I Live in Trafalgar Square

"I Live in Trafalgar Square" is popular British music hall song of the early 20th century, written by C. W. Murphy.

History and description The song was written by C. W. Murphy, published in 1902 and originally sung by Morny Cash. It has since been performed and recorded by a number of other singers, including notably Stanley Holloway in the late 1950s. The song features in Robert Tressell's 1914 semi-autobiographical novel The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists.

The song is from the perspective of a vagrant who stays in Trafalgar Square, lauding the square as a grand place to live; the singer describes his sleeping arrangements with a comedic "inverted snobbery". Its references to poverty and vagrancy were a common theme of music hall songs of the period aimed at working class audiences, which often made humour of the hardships faced by people of working class.

See also

Don't Dilly Dally on the Way Burlington Bertie

References