We had a prompt (Upstairs Downstairs) for our reading group … and to my surprise … no-one thought about the famous tv series 'Upstairs Downstairs' for that particular prompt (before Maggie Smith died).
Me … I just kept on with the way I've been going this year … very slow, but not ponderous in thought … Nursery Rhymes came to my fore …
Might be American spelling!
The Grand Old Duke of York … Frederick Augustus, Duke of York and second son of King George III of England is the only member of the British Royal family to be immortalised in a nursery rhyme.
Goosey Goosey Gander …
whither shall I wander?
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall …
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall …
and then …
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| Looking up towards the ornate setting in Exeter Cathedral |
Hickory Dickory Dock …
the mouse ran up the clock …
twelve times, then that poor little mouse had to start all over again … such is the life of a little mouse …
Poor little mouse … has been kept very occupied these past weeks as I pondered on … but then the cat was more than encouraged to chase said mice (plenty born by this time!) through the new bell tower cat flap – the scampering rodents found their nemesis awaiting them …
A whiskery looking mouse -
that's actually a rat!
It is thought Hickory Dickory Dock came into prominence in the 1700s from Exeter Cathedral, which has an astronomical clock … and had had a small hole cut in its face for the resident cat to keep watch …
Steve Roud's book on
Folk Songs in England
History abounds through our nursery rhymes … apparently there are about 250,000 references to 25,000 songs collected for the Roud Index after World War Two … thankfully the oral traditions have been saved.
Beneath the main dial is an appropriate saying ...
PEREUNT ET IMPUTANTUR … the hours pass and are reckoned to our account.
As many hours have passed … I believe I am on the way to being back in the swing of things … so my next post will be the WEP October Horrorfest … mine will be a gentle tale – but do join us …
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| An early mechanism for the astronomical clock removed in 1885; but is restored and is in its current position for viewing purposes. |
Thanks for bearing with my slothful time away … I shall catch up and see you all soon …
Hickory Dickory Dock Nursery Rhyme ...
Exeter Cathedral Astronomical Clock ... which is thought to date from 1484
Please if you get can email advising you of a new post ... if you don't want it ... just let me know and I'll delete your name ... thanks ... or I can add yours in ...
Hilary Melton-Butcher
Positive Letters Inspirational Stories
31 comments:
Hope you enjoyed your time off...
what a fun blog. Hey diddle, diddle!
The cat and the fiddle,
The cow jumped over the moon;
The little dog laughed
To see such sport,
And the dish ran away with the spoon.
Take care, cheers Diane
Nursery rhymes are fun! ☺ Welcome back, Hilary. I hope you had a lovely time away. I'm not much for "horror fests", but will come by to see what you've written. Cheers!
Hooray for WEPs return. I am not writing but look forward to some delicious reading.
I love and always have tracking the history behind nursery rhymes.
And welcome back.
Cats, eh? They have a lot to answer for.
No one thought of that show? I've never seen it, but it's the first thing that comes to my mind.
I hope you had a nice break. It's good to take time away sometimes.
Nursery rhymes sometimes described bleak events eg bubonic plague or executions. Did parents know this when they taught the words to their children?
It is so interesting that Exeter Cathedral accommodated its cat/s in such a way.
I wonder when Hickety dickety Dock changed to Hickory dickory Dock? Perhaps it's a regional variation.
@ John – thanks … but the constant thought I must get a blog post up!! Eventually … still now I have to knuckle under …
@ Diane – I nearly put that cover art work up … but Upstairs Downstairs it had to be … then of course our minds can wander to other memories … like the cow jumping over the moon …
@ Debbie – thank you … Nursery rhymes are interesting to hear again and again … that'll be great if you'll come by to read my gentle horror WEP – more sad than horror …
@ EC – yes Hooray for WEPs return … I've really missed it. Thankgoodness our oral traditions have been captured in writing … and I'm looking into Anglo Saxon and Medieval eras too …
@ Anabel – yes ... Tom and Jerry vibes! Well they do keep the mice at bay …
@ Liz – guilt held to the fore as I felt I really should be posting … still onwards and onwards!
@ Hels – I suspect our parents knew their history and the origins of for example 'Ring a Ring of Roses' … today: some will, some won't have a clue …
@ Janice – I was 'caught' up in Exeter's history too … and have fascination for astronomical clocks.
It looks like the Hickety – came from the American poster … Hickory came from our early English spelling for the Nursery Rhyme. William Wallace Denslow was an American illustrator and caricaturist, who worked with the author, L Frank Baum, whom I suspect altered the wording … such is life!!
Thanks everyone .. it feels good to be back … and thanks for all your welcomes … cheers Hilary
Whoop-de-doo, hurray, hurrah, yippee and praise Darwin, Hilary is back! It is SO good to see you posting again. Now I can once again get my regular dose of esoterica and whimsicality. Somehow or other, probing nursery rhymes seems like a perfect way back to us. I will have to pay more attention to them. Love and kisses - David
I love the idea of a peephole for the cat in the clock! So happy you're back, Hilary.
Rub a dub dub, Three Men in a tub. And who do you think they might be? The butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker. Knaves of them, all three! There, is that right? That was one of my favorites! I love that clock with the blue face. And that book about folk song? I want to read it!!
Hari OM
Missed your eleclectic and always intriguing posts, Hilary. Hope the blog break allowed you time to catch up on yourself. The rhymes were never created for the nursery. They were political and social commentary created for adult amusement. If there is one rhyme that can be held up as an example of how they can remain so, it is Baa Baa Black Sheep! YAM xx
A hole for the cat to keep watch. How clever!
@ David - well that was a very pleasant and surprising 'welcome back' - lovely comment ... thank you! It's where Nursery Rhymes originated that is fairly daunting ... as Yam has mentioned - they stem from political or social commentary on the not so nice side of life ... but I enjoy the rhymes ...
@ Elizabeth - thanks so much ... the cat-flap was a very necessary addition to the bell tower door ...
@ Kay - you're right about that particular rhyme ... and thank you for reminding us ... well I hope you can get the book in the States ...
@ Yam - thanks for your educational update on the origin of nursery rhymes ... I've only ever really thought about Ring a Ring of Roses and the plague ... I might investigate some others for a post in due course. As you mention Baa Baa Black Sheep ... noted!
As far as catching up - that starts today! I'm hopeless!!!
@ Diane - the cat needed to eradicate the mice ... I needed one for my uncle's house, when I was living their when he was in hospital - I had to get the rodent man in. Easier to have a cat though ... but things were far too far advanced .. sadly.
Thanks for all your comments and delightful welcomes back ... love them - very cheering ... see you all soon - cheers Hilary
I've never given much thought as to how nursery rhymes came about - until now! Thanks to your tale of the mouse (pardon the pun!) I tempted to delve a little deeper. Right now I'm off to pat a cake and fill my little teapot - with tea, not stout!
The Hercule Poirot series (TV) did a show called Hickory Dickory Dock. It included a little mouse throughout, for no known reason. That show is one of my favorites.
Fun as always. Particularly interesting about where Hickory Dickory Dock originated.
The history behind nursey rhymes are fascnating.
Hickory Dickory Dock! Ah, how often did I hear the mouse ran up the clock in the past? ... ;-)
And now I do know a bit more about its origin.
The peace of the night, Hilary.
Glad you're back in the swing. I'm enjoying nursery rhymes all over again with my granddaughter.
@ Keith - I must say I don't think about Nursery Rhymes origins ... except Ring a Ring of Roses ... but that's probably not even a Nursery Rhyme, well it is I"m pleased to say ... and now I find it is refuted that it relates to the Great Plague - ah well ... I might be giving a talk on the Plague era soon- so perhaps I'll find out more ...
@ Jacqui - I expect I've seen the Hercule Poirot programme, but can't remember it - thanks for the reminder! There must have been a prompt for Poirot's little grey cells .. that the mouse provided ... I'll have to check it out - or get the book out of the library.
@ Sandra - thanks ... yes I was pleased to find out how the 'tale' unfolded - and also interested in the origins in Exeter Cathedral in the West country.
@ Holly - good to see you and thanks for the comment ...
@ Sean - that little mouse is still clambering up and down my clock ... I can't stop thinking about Tom and Jerry and wonder if they had an escapade based on this rhyme. But it's opened a few curious doors for me ... and yes thank-you I had a peaceful night.
Cheers to you all - it's good to be back amongst the throng, thank you for all your welcomes - Hilary
Thanks Susan - you went to spam ... but yes reading to children does open doors to these kinds of rhymes - they're fun to read and get that interaction ... also amazing how quickly they remember. Cheers Hilary
Very proud of your slothdom - a break is a good thing. I enjoyed your post and always loved children's rhymes. Now as an adult I get a bigger kick knowing the history. Very amusing. I look forward to your scary tale. Nila has posted a doozy! Cheers to October boo!
Hickory, Dickory, Dock is the spelling I'm familiar with too. Have a grand weekend, Hils.
I haven't found your WEP yet. Are you making me wait to build the suspense? Good gravy, Hilary that is just mean! :-)
https://cleemckenziebooks.substack.com/p/a-spooky-first-wednesday
I sometimes wonder if fairytales are going by the wayside. My high school students barely know any when if I reference them. My kids all know them, but the one who knows them least is my teenager. I guess electronics took away a lot of things we used to do... like reading. Even I don't read like I used to, but I do still love to get lost in a good book.
Also, I thought of the Upstairs/Downstairs series. My mom loved to watch it when I was a kid. Years ago, I got her the series on DVD for a touch of nostalgia. When she passed, I brought them home with me.
I look forward to your gentle tale:) Cheers,
Lovely to see you back again, Hilary. I enjoyed this quirky nursery rhyme and its background. Looking forward to seeing more of your posts soon.
@ Joanne – just lazy really … I'm not in gear – though must be next week! The history of our nursery rhymes is very eye opening, as you say … I must get to read the other WEP entries …
@ Sandra – interesting that's the spelling you're used to in the States – as the poster is definitely American in origin …
@ Lee – my WEP has only just appeared as of six pm (near enough) English time! So yes – suspense is the word of the moment … I'm happy you're happy to wait my typing fingers and dodgy brain to move along …
@ Rosey – life is changing isn't it … depends on the parents – we're about to have a junior in the family (not directly mine, but near enough) – she'll be getting her dose from friends and family … I wonder what the next generation will be doing with electronics.
I'd happily get lost in a zillion books – but I feel I must do other things … lots to read here and lots to probably offer to bloggers to read.
I've only seen a few of the Upstairs Downstairs series – recently I've seen a few of the newer ones … I was usually out in the evenings and in the 1980s I was down south in South Africa so missed them … that's good you can watch some of the episodes via your mother's set, now you have them.
@ Sandra – my gentle tale changed its spots … it might have been too raw for some … so thought I needed to rethink …
@ Val – I'll be over to read your recent posts as I enjoy wandering around the watery lands of northern Europe – Netherlands, France and Belgium! Thanks for the welcome back …
@ Sherry – I know you posted a comment … it appeared on the blog, and in spam – so I deleted the spam one ….... whereupon it was deleted from here – life as a blogger! Sorry …
Thanks everyone so much for being here – I'll be over very soon … cheers Hilary
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