{"id":23047,"date":"2024-01-02T11:25:45","date_gmt":"2024-01-02T11:25:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/folksongandmusichall.com\/?page_id=23047"},"modified":"2024-01-02T11:25:47","modified_gmt":"2024-01-02T11:25:47","slug":"billy-muggins","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/folksongandmusichall.com\/index.php\/billy-muggins\/","title":{"rendered":"Billy Muggins"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
AKA<\/strong><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
First Published<\/td>1906<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Writer\/composer<\/td>Charles Ridgewell<\/td>Roud<\/strong><\/td>RN23307<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

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Music Hall Performers<\/strong><\/td>Charles R Whittle<\/td><\/tr>
Folk performances<\/strong><\/td>Collected from the singing of:<\/strong>
Smith, Bill ; England : Shropshire ; 1979
Jones, Frank ; England : West Midlands ; 1984
Modern performances<\/strong>
Chas N Dave<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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BILLY MUGGINS<\/strong>\nWritten and composed by Charles Ridgwell - 1906\nPerformed by Charles R. Whittle (1874-1947)\n \nMy name is Billy Muggins, but for that I'm not to blame\nSome people say that I am just as silly as my name\nI'm working at a factory, my work mates never mix with me\nEach night they all go in the pub, while I go home and have some grub.\n\nI'm Billy Muggins - commonly known as a Juggins\nSilly Billy, that's what my friends call me\nI'm quite content with my own little lot\nI mean to stick to the money I've got\nI'm Muggins the Juggins, and Muggins I'll always be...<\/em>\n\nI had an invitation from some friends the other day\nThey'd got a big card party on, so I went there to play\nWhen I arrived 'twas plain to see, a fool, they thought, they'd got in me\nBut when I'd finished playing there, I'd won ten pounds I do declare.\n\nI'm Billy Muggins - commonly known as a Juggins\nSilly Billy, that's what my friends call me\nWhen I had got their ten sov'reigns all right\nWhy did I get up and bid them good night?\nI'm Muggins the Juggins, and Muggins I'll always be...<\/em>\n\nMy brother lost a breach of promise case, and had to pay\nThe nice love-letters he wrote to the girl gave him away\nI courted once that self-same Miss, she might have breach of promised this\nAlthough I said she should be mine, to her I never wrote a line.\n\nI'm Billy Muggins - commonly known as a Juggins\nSilly Billy, that's what my friends call me\nWhen she said love-letters gave her delight\nWhy did I tell her I could not write?\nI'm Muggins the Juggins, and Muggins I'll always be...<\/em>\n\nI never stay out late at night, I never want to roam\nMy landlady is good to me, so Muggins stops at home\nMy landlord thinks it only right for him to stop out late at night\nWhy does he leave a chap like me to keep his missus company?\n\nI'm Billy Muggins - commonly known as a Juggins\nSilly Billy, that's what my friends call me\nWhy does my landlady call me a 'dear'\nTreat me to 'smokes' and to bottles of beer?\nI'm Muggins the Juggins, and Muggins I'll always be.<\/em>\n \n<\/pre>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
A song written and composed by \u00a0Charles Ridgwell,  performed on the Music Hall stage by\u00a0Charles R Whittle<\/a>. The surname “Muggins” has been in use in comic settings since the late 18th century to indicate a foolish person, early examples include Matt Muggins the Excise Man in  the play Tony Lumpkin in Town<\/em> (1774) and Miss Margery Muggins in the song of the same name in The Agreeable Songster <\/em>(1794).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The song was popular with troops in the First World War and was widely sung by Australian, Canadian and British servicemen. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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An early 20th century recording:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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