It doesn't take a genius to work out what inspired the nursery rhyme, 'Do you know the muffin man', which is thought to date back to the early 19th century.
But who was the original muffin man in Drury Lane? Was he a baker who delivered tasty baked goods like muffins, which were popular in Victorian times and a booming trade in Drury Lane? Or perhaps a poor impoverished beggar man, often known as ragamuffin, inspired it?
The rhyme has even made it to Hollywood, featuring in Shrek
The song can also be sung as a round and a counting song. The first person asks the second person if they know the muffin man and when they answer they do they both exclaim 'Then two of us know the muffin man, the muffin man.'
As more people join in the rhyme the number changes from two to three, four, five.... and so on
'Do you know the muffin man' lyrics
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
Main image © Paul Sandby, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons