'Up From Somerset' - Can someone please explain?

[gsdx]

I just watched an episode of AYBS? in which the staff of Grace Brothers were celebrating Young Mr. Grace's birthday. They traced his family to Wales and sang a mining song. Then they found out that his family moved to Wales from Scotland, so they did some Scottish dancing. Finally, Rumbold got a telegram tracing the family back even further. They all came out dressed in white smocks, floppy hats, and they all wore beards. They sang 'Up From Somerset'.

What was that last bit all about?

[pat grimshaw]

Somerset? Very flat, Somerset.

[BENDERBOY]

Never heard of it, may just be some nonsense they made up.

[HoodedRat]

They all came out dressed in white smocks, floppy hats, and they all wore beards. They sang 'Up From Somerset'.

Somerset is the farming area near Bristol/Glastonbury/Wells in England ... have you heard of The Wurzels? Somerset people have an accent that is even worse than Bristolians (I myself suffer the terrible misfortune of being Bristol born and bred ... 'ooh arrr ooh arrrrr' .. 'aw rite moi luvver') ... think of a stupid pig-shit-gargling farmer leaning on a fence chewing straw whilst he talks ... that's how they sound.

I guess t he 'joke/humour' is supposed to be a reference to Mr Grace's uncouth farming family origins.

Was this the song?

''Oh, we come up from Somerset,
To see the Great Review;
There was Mary drest in her Sunday best,
And our boy Billee too.
The drums were rolling rub-a-dub,
The trumpets tootled too,
When right up rode His Majesty,
An' says 'An who be you?'

'Oh, we'm come up from Somerset,
Where the cider apples grow,
We'm come to see your Majesty,
An' how the world do go.
And when you're wanting anyone,
If you'll kindly let us know,
We'll all come up from Somerset,
Because we loves you so!'

Then the Queen she look'd at Mary,
'An' what's your name?' she said,
But Mary blush'd like any rose,
An' hung her pretty head.
So 1 ups and nudges Mary,
'Speak up and tell her, do!'
So she said 'If it please, your Majesty,
My name is Mary too!

An' we'm come up from Somerset,
Where the cider apples grow,
Where the gals can hem an' sew an' stitch,
And also reap and hoe,
An' if you're wanting any gals,
An' will kindly let us know,
We'll all come from Somerset,
Because we loves you so!'

Then the King look'd down at Billee-boy,
Before they rode away,
'An' what is he going for to be?'
His Majesty did say.
So Billee pull'd his forelock,
And stood up trim and true,
'Oh, I'm going to be a soldier, Sir,
For I wants to fight for you!

For we'm come up from Somerset,
Where the cider apples grow,
For we're all King's men in Somerset,
As they were long, long ago,
An' when you're wanting soldier boys,
An' there's fighting for to do,
You just send word to Somerset,
An' we'll all be up for you!'

written by some guy called Frederick Weatherly apparently.

[ChickenGuy]

HoodedRat, I've got a brand new combine harvester and I'll give you the key.

[gsdx]

'ooh arrr ooh arrrrr' .. 'aw rite moi luvver'[/I]) ... think of a stupid pig-shit-gargling farmer leaning on a fence chewing straw whilst he talks ... that's how they sound.

I guess t he 'joke/humour' is supposed to be a reference to Mr Grace's uncouth farming family origins.

Was this the song?

They did that 'ooh arrr' thing when they walked out onto the floor, and the whole 'farmer' thing makes sense now.

That was the song they sang, too, but only one verse of it.

Thanks, Hoody. I owe you one.

[HoodedRat]

[pat grimshaw]

They did that 'ooh arrr' thing ….|

Robert Newtown did the ooh arrr in his pirate movies. And it seems he came from Dorset which I think is near Somerset.


http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0628579/

[gsdx]

*The Wurzels*

That was cute. I think Melanie would have liked that. I see a lot of their videos on YouTube. I'll have to check them out.

[cgymike]

Good Grief! Southerners...

[unloadonme]

Yeah, Somerset in this context is an inference that said ancestors were country bumpkins.

[Lord Booticus]

Robert Newtown did the ooh arrr in his pirate movies. And it seems he came from Dorset which I think is near Somerset.

Yeah, the pirate accent we all know and love came about from an exaggerated west country accent, the west country containing the county's of Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, an Dorset.

[Hard-up1]

Cold Comfort Farm

[pat grimshaw]

c/o HoodedRat