiders of the Lost Car ParkRaiders of the Lost Car ParkRaiders of the Lost Car Park is a novel by British author Robert Rankin. It is the second book in the Cornelius Murphy trilogy, sequel to The Book of Ultimate Truths and prequel to The Most Amazing Man Who Ever Lived. It documents the continuing adventures of Cornelius Murphy and his companion...
- The Most Amazing Man Who Ever LivedThe Most Amazing Man Who Ever LivedThe Most Amazing Man Who Ever Lived is a novel by British author Robert Rankin. It is the third book in the Cornelius Murphy trilogy, sequel to The Book of Ultimate Truths and Raiders of the Lost Car Park. The central story revolves around a young 14 year-old schoolboy, Norman, who is killed while...
(Most of Rune's appearances here were that of his evil twins) - The Sprouts of Wrath (Only a partial role at the conclusion of the novel)
- The Witches of ChiswickThe Witches of ChiswickThe Witches Of Chiswick is a novel by the British author Robert Rankin, the title parodying that of The Witches of Eastwick by John Updike.-Plot summary:...
(Fakes his own death in the early part of the novel; the plot is thus dominated by his descendents, half-brothers Will Starling and Tim McGregor, both aided by Barry the Time Sprout) - The BrightonomiconThe BrightonomiconThe Brightonomicon is a novel by British Fantasy author Robert Rankin, the title parodying that of the fictional grimoire the Necronomicon from the Cthulhu Mythos. The author lives in Brighton and the book is set in an accurate depiction of the city...
(Accompanied by an amnesic Jim PooleyJim PooleyJames Arbuthnot Pooley is a fictional character in The Brentford Trilogy written by fantasy/humour writer Robert Rankin. Jim tends to avoid regular employment, preferring to make his living by his wits and constantly seeking to make the perfect bet on racehorses that will give him all the wealth...
of The Brentford TrilogyThe Brentford TrilogyThe Brentford Trilogy is a series of eight novels by writer Robert Rankin. They humorously chronicle the lives of a couple of drunken middle-aged layabouts, Jim Pooley and John Omally, who confront the forces of darkness in the environs of West London, usually with the assistance of large...
, whose name the character- going by the alias of Rizla, Rune's acolyte, for most of the novel- only recalls at the conclusion of the novel) - Retromancer (Once again accompanied by Jim Pooley; this novel apparently culminates in Rune's death when Rizla tricks Count Otto Black into falling into the Bottomless Pit to Hell, Rune thus aging and dying as it is now impossible for Black to come back, this 'severing' their pre-existing connection).
- CircusCircusA circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
(1928 Charlie Chaplin film where Hugo Rune asks Rizla: "Can you hear me now?" on a cell retrieved from the Bottomless Pit).