to be a bit shocked..

[OohBridget]

At this -1 minute 50 in.

The duck threw him down the stairs for not saying his prayers?!

..I thought dd was watching wheels on the bus!

Rock-a-bye-Baby used to freak me a little bit too.

Oranges and Lemons is about being taken to Tyburn and having your head cut off for stealing. So 'Here comes the chopper to chop off your head' literally wants your head, not your maiden head.

Old fairy tales are just as Grimm grim as the nursery rhymes but have sadly been sanitised terribly in recent years (looking at you Disney). Heaven forbid children grow up understanding bad and sad things truly happen!

There are many explanations for Oranges and Lemons, not specifically hanging. The three lines about candles to light you to bed etc weren't actually part of the original rhyme.

news.bbc.co.uk/dna/place-lancashire/plain/A696125

Op there is a book called "Heavy words lightly thrown" that tries to explain a lot of nursery rhymes.

IIRC Baa baa black sheep was about taxation.

I also thought that "Goosey Goosey Gander" was to do with the seeking out of Catholics, & that the old man not saying his prayers was a Catholic priest.

It was to do with Catholics.
here for dark origins of nursery rhymes.

Well..this is an eye opener. We'll stick with old mac'donald I think.

I love the fact they all go back into history, like a lot of our everyday sayings that we never give a thought to.

I used to love a rhyme about a little (boy? girl?) who sucked his thumb, and had it cut off!

germanstories.vcu.edu/struwwel/daumen_e.html

found it! I was fascinated by it. Even as a thumb sucker. Hmmm, must show it to DD...