Gerard Hoffnung's Oxford Union address was based on an article from the Manchester Guardian, the story was told by an American naval officer to his crew as an example of one of his men returning late from leave. This story in turn was taken from the Readers Digest in 1940, in 1937 Laurel and Hardy used the idea in the film Way out West. The story with illustration appeared in an English joke book dated 1918, and was known in the english music halls from this time. Pat Cooksey's song Paddy and the barrell, the Sick Note, etc, dates from 1969, and is known worldwide, under all recorded titles I have heard the words are Cooksey's original, based on this old story, but introducing the Irish element, a superb example of songwriting. Stan Laurel appeared in the english music halls before emigrating to America, perhaps this is where the sketch began.