Oranges and Lemons

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This article is about the nursery rhyme. For other uses, please see Oranges and Lemons (disambiguation).

Oranges and Lemons is an English nursery rhyme which refers to the bells of several churches, all within or close to the City of London. In its common version, the lyrics refer to, in turn, St Clement Eastcheap, St Martin Orgar, St Sepulchre-without-Newgate, St Leonard's, Shoreditch, St Dunstan's, Stepney, and St Mary-le-Bow. Some claim that the St Clement's mentioned is actually St Clement Danes.^[1] The tune is reminiscent of change ringing, and the intonation of each line is said to correspond with the distinct sounds of each church's bells. Today, the Bells of St Clements Danes actually ring out the tune of the rhyme.

1 Common lyrics
2 Party game
3 Alternative lyrics
4 Origins
5 Trivia
6 See also
7 References

[edit] Common lyrics

The most common lyrics are as follows:^[2]

"Oranges and lemons, say the bells of St. Clement's

"You owe me five* farthings, say the bells of St. Martin's

"When will you pay me? say the bells of Old Bailey

"When I grow rich, say the bells of Shoreditch

"When will that be? say the bells of Stepney

"I do not know, says the great bell of Bow

"Here comes a candle to light you to bed

"And here comes a chopper to chop off your head!

'*George Orwell's 1984 lists three farthings, not five.

[edit] Party game

The song is used in a children's party game with the same name, in which the players file, in pairs, through an arch made by two of the players (made by having the players face each other, raise their arms over their head, and clasp their partners' hands). Two (or three) lines are added at the end:

Here comes a candle to light you to bed.

Here comes a chopper to chop off your head.

(Chip chop, chip chop, the last man's dead.)

On the last word, the children forming the arch drop their arms to catch the pair of children currently passing through, who are then "out" and must form another arch next to the existing one. In this way, the series of arches becomes a steadily lengthening tunnel through which each set of two players have to run faster and faster to escape in time. The game works best with a pianist to play the tune, so that unpredictable changes of tempo can be introduced.

[edit] Alternative lyrics

A less well known version of Oranges and Lemons (also known as the "London Bells" nursery rhyme) includes a number of other London churches:^[3]

Gay go up and gay go down, to ring the bells of London town.

"Oranges and Lemons" say the bells of St Clement's.

"Bull's eyes and targets" say the bells of St Margaret's.

"Brickbats and tiles" say the bells of St Giles'.

"Halfpence and farthings" say the bells of St Martin's.

"Pancakes and fritters" say the bells of St Peter's.

"Two sticks and an apple" say the bells of Whitechapel.

"Pokers and tongs" say the bells of St John's.

"Kettles and pans" say the bells of St Anne's.

"Old Father Baldpate" say the slow bells of Aldgate.

"You owe me ten shillings" say the bells of St Helen's.

"When will you pay me?" say the bells of Old Bailey.

"When I grow rich" say the bells of Shoreditch.

"Pray when will that be?" say the bells of Stepney.

"I do not know" says the great bell of Bow.

Here comes a candle to light you to bed,

Here comes a chopper to chop off your head.

Chip chop, chip chop, the last man's dead.

The lyrics may reflect trades and activities that took place near the location of the churches mentioned.

[edit] Origins

The origins of Oranges and Lemons are not well known, but are thought to date to at least the 17th or 18th century. A square dance named "Oranges and Lemons" dates to 1665.^[2]

Some believe that it may be a reference to when King Charles I was beheaded and all the church bells rang to mark his execution. The final lines in the children's party game may refer to capital punishment. The tenor bell of St Sepulchre-without-Newgate was rung to mark executions at Newgate prison.^[2]

In Heavy Words Lightly Thrown, published in 2003, Chris Roberts claimed that Oranges and Lemons is a wedding song: for example, "a candle to light you to bed" describes a new bride tempting her new husband.^[4]^[5]

[edit] Trivia

The lines of "Here comes a candle to light you to bed/Here comes a chopper to chop off your head" appear in the Supertramp song "Brother Where You Bound".
The initial line of the nursery rhyme inspired the song, "Oranges and Lemons," by 80's synth-pop icons Book of Love, from their 1989 LP, "Lullaby".
The rhyme makes an appearance in George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four as a snippet of nursery rhyme whose ending Mr Charrington cannot remember. Various characters contribute snippets of the rhyme as the book goes on, and the last lines figure symbolically into the closing events of the second section. It serves as an example of the near-complete eradication of shared culture, and is foreshadowed as being lost forever after the final few people who remember it die.
A half-and-half mixture of orange juice and bitter-lemon soda water is known as a "St Clements".
The rhyme plays a prominent role in the opening scenes of the British black comedy Mumsy, Nanny, Sonny and Girly, in which the eponymous characters take the last three lines of the rhyme literally.
Here Comes a Candle is the title of a book written by the author Fredrick Brown.
Here Comes a Candle is the title of a book written by the author Jane Aiken Hodge.
Here Comes a Candle is the title of a fictional book written by the fictitious author Erasmus Fry in an issue Neil Gaiman's Sandman comic titled "Calliope".
An instrumental version of the rhyme's melody appears in the 1973 film The Wicker Man as "Chop Chop". The tune soundtracks a scene in which characters, chanting "chop chop", conduct a cermony with swords reminiscent of the children's party game mentioned above.
The song is featured many times in the Michael Morpurgo book Private Peaceful. One of the book's characters, Big Joe, due to mental complications, tends to sing this song in times of joy, or when there is other singing going on.
The less well known version of the lyrics are featured in the book The Night Watch by Sarah Waters.
The song "Cold Light" by Schaft features the lines, "Here comes a candle to light you to bed. Here comes a chopper to chop off your head."
The song "Clash City Rockers" by the Clash feature a parody on the rhyme with a verse altered to reflect the music scene of that time.

"You owe me a move say the bells of st. groove Come on and show me say the bells of old bowie When I am fitter say the bells of gary glitter No one but you and I say the bells of prince far-i"