Hi Lighter thanks for your observation and information. I made an error in haste myself. It wasn't the BBC producer who heard the song being first performed in Winnipeg, it was the Chairman of Curwen and Co. Annoyingly I can find newspaper mentions of Roberton visiting Canada during the 1926-1938 period - but haven't found one for 1939.

The earliest mention of any UK public performance of Roberton's Westering Home reported in currently available scanned newspapers is mid-1939, which fits with the first publication date given of January 1939.   Still the court case does confirm the previous songs said to have been used as a source. The lyrics though being completely original and fitted to his overall adaptation.