SecretLeeds - History, culture and architecture in Leeds

There are a couple of references on the ice cream thread to tingalary men but what I'm after is a song.The term [not sure of the correct spelling but I'll stick to this] tingalary appears to be unique to West Yorkshire and refers to hurdy gurdy men who played their instruments in the streets for coppers. My grandparents used to sing a song at our family Christmas gatherings but all I can remember of it is the chorus:'Tingalary, tingalary, tingalary man.Tingalary, tingalary, tingalary man.'Can't find any reference to such a song on t'internet but perhaps that's not surprising if it was West Riding-centred. Umm, bit baffled. Anyone?

Wonder if Donovan got his inspiration for'Hurdy-Gurdy Man' from the Tingleary man????

[quotenick="Geordie-exile"]There are a couple of references on the ice cream thread to tingalary men but what I'm after is a song.'Tingalary, tingalary, tingalary man.Tingalary, tingalary, tingalary man.'Same song was sung in my family by my grandparents' generation, usually as a refrain in between two or more teams trying to remember and sing as many nursery rhymes as possible. The refrain gave a bit of thinking time - first team not to continue straightaway with a new nursery rhyme lost the game.The refrain was:-"Oh! I'm a tingalary man,Bound for the Isle O'Man,Tingalary, tingalary. tingalary man."I'll ask my sister if she can remember any more about it, but she's out of e-mail range on holiday at the moment.

Ooh! Thanks.    

Sorry, Geordie-Exile, if this is not exactly "on topic" with what you were after but, here goes...My maternal grandparents had managed to borrow a Tingelary from its owner for the Whitsun Bank Holiday. The condition attached to this was that they didn't use the contraption in Leeds.In an attempt to comply with this, they pushed the bloody thing from Holbeck to Rothwell, all the way up John 'O Gaunts hill.Only to discover that by the time they got to Rothwell, somebody, and it was never discovered who, had left the handle back in Holbeck!

It's all grist to the mill!

liits wrote: Sorry, Geordie-Exile, if this is not exactly "on topic" with what you were after but, here goes...My maternal grandparents had managed to borrow a Tingelary from its owner for the Whitsun Bank Holiday. The condition attached to this was that they didn't use the contraption in Leeds.In an attempt to comply with this, they pushed the bloody thing from Holbeck to Rothwell, all the way up John 'O Gaunts hill.Only to discover that by the time they got to Rothwell, somebody, and it was never discovered who, had left the handle back in Holbeck! They wouldn't have been able to play(Wait for it!)---HANDEL'S LARGO,then? lol (or not!)

They wouldn't have been able to play(Wait for it!)---HANDEL'S LARGO,then? lol (or not!) More like "Silent Worship", perhaps

Well - it occurred to me [how obvious?] to ask me dad about this and I've found out Christmas chez Geordie Exile went something like this:Have you seen our Mary Ann?She's off with the Tingalary Man.Tingalary, tingalary, tingalary manTingalary, tingalary, tingalary man.THENWe each had to play the refrain on an imaginary instrument.

There’s probably no connection, but I remember my old Dad singing us kids a song that had the word ‘Tingalary’ in it, part of which went something like this (I’m sure I haven’t remembered it quite right – too many ‘big fat eyes’ for a start, but if anyone else knows it they might be able to put me right)When I was young and in my prime I ran away to seaI stepped on board a Chinese ship a-bound for the open seaA Chinaman came up to me he had a big fat eyeHe said if you don’t tell me a tale I’ll put you on the fireOh, Aye Tingalary pongo leeCut my hair with a knife and forkHang me on a banana stalkNow the captain’s name was PongoHe had a big fat eyeHe used to chew his whiskers as the clouds rolled byNow the ship is in the pawnshopThe crew in Armley gaolAnd I’m the only survivor to tell the terrible taleIn Armley gaolThere is no ale[After a few beers he would sometimes add the extra line ‘s*** in a pale’ for an extra laugh from us all]