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Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs

22 Nov 09 - 09:15 AM (#2771076)
Subject: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: English Jon

A daft idea for a project struck me....

Whilst watching season 2 of Doctor Who (David Tennant, nice suit although I still preferred Chris Ecclestone), I noticed there's a 4 second shot of someone massacring the riddle song (I gave my love a cherry etc) - and I started wondering if it would be possible to put a show together based on Whovian folklore...Patrick Troughton's Doctor used to occasionally play recorder, after all!

So....

What I'm after is ANY reference to folksong/folklore, terrestrial or alien, specific to Doctor Who. Trekkies need not apply, ditto Figrin d'Aan and the Modal Nodes....that's another project entirely - Seperate thread please if you want to go down that route!

Tenuous as you like, as long as there's some kind of link to The Doctor!
(And yes, I have thought of "Cruising 'round Yarmouth"...)

Thinking caps on please!

Many thanks,
Jon Loomes


22 Nov 09 - 11:11 AM (#2771112)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: GUEST,Suibhne (Astray)

Pertwee used to sing some Venusian Lullaby (Harroon, Harroon, Harroon) which he claimed was based on some old folk song he'd picked up somewhere, and Carey Bylton's score for The Silurians (1970) is full of all manner of wyrd & wonderful primal & folkloric sounds - crumhorns included!


22 Nov 09 - 11:12 AM (#2771116)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: English Jon

Thank you! This is exactly the sort of thing I'm looking for!

Cheers,
Jon


22 Nov 09 - 11:43 AM (#2771127)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: GUEST,LDT

I think there was a song in Gridlock the something cross....
and the song sung in Daleks in Manhatten, and then of course the 'sound of drums'.
(not sure if that's what you are after...I'll have to go look thorugh My DR Who DVD collection)


22 Nov 09 - 12:00 PM (#2771133)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: GUEST,Ed

There's a wikipedia article on Music featured on Doctor Who, but apart from the spiritual "Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen", and your aforementioned "Riddle Song", it looks like pretty slim pickings...


22 Nov 09 - 01:26 PM (#2771198)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Little Robyn

Weren't there morris dancers in the background of one episode?
Yes, Mitch has found it in his archives - The Daemons, with Jon Pertwee.
I think I recorded it at the time but I don't know where it would be now.
Robyn


22 Nov 09 - 01:36 PM (#2771209)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: mandolinman (Ollie)

This youtube search -http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=morris+dancing+dr+who&search_type=&aq=f brings up both the dances in Dr Who and many sides dancing with Daleks!

In terms of any folky alien stuff, there is the whole sub-genre of Filk (sci-fi folk) of which Chris Conway is a great exponant. He may have some Who related songs, I'm not sure.


22 Nov 09 - 05:48 PM (#2771382)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Herga Kitty

IIRC Headington Quarry morris dancers appeared in one episode - possibly the Jon Pertwee one referred to by Little Robyn above.

Kitty


22 Nov 09 - 07:28 PM (#2771433)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Mr Fox

The Venusian Lullaby:

"Kokleda partha mennin clatch.
Aroon aroon aroon.

Kokleda sheena teerinatch.
Aroon aroon aroon.

Aroon aroon aroon.
Aroon aroon aroon..."

The tune is identical to 'God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen'.

(Gawd, I'm a geek!)


22 Nov 09 - 07:55 PM (#2771446)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Mark Dowding

It was Headington Quarry in the Daemons.

Pertwee himself was a singer of folk songs (of a sort) and released an albums of Children's songs in the 60s which included The Runaway Train, Froggy Went a Courting and My Grandfather's clock amongst others.

Pertwee served on HMS Hood in the war and was taken off it prior to Hood sailing after the Bismark and being sunk leaving 3 survivors. I sent him the words to Dave Rawlinson's song "The Lost Fourteen Hundred" which he appreciated.

The Hartnell story "The Gunfighters" from 1966 featured a song called "The Ballad of the Last Chance Saloon" sung by Linda "Nurse Gladys" Baron

I'll think of more later - I'm off to bed now as it's 1-00 in the morning!

Good night
Mark


23 Nov 09 - 05:13 AM (#2771595)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: GUEST,LDT

Asked on the DR Who forum I'm on....they know more of the classic series than me.

Other than the Peladon one, got this reply:
"There was plenty of native music in Four to Doomsday, from the ethnic groups kidnapped by Monarch."


23 Nov 09 - 06:19 AM (#2771621)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Jack Blandiver

Am I right in thinking Pertwee came up with the lullaby himself? I know he invented Wurzelese so writing songs in Venusian shouldn't have been too much of a problem!


23 Nov 09 - 07:03 AM (#2771636)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Trevor

I have a friend who was in that one where they danced around the Maypole (was that The Daemons?). I think she has a recording of it. Do you want me to check it out?


23 Nov 09 - 11:53 AM (#2771844)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Nigel Parsons

Can't remember the title while I'm in work (have to check the DVD) but there's a folk song or nursery rhyme being sung by the child character Chloe Webber in the Tennant episode "Fear Her" (also sung by the mother to soothe Chloe.


23 Nov 09 - 02:00 PM (#2771964)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Little Robyn

Just checked the youtube on mandolinman's link above.
The side Winsters in (Winster Processional) followed by the maypole dancers. Then the maypole dancers do their dance while Headington Quarry dance Young Collins. It finishes with a snippet of Lads a bunchum.
The dancers are obviously real and probably the fool hitting the Dr with the pig's bladder, but is the bloke in tatters and funny hat their Squire or one of the actors dressed in morris kit?
So that episode takes place on Mayday!
Cheers,
Robyn


23 Nov 09 - 02:31 PM (#2771988)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Mark Dowding

The bloke in the tatters and funny hat is the actor Don McKillop who plays Bert, the landlord of "The Cloven Hoof" as the Blue Boar was named for this series. The outside scenes were filmed at the village of Aldbourne in Wiltshire.

Cheers
Mark


23 Nov 09 - 02:49 PM (#2772002)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Jack Blandiver

Here's folklore for you - on this very day back in 1963 the BBC broadcast the first ever episode of Dr Who.


23 Nov 09 - 05:32 PM (#2772115)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: English Jon

Thanks guys! This is exactly the kind of Info I'm looking for!

Cheers,
Jon


24 Nov 09 - 04:05 AM (#2772370)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Nigel Parsons

"Here's folklore for you - on this very day back in 1963 the BBC broadcast the first ever episode of Dr Who."
And re-broadcast it the following week because the first broadcast had been overshadowed by news coming out of Dallas!


22 Nov 12 - 04:37 AM (#3440287)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Nigel Parsons

From my comment above:
Can't remember the title while I'm in work (have to check the DVD) but there's a folk song or nursery rhyme being sung by the child character Chloe Webber in the Tennant episode "Fear Her" (also sung by the mother to soothe Chloe.
It was "Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree".


22 Nov 12 - 08:12 PM (#3440766)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Rumncoke

The first episode of Dr Who - 'An Unearthly Child' - the two teachers going to look for the home of their unusual pupil who lived with her grandfather, and finding the Tardis in a scrapyard. The man's name was Chesterton - was it Ian?

Grief - I would have been 12 years old at the time.

These days I have to cudgel my brain to remember what I made for dinner two days ago.


23 Nov 12 - 09:03 AM (#3440946)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: RWJ

I remember that eoisode as the first one that watched. I did not realise that it was the first.My memoury must be better than I thought.


23 Nov 12 - 02:29 PM (#3441081)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: GUEST,Grishka

English folk wisdom says: "An apple a day keeps the Doctor away." But it only works if you throw it hard enough that he has to spend the rest of the day in bed.

Yes, our memoury - more English than real English!


23 Nov 12 - 02:49 PM (#3441093)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: terrier

I remember missing the very first episode, but heard a BBC announcement that' due to "popular demand", it would be replayed the following Saturday as so many people had missed it. Was this the first time a TV prog went 'viral'.


23 Nov 12 - 03:28 PM (#3441111)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Nigel Parsons

The re-showing was more due to the first episode being overshadowed by events in Dallas the previous day.


23 Nov 12 - 04:50 PM (#3441157)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Rumncoke

I remember speaking to people who'd missed it - possibly at school, and there were very few people who had seen it. I remember that my being able to reproduce the theme tune accompanied by drumming on a desktop was considered rather good.

Quite a few youngsters watched the program from behind the sofa - it might seem fairly tame now but back then it was rather alarming.

I had a look for information about the first program, and found parts of it available to watch - amazing!

It was Ian Chesterton, with Barbara Wright, who intruded on the irascible doctor.


23 Nov 12 - 04:58 PM (#3441163)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: GUEST,Peter

Many of the first Doctor episodes are available on DVD including An Unearthly Child

Full list on Wikipedia


28 Nov 12 - 11:12 AM (#3443713)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Rumncoke

I just found out about the DVD's and have ordered all those I could find/afford - I thought that the BBC did not keep old programs, which has proven to be the case for a lot of Dr Who, but some did.

I wonder if the ones with the eight legs and the Zarbee survive.

Off to Wikipedia


23 Feb 13 - 05:45 PM (#3483039)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: GUEST,Melanie West

Sort of on/off topic, but here goes: I teach pre-k/k and this summer we're planning on doing a week of Doctor Who with the children. I am looking for songs that I could teach the children that would be about the Doctor. I've already re-worked some traditional kids songs, but, if there is anything that I know about Whovians it's that we're a creative bunch, so I thought that I'd reach out and see if any of you might have some creative re-writes that I could use.


23 Feb 13 - 06:13 PM (#3483047)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Rumncoke

I found out recently that my Uncle Stan left HMS Hood shortly before that fateful encounter with the Bismark. He might have known Jon Pertwee!

Although he is still alive his personality has succumbed to dementia, and his memory failed long ago, but I remember that we shared a liking for The Navy Lark - in which CPO Pertwee served.

Somewhere on my inaccessible tapes for reel to reel tape recorder I have some recordings of The Navy Lark - one I recall rather fondly was Troutbridge's encounter with The Poppadom.

I have acquired several lots of Dr Who c.d.s and a large projection TV - 43 inches I think it is - great fun.

Sorrow for the lost episodes.


23 Feb 13 - 08:57 PM (#3483111)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: oldhippie

There was at least one LP of music from the shows. Will have to find my copy and post the title.


24 Feb 13 - 05:04 AM (#3483176)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: Ian Burdon

"There was at least one LP of music from the shows. Will have to find my copy and post the title. "

There have been several LPs with music from the shows as "realised" by the Radiophonic Workshop. The iconic theme tune, initially written by Ron Grainer, was realised by the late and great Delia Derbyshire to whom Grainer famously wanted to assign half of the credit but the Beeb refused.

This is as good a place to start as any.


24 Feb 13 - 08:34 AM (#3483209)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: GUEST

"I'm Going To Spend My Christmas With A Dalek" by the Go Go's from 1964: http://youtu.be/GuBJ5H9m3Sc

Unfortunately, the Dalek sounds more like the Doctor's robot dog K9.


24 Feb 13 - 08:36 AM (#3483211)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: GUEST,Neville Grundy

Concerning my post about "I'm Going To Spend My Christmas With A Dalek" - sorry, I forgot to insert my name.


25 Feb 13 - 08:19 AM (#3483510)
Subject: RE: Folklore: Doctor Who - Folk Songs
From: GUEST, Paul Slade

...not to mention The Timelords' Doctorin' The Tardis, and the title song from 1974's musical The Good Companions.

(Yes, it was based on JB Priestley's novel.)