Though most recordings say that it's traditional (and it's obviously a lot older than Alex Glasgow!), that's not the whole story.  The north-eastern singer Bob Fox credits it to Joe Wilson of Newcastle (c.1840-1874), a stage-comedian and printer of cheap songbooks, who also wrote such songs as No Work and Keep Yor Feet Still, Geordie Hinny.  Bob knows his stuff, so I'd take that as definitive.  I believe that the version mostly sung nowadays has changed a bit from the original, though, so it's on it's way to being traditional, at any rate.

Malcolm ^^