Lyr/Chords ADD Hartlepool/Boddam/etc. Monkey

Subject: RE: The Hartleypool Monkey
From: Long Firm Freddie (at work)
Date: 27 Oct 00 - 08:26 AM

Apparently local footy supporters regularly taunt visiting Hartlepool United fans with chants of "Who hung the monkey?".

I always liked Vin Gabutt's T-Shirt, which had a silhouette of a monkey on a gallows, and underneath it bore the legend "Songs for Swinging Primates".

LFF

Subject: RE: The Hartleypool Monkey
From: GUEST,PKD on Teesside
Date: 27 Oct 00 - 08:18 AM

If you go to the Hartlepool Folk Club in the Causeway next to Camerons brewery on any Sunday night, you will see the monkey hanging from a rope in the corner of the room.

Cheers

Paul

Subject: RE: The Hartleypool Monkey
From: Gervase
Date: 27 Oct 00 - 05:02 AM

Poor old Hartlepool. First it gets the monkey jokes, and then it gets Peter Mandelson as its MP.
At the risk of serious thread creep, the urbane and sophisticated Northern Ireland secretary and bon viveur was said once to be campaigning on the stump in Hartlepool when it was suggested he might like to show his street cred by popping into the local chippie for a pennorth of scratchings or what-have-you.
Mandy glances along the serving counter and his eyes alight on a bowl of green goo.
"Ah, so you have guacamole here too?" says Mandy to the bafflement of all.
"No mate, them's mushy peas," was the cruel but honest retort from the man behind the counter.
The tale's almost certainly apocryphal, but for anyone who knows Mandelson and Hartlepool (an unlikely pairing), it's priceless.

Subject: RE: The Hartleypool Monkey
From: Quincy
Date: 18 Oct 00 - 03:17 PM

Had to mention the comedian's contribution from the tv last night...he said, imagine the poor monkey being escorted through the town to the gallows. On reaching them, he looked up at the rope hanging and thought,

"Who's stole the tyre off the end of that???!!"

Sorry couldn't resist it, best wishes, Yvonne

Subject: RE: The Hartleypool Monkey
From: Snuffy
Date: 18 Oct 00 - 08:44 AM

A friend of mine(originally from Hartlepool) is looking for more information on Alan Wilkinson and his song. Did he do any other songs/poems? Is he still alive? Can he be contacted?

Hope there's someone out there can help.

Wassail! V

Subject: RE: The Hartleypool Monkey
From: Conrad Bladey (Peasant- Inactive)
Date: 13 Jun 00 - 07:04 PM

a tune might be helpful-anyone have it? abc ok!

Conrad

Subject: Lyr Add: THE HARTLEPOOL SPY (Michael B. Williams)
From: GUEST,Jim I
Date: 13 Jun 00 - 06:33 PM

A friend of mine some years ago was struggling to find this song but without success. In the end he wrote his own version.

The Hartlepool Spy (Michael B.Williams)

(to the tune of Villikins and his Dinah)^^

1. Come all ye brave fellows and listen to me
I'll tell of a castaway washed in from sea
With a jacket of blue and a face like a dog
An obvious spy, Yes, a manifest Frog

Chorus: Too-ra-loo, Too-ra-leye
Yes, this is the tale of the Hartlepool spy

2. All dripping and wet he crawls slowly ashore
The locals are waiting - a hundred or more
The men they all shudder, the women all wail
They can see he's a Frenchman, he's got a long tail

3. They question him sternly in Hartlepool-speak
The poor little wretch gives a desperate squeak
"A real Johnny Crappo" the crowd they all cry
"A Jacobin Frenchman, a Froggie - a SPY"

4. "Oh! We've got a gallows and we've got a rope
Speak up quickly Froggie, it is your last hope"
The castaway waves both his arms in the air
"He talks like a Frenchman!" the crowd they declare

5. They agree then to hang him by popular vote
Stand him under the gallows, a rope round his throat
"You've now had your trial and the verdict is fair"
And they haul on the rope, swing him up in the air

6. "Oh! That's not a Frenchman" a late comer cries
"It's a poor bloody monkey, not a Frog in disguise"
The locals explain 'twas an honest mistake
And one that they feel any Briton could make

Subject: Lyr Add: WHO HUNG THE MONKEY?
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 13 Jun 00 - 02:56 PM

I have a version in Everymans Book of British Balads (edited by Roy Palmer) called "Who Hung the Monkey?" which is similar to Conrad's. It has no chorus but it has an extra verse before the last verse in Conrad's version:

5 Then they put him on a grid-iron hot:
The monkey then quite lively got;
He grinned his teeth at all the lot
And rolled his eyes quite spunky, 0!
Then a fisherman up to poor pug goes,
Saying, 'Let's hang him at once to end his woes';
The monkey flew at him and bit off his nose,
Then they off to the Moor with the monkey, 0!

Jon

Subject: Lyr Add: THE FISHERMEN HUNG THE MONKEY, O!
From: Conrad Bladey (Peasant- Inactive)
Date: 13 Jun 00 - 02:02 PM

From Allan's Illustrated Edition of Tyneside Songs and Readings. With Lives, Portraits, and Autographs of the Writers, and Notes on the Songs. Newcastle-upon-Tyne: T. & G. Allan, 1891.

THE FISHERMEN HUNG THE MONKEY, O!
[Edward Corvan]
^^

"The Fishermen hung the Monkey, O!" These words are the greatest insult you can offer to the Hartlepool fishermen. It is supposed when Napoleon the Great threatened to invade England the Fishermen were loyal and patriotic, and ever on the look-out for spies. A vessel having been wrecked about this time, all on board perished with the exception of a monkey, which was seized by the fishermen for a French spy, and hung because he could not or would not speak English.—Author’s Note.

TUNE—"The Tinker's Wedding."

IN former times, 'mid war an' strife,
When French invashin threatened life,
An' all was arm'd te the knife,
    The Fishermen hung the Monkey, O!
The fishermen, wi' courage high,
Seized the Monkey for a spy.
Hang him says yen, says another he'll die;
    They did, an' they hung the Monkey O!

Chorus.
(To sympathise with the unfortunate Monkey, altogether.)
Dooram, dooram, dooram, da, etc.

They tried ivery means te myek him speak,
They tortor'd the Monkey tiv he loud did squeak;
Says yen that's French, says anuther it's Greek,
    For the Fishermen then gat drunkey, O!
He's all ower hair sum cheps did cry,
E'en up te summic cute an' sly;
Wiv a cod's heed then they closed an eye,
    Afore they hung the Monkey, O!

Spoken.—Ladies an' cheps, a chorus this time to mark our disapprobashin o' the Pugnaeshis Fishermen for closin' the ogle ov the unfortunate monkey.

Dooram, etc.

Some the Monkey's fate they did bewail,
For all the speechless pug had his tail (tale),
He'd been better off i' Durham jail,
    For the Monkey wis tornin funkey, O!
They said he myed some curose mugs,
When they shaved his head an' cut off his lugs,
Sayin' that's the game for French humbugs,
    Afore they hung the Monkey, O!

Spoken.—Chorus in considerashin of the removal and total annihilashin of the Monkey's auricular organ by all those who have an ear for gorilla sensashins.

Dooram, etc.

Hammer his ribs, the thunerin thief,
Pummel his pyet weel wi' yor neef,
He's landed here for nobbit grief,
    He's aud Napoleon's Uncky, O!
Thus to the Monkey all hands behaved,
Cut off his whiskers one chep raved;
Another bawled oot he's never been shaved,
    So they commenced to scrape the Monkey, O!

Chorus.
(After the style of "Lather and shave 'em.")
Dooram, etc.

Now let us hope that ever at sea
We'll still maintain sovereignty,
May France and England long agree,
    An' nivor at each other get funkey, O!
As regards poor Pug aw've had my say,
His times they've past for mony a day,
But in Hartlepool, noo, thou'll hear lads say—

Spoken.—Aw asy, Mistor, mother says it, she telled me te ax ye, te tell me te tell her; if ye tell me,—aw say, Mistor, can ye tell us—

(Sings)—Whe hung the Monkey, O?

Dooram, etc.

CORVAN. Author’s Manuscript, 1862.

Subject: RE: The Hartleypool Monkey
From: Jonathan
Date: 21 Aug 99 - 05:38 AM

A word of caution to would-be researchers; the folk of Hartlepool are a wee bit touchy on this subject, so don't ask about monkey hanging down at the pub!

Mind you, I think I might be a bit pissed off if all the folk from neighbouring towns laughed like a drain every time my town got mentioned, so I can sympathise. J.

Subject: Lyr Add: THE HARTLEPOOL MONKEY
From: Pelrad
Date: 20 Aug 99 - 10:27 PM

Hmm. Here's the version I learned from Tom Goux and Jacek Sulanowski. Some of the wording is slightly different from the version posted above. I'm not sure where Jacek learned it from, but their sources are usually respectable.

Well it happened in old Hartlepool about the time of France.
The Emperor Napoleon was leading us a dance.
Along our shore came a British Man-O-War,
And the Captain's pet monkey was washed upon the shore.

The Lord Mayor of Hartlepool was walking on the shore
When he saw a funny sight he had never seen before
There was a little fellow sitting on the sand
Holding a banana in his tiny, hairy hand.

CHO:
Old folks, young folks, every one and each
Come and see the Frenchy that's landed on the beach.
He's got long arms, a great long tail and he's covered all in hair.
We think that he's a spy, so we'll hang him in the Square.

The Lord Mayor told the Town Clerk, who hurried to the shore
To see this little fellow where he'd been seen before.
A crowd had gathered 'round, for he was the funniest sight
Since the timber yard had burnt down the previous Friday night.

Constable Parsons came upon the scene:
He took out his notebook and he licked his pencil clean.
Causing a disturbance is a serious offense!
Anything you say will be used as evidence.

CHO

Well when the little fellow spoke, a funny thing was heard.
Constable Parsons couldn't understand a word.
The reason for his puzzlement the Clerk could plainly see:
"The little man's a foreigner, from far across the sea!"

"The little man's a SPY!" The angry crowd did roar,
"Sent by Napoleon to our native shore!"
They grabbed the little fellow by his long hairy tail,
And gave him to the copper, who threw him in the jail.

CHO

They hung the little fellow from a gallows in the town,
A rope all 'round his neck, and his tail all hanging down.
A lesson to Napoleon to make himself a rule:
Never send his hairy spies to old Hartlepool!

HTML line breaks added. --JoeClone, 18-Mar-02.

Subject: Lyr Add: THE HARTLEPOOL MONKEY
From:
Date: 17 Aug 98 - 02:42 AM

The Hartlepool Monkey

The best known tradition and legend associated with the fishermen of Hartlepool is the story of the hanging of the monkey. Tradition attributes this legend to the Napoleonic wars at the beginning of the nineteenth century. It was a December day and the coast at Hartlepool was subject to a heavy battering of gales and snow, through which a French vessel called the Chasse Maree could be vaguely seen just off the Hartlepool headland.

The fisherfolk of Hartlepool fearing an invasion kept a close watch on the French vessel as it struggled against the storm but when the vessel was severely battered and sorrowful looking survivor, the ship's pet monkey dressed to amuse in a military style uniform.

The fishermen apparently questioned the monkey and held a beach-based trial. Unfamiliar with what a Frenchman looked like they came to the conclusion that this monkey was a French spy and should be sentenced to death. The unfortunate creature was to die by hanging, with the mast of a fishing boat (a coble) providing a convenient gallows.sunk they turned their attention to the wreckage washed ashore. Among the wreckage lay one wet and

In former times, when war and strife
The French invasion threatened life
An' all was armed to the knife
The Fisherman hung the monkey O!

The Fishermen with courage high,
Seized on the monkey for a French spy;
"Hang him!" says one; "he's to die."
They did and they hung the monkey Oh!

They tried every means to make him speak
And tortured the monkey till loud he did speak;
Says yen, "That’s French.” Says another, "It’s Greek,"
For the fishermen had got druncky oh!

HTML line breaks added in place of double spacing. --JoeClone, 18-Mar-02.

Subject: RE: The Hartleypool Monkey
From: Catfeet
Date: 29 Jul 97 - 12:11 PM

Sorry about that, Mudcat was having a hard time submitting the message. Ah, the wonders of living in a technological society...

Subject: RE: The Hartleypool Monkey
From: Rick
Date: 29 Jul 97 - 12:11 PM

Catfeet - obviously faster than my fingers...

Thanks for the obvious correction to the chorus first line. I think the first verse first line should be

Well it happened up in Hartlepool...

but Vin's accent is pretty difficult.

The monkey legend is fascinating, although I was told by a local Hartlepool historian many years ago that there is no proof of the hanged object being an ape - it is as likely to have been a local smuggler from the Monkey gang who were apparently notorious wreckers along the north east coast in Napoleonic times.

Cheers

Rick.

Subject: Lyr Add: THE HARTLEPOOL MONKEY (Alan Wilkinson)
From: Rick
Date: 29 Jul 97 - 12:05 PM

The Hartlepool Monkey (Alan Wilkinson)

Chorus:

Singing old folk, young folk everyone to the beach
Come and see the Frenchie who's landed on the beach
He's got long arms and a great long tail and he's covered all in hair
We think that he's a spy so we'll hang him in the square

More to follow....

Subject: Lyr Add: THE HARTLEPOOL MONKEY
From: Catfeet
Date: 29 Jul 97 - 12:03 PM

It's actually called THE HARTLEPOOL MONKEY, but I couldn't find it in the DT either, so here goes it. ^^
THE HARTLEPOOL MONKEY

Well, it's up and up in Hartlepool about the time of France,
The Emperor Napoleon was leading all the dance,
When up along the coast came a British man-o-war
And the captain’s own good monkey got washed up on the shore.

CHORUS:
Singing old folks, young folks, every man and beast
Have come to see the Frenchie who's landed on the beach.
He's got long arms and a great long tail and he's covered down in hair.
We think that he's a spy, so we'll hang him in the square!

Now the Lord Mayor of Hartlepool was walking down the shore
When he saw this funny thing he'd never seen before.
A-sitting in the sand was a little hairy man,
Clutching a banana in his little hairy hand.

Well the Lord Mayor fetched the Town Clerk who hurried to the shore.
There they found this little man where he had been before.
And a crowd had gathered 'round him 'cause he was the strangest sight
Since the Sporting Club got fired on the previous Friday Night!

Now, Constable Parsons, he hurried to the scene.
He viewed the situation and he licked his pencil clean.
He said, "Causing a disturbance is a serious offence
And every thing you say, it will go down in evidence!”

Well, when this little man spoke, a funny thing was heard,
And Constable parsons couldn't understand a word.
But the reason for his puzzlement the crowd could plainly see:
This little man's a foreigner from far across the sea!

So they hung... hung... this little Frenchie from the gallows in the town
With a rope... rope... around his little necky-weck, and his tail all hanging down
As a warning to Napoleon to make himself a rule
And not to send his little hairy spies to dear old Hartlepool!

Here are some sleeve notes: The song was written in the early sixties by Tee-sider Alan Wilkenson. It's the true story of how, during the Napoleonic wars, the people of Hartlepool tried and hanged a monkey as a French spy.

HTML line breaks added. --JoeClone, 18-Mar-02.

Subject: The Hartleypool Monkey
From: Cliff McGann
Date: 28 Jul 97 - 10:52 PM

Heard this song by Englishman Vin Garbutt about how this monkey ends up being hung because the townsfolk ended up mistaking it for Napolean. Hilarious song. Never been able to find the words for it. Any help?