John Judge (3 December 1872 – 25 July 1938) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

songwriter and music-hall entertainer best remembered for writing the song " It's a Long Way to Tipperary". Judge originally wrote and sang the song in 1912, but the far more widely known John McCormack acquired greater name recognition with the song.

Life

Judge was born in

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

, England on 3 December 1872. Judge's parents were Irish, from

County Mayo County Mayo (; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, it is named after the village of Mayo, County Mayo, Mayo, now ge ...

. He was originally a

fishmonger A fishmonger (historically fishwife for female practitioners) is someone who sells raw fish and seafood. Fishmongers can be wholesalers or retailers and are trained at selecting and purchasing, handling, gutting, boning, filleting, displaying, ...

, and took to the stage after winning a talent contest.''The Tipperary Star'', 7 January 1989 At the time his famous song was written, he was performing at "The Grand Theatre",

Stalybridge Stalybridge () is a town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census, it had a population of 26,830. Historic counties of England, Historically divided between Cheshire and Lancashire, it is east o ...

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

. He allegedly wrote the song for a five

shilling The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currency, currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 1 ...

bet on 30 January 1912 and performed it the next night at "The Grand". However, many people, including the Judge family, dispute this and say the song was written in his home town of Oldbury. In 1918 he published Jerusalem through B, Feldman and Co. The legal rights to "It's a Long Way to Tipperary" was purchased by a British music publishing company, Feldman, for £5. Harry Williams (died 1924), a neighbour of Judge, was co-attributed as composer. Later in his life when he became very unwell, the company gave him a weekly pension of £1. John McCormack recorded the song in 1914, which gave it worldwide popularity. Judge had recorded "The Place Where I Was Born" in 1915, when he was aged 42 and already a big star. Written before the outbreak of war, this is one of his few serious songs, and is a sensitive comment about the working man's compassion for others during hard times. In the same year he recorded "Paddy Maloney's Aeroplane" and " Michael O'Leary, V.C.", both about Irishmen contributing to the war effort. As well as songs for the stage, he wrote a number of football songs in support of his beloved

West Bromwich Albion F.C. West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...

He continued recording through the 1920s. Judge was buried at Rood End Cemetery, Oldbury. A bronze statue of Judge has been erected Lord Pendry Square in Stalybridge. The recently opened public library in his home town of Oldbury bears his name.

References

https://www.facebook.com/mayopeacepark/posts/jack-judges-parents-john-and-mary-judge-left-carrowbeg-county-mayo-ireland-to-se/10155849116766827/

External links

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Oldbury and West Bromwich
* People from Oldbury, West Midlands British male songwriters British people of Irish descent 1872 births 1938 deaths {{UK-composer-stub