Tenpole Tudor formed in 1977 when Tudor-Pole (vocals/saxophone) met guitarist Bob Kingston, bassist Dick Crippen, and drummer Gary Long.
They played regularly for several years until Tudor-Pole himself (under the moniker of Eddie Tenpole) came to prominence by appearing in the 1980 film, The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle (filmed in 1978).
He was originally billed as a replacement for Sex Pistols singer Johnny Rotten — performing the songs "Who Killed Bambi?", "The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle" for the film and subsequent soundtrack.
However, manager Malcolm McLaren and the remaining Sex Pistols instead decided to abandon the group and go their own ways.
The band released their début album, 'Eddie, Old Bob, Dick and Gary', in 1981. It sold well, and in addition to the popular "3 Bells in a Row", launched two additional hit singles "Wünderbar" and "Swords of a Thousand Men".