It is known for its appearance in the 1985 version of the musical Me and My Girl,[1] and was originally recorded in 1932 by two popular UK dance bands – Ambrose and his Orchestra, with vocals by Sam Browne, and by the Henry Hall BBC Dance Orchestra with vocals by Val Rosing.
In the Jonathan King version, released in 1971 under the artist name "Nemo", the line was changed to "He's been tanning Negroes".
[5] Modern performances of the song have instead included lines such as "He's been roasting peanuts" (written by Stephen Fry for his 1984 revival of Me and My Girl).
[6] When Calendar, an ITV1 news programme, broadcast a version of the song with the word in May 2012, a complaint was made to Ofcom.
[7] In May 2014, a listener complained after BBC Radio Devon presenter David Lowe played the Ambrose version of the song with the controversial word during his show on 27 April.