Thank you, Chucklefoot, I never knew about any of this! Having become interested in accents etc in Phonetics at Uni long ago, I recently learned that the Cockney speech from before the fifties is far different from that spoken today. In Tommy's songs, you can hear the pure, original accent. I imagine Harry Champion's songs have the same authentic Cockney sounds? (I realise Bermondsey is south London, but Cockney enough!) Estuary English seems to have taken over now. As I was born in Middlesex, I can more or less understand the patter!