On Ilkla Moor Baht'at

Sung to the old Methodist hymn tune "Cranbrook" (composed by Canterbury based shoemaker Thomas Clark in 1805 as a setting of "While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By night"), the song tells of a lover courting the object of his affections, Mary Jane, on Ilkley Moor without a hat (baht 'at). The singer chides the lover for his lack of headwear – for in the cold winds of Ilkley Moor this will mean his death from exposure. This will in turn require his burial, the eating of his corpse by worms, the eating of the worms by ducks and finally the eating of the ducks by the singer. A great deal about Yorkshire folk can be determined by close analysis of this song.

According to tradition, the words were composed by members of a Halifax church choir during an outing to Ilkley Moor.

The song makes an appearance in Dorothy Sayers' Lord Peter Wimsey murder mystery Clouds of Witness, which is set partly in Yorkshire.

The song was also the inspiration for the pre-programme ident used by Yorkshire Television from 1968 to 1987, even though it was composed in Kent.

Ilkley Moor has become so popular that the origin of the music as a hymn tune has been almost forgotten. The effect of singing traditional words such as "While Shepherds Watched" to the tune is now too comical for performance in some churches, even though that was the composer's intention. It was also parodied by Bill Oddie, who recorded a version in 1970 using the tune and musical arrangement of Joe Cocker's With a Little Help from My Friends.

The Yorkshire Dictionary (Arnold Kellett, 2002) stated that the song probably originates from the Halifax area, based on the dialect used in the song, which is not common in all areas of Yorkshire.

"On Ilkla Mooar Baht'at" is the common interpretation, but should read: "On Ilkla Mooar Baht'aht", literally "On Ilkley Moor without [wearing] a hat".

This version makes a good deal more sense, especially in the light of the song's origins which were of a ditty to poke fun at a courting couple, as sung by a mischievous local choir. Note also that the above wasn't the first recorded version, merely the best known one.

[edit] Lyrics

1. Where hast tha been sin' I saw thee, I saw thee?
On Ilkley Mooar baht 'at
Where hast tha been sin' I saw thee, I saw thee?
Where hast tha been sin' I saw thee?
On Ilkley Mooar baht 'at
On Ilkley Mooar baht 'at
On Ilkley Mooar baht 'at

2. Tha's been a-courtin' Mary Jane

3. Tha's boun' to catch thy death o` cowd

4. Then we shall ha' to bury thee

5. Then t'worms'll come an` eat thee up

6. Then ducks'll come an` eat up t'worms

7. Then we shall go an` eat up t'ducks

8. Then we shall all ha' etten thee

9. That's wheer we get us oahn back

Some younger singers, especially in the Scouting movement, add the responses "without thy trousers on" after the fourth line of each verse, and "where the ducks play football" after the seventh. The origin of these additions is unknown, but they work just as well with the lyrics of "While Shepherds Watched".

Another variation on additions used in the same way is "where the sheep fly backwards". Also, "Where the ducks fly backwards" is commonly used by Scouts in the Barnsley Pennine and Barnsley Central districts.

Yet another variation on additions used in the same way is "an' they've all got spots". (This variation is commonly used in the Sheffield/South Yorkshire region.)

And another variation is "where the ducks wear trousers."

There are also alternative versions to verse nine which state: "There is a moral to this tale", followed by a chorus using "Don't go without your hat... on ilkey moor baht 'at" (which is sung commonly within South Yorkshire), or "Don't go a courtin' Mary Jane" (another variation known in the Scouting movement).