Quite who wrote the nursery rhyme 'Jack Spratt' or how it originated is unclear but it is thought to date back to the 17th century.
Could the original Jack Spratt be Charles I who was left 'lean' by parliament stopped his taxation plans? Or perhaps the much disliked King John? We will never know...
'Jack Sprat' lyrics
Jack Sprat could eat no fat, His wife could eat no lean. And so between them both, you see, They licked the platter clean.
More famous nursery rhymr lyrics
Main image © Frederick Richardson, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons