From Paddington Bear’s beloved marmalade to “pease porridge hot,” there are lots of references to food and eating embedded in songs and stories made popular for children. We’re going to take a slow, curiosity-driven look at some of the food and eating allusions to uncover their origins.
“The Dandy Muffin-Man of Drury Lane”
First found published in 1820, this lyrical call-and-response ballad gives us a small window into how food was vended in London streets two hundred years ago. Unlike our modern grocery stores and super markets, Georgian Londoners bought and sold their foodstuffs in open-air market stalls or from vendors walking the streets, much like our Muffin Man of song.
Do you remember this tune?
Do you know the muffin man,
The muffin man, the muffin man?
Do you know the muffin man,
Who lives on Drury Lane?Yes I know the muffin man,
The muffin man, the muffin man.
Yes I know the muffin man,
Who lives on Drury Lane
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