To believe “wind the bobbin up” is inappropriate and to ask my child’s Nursery not to sing it.

[coconuttella]

Wind the bobbin up originated in the cotton mill towns of the north of England in Victorian times. As anyone who knows a bit about a bit history can tell you, the cotton mills were horrendous places which horrifically exploited women and children, forcing them to do dangerous work in appalling conditions for little pay.

How can it be right to trivialise these horrors by getting children to sing a light-hearted ditty about it... It’s offensive to the memory of all those who suffered these horrendous conditions and experienced serious injury or even death as a result of hideously exploitative working practices.

we banned it in our house - but only 'cos the kids misheard and sang

"poo, poo, crap, crap, crap"

• as will you all inside your heads from now on..... mwahaha...

It's a nursery rhyme. Jesus fucking Christ!!! Get a grup

Clary it's a wind-up. Although the other thread about an outraged mother whose child's teacher said the words 'concentration camp' in class is not a wind-up apparently.

I love the way that nursery rhymes are in fact a sort of history lesson which is being passed down from one generation to the next. So many of our rhymes have their origins in our historical events/people. I used to have a book about this, but loaned it to someone who never returned it. Sadly, I can't recall the author now.

Great thread!!!!

Any posters from abroad happy to contribute their nursery rhyme back stories? They are all very much of their time and place aren't they.

Why are people so intend on trying to censor the unpleasant parts of history? You want to get rid of a nursery rhyme?!? Really??? Its like how people are demanding buildings are renamed if they're linked to anyone throughout history who wasn't entirely moral by today's standards... Its crazy.

I grew up in Manchester and very much consider the song part of my heritage and culture and singing it led us to think about the origins of it and discuss what life was like 100 years earlier.

If you want to ban children from learning about the history of the UK, you can fuck right off.

Its part of our oral and aural history.
Give your head a wobble.

Wheels on the bus .......... tra la

READ THE FUCKING THREAD
sorry, bit overcome by intense irritation there

I'm from the north of England and have spent many days at playgroups with my DC singing wind the bobbin up. Not only are ybu you are being absolutely ridiculous with it. I'm handing you a massive grip

You're about 2.5 months too early to post this one, OP

However - YANBU to suggest banning it because Jesus Christ once it's in your head, it's going nowhere. For hours.

Just read that it was a wind up. So I'm now adding totally unfunny to my list. What a shit wind up

The only reason I could tolerate reading bed time stories at times was I could pick the dark, evil ones about incest and murder. They keep parents interested in a way more modern boring ones don't! Let us keep the history involved in these things.
There is so much of our history in these old songs and rhymes.

Has the grip shop opened up yet?

What a shit wind up

Not really... worked a treat!

This old man came rolling Home - was he drunk or injured?

Interesting thread, even if it is a wind up

Wood hill
Either drunk Irish person or alluding to the Irish person, who lived in a traditional gypsy caravan and it rolled away “home” as they’d been driven away because no one wanted to buy their wears.

It certainly separated the 'i don't need to read to stick the boot in-crowd' from the rest.

That’s rediculus!

It will make the nursery laugh.

For a while baa baa black sheep was not ‘allowed’ as it was considered racist.

Ring a ring a roses is about the plague but it’s a lovely rhyme.

Just realised it was a wind up! Sorry sllloooowww to the party.

Diddle diddle dumpling, my son John
Went to bed with his trousers on;
One shoe off and one shoe on,
Diddle diddle dumpling, my son John.

What could possible be wrong or no- PC about that? or does it perpetuate gender stereotypes?

I object to Polly put the kettle on, why should she? Wifework, ffs

Neither dd nor I had never heard this rhyme until very tiny Gdd started singing it from nursery - we couldn't work out what she was singing about at all. Gdd was a mite frustrated that we didn't know it! But then we're soft southerners.
I had thought I knew all the NRs, having read endlessly from a 365 NRs book to dds, and having been brought up on Listen with Mother! Are you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin...

Luckily nobody in my play groups have suffered flashbacks from cotton mills.
Just snorted into my cup of tea with that!