Genre Folk | ||
Published 1701 (appeared in the Dancing Master) | ||
"Portsmouth" is a traditional English folk dance tune, similar to an (Irish or Scottish) hornpipe melody. It is sometimes referred to as the Portsmouth Hornpipe.
"Portsmouth" appeared in the 11th edition of John Playford's The Dancing Master in 1701. It is also one of the three arrangements on which English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams based his Sea Songs, originally arranged for military band in 1923 as the second movement of his English Folk Song Suite, and subsequently re-arranged for full orchestra in 1942 by the composer.
In the 1950s it was used as the signature tune for BBC television series of Billy Bunter.
In 1976 English musician Mike Oldfield released his arrangement of "Portsmouth". It is Oldfield's highest charting single in the United Kingdom, charting at number 3. This version is frequently used by football club Portsmouth F.C..