"Halfway Down" is a poem by A.A. Milne, included in the 1924 collection ''

When We Were Very Young ''When We Were Very Young'' is a best-selling book of poetry by A. A. Milne. It was first published in 1924, and it was illustrated by E. H. Shepard. Several of the verses were set to music by Harold Fraser-Simson. The book begins with an int ...

''. A "juvenile meditation",

Zena Sutherland Zena Sutherland (1915 – June 12, 2002) was an American reviewer of children's literature. She is best known for her contributions to the '' Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books'' and as the author of the library science textbook ''Child ...

comments in ''Children & Books'' that both the poem and

Ernest Shepard Ernest Howard Shepard OBE MC (10 December 1879 – 24 March 1976) was an English artist and book illustrator. He is known especially for illustrations of the anthropomorphic animal and soft toy characters in '' The Wind in the Willows'' and ''W ...

's illustration "has caught the mood of suspended action that is always overtaking small children on stairs."

Christopher Robin Christopher Robin is a character created by A. A. Milne, based on his son Christopher Robin Milne. The character appears in the author's popular books of poetry and ''Winnie-the-Pooh'' stories, and has subsequently appeared in various Disney ...

, the child in Milne's ''

Winnie the Pooh Winnie-the-Pooh, also called Pooh Bear and Pooh, is a fictional Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic teddy bear created by English author A. A. Milne and English illustrator E. H. Shepard. The first collection of stories about the character w ...

'' stories, is the presumed narrator of the poem.

"Halfway Down the Stairs"

A song was created from the poem by Harold Fraser-Simson, who put many of Milne's poems to music. "Halfway Down the Stairs" was used in the first season of ''

The Muppet Show ''The Muppet Show'' is a sketch comedy television series created by Jim Henson and featuring the Muppets. The series originated as two pilot episodes produced by Henson for ABC in 1974 and 1975. While neither episode was moved forward as a s ...

''. The performance was staged in the middle of a flight of stairs, and became the most significant performance of the season for

Kermit the Frog Kermit the Frog is a Muppet character created and originally performed by Jim Henson. Introduced in 1955, Kermit serves as the everyman protagonist of numerous Muppet productions, most notably ''Sesame Street'' and ''The Muppet Show'', as well ...

's nephew

Robin the Frog The Muppets are an ensemble group of comedic puppet characters originally created by Jim Henson. The Muppets have appeared in multiple television series, films, and other media appearances since the 1950s. The majority of the characters listed ...

. The sequence was reshot for a few different countries' broadcast of the tenth episode, with guest

Harvey Korman Harvey Herschel Korman (February 15, 1927May 29, 2008) was an American actor and comedian who performed in television and film productions. His big break was being a featured performer on CBS' '' The Danny Kaye Show'', but he is best remembered ...

. The song was included on the LP ''

'', later released separately reaching #7 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in 1977. The sequence was refilmed for inclusion in ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most o ...

''. The track was also included on the CD '' The Best of The Muppets'' and the VHS '' Playhouse Video: Children's Songs and Stories''.

Jerry Nelson Jerry L. Nelson (July 10, 1934 – August 23, 2012) was an American puppeteer, best known for his work with The Muppets. Renowned for his wide range of characters and singing abilities, he performed Muppet characters on ''Sesame Street'', ' ...

, who served as Robin the Frog's performer, sang the song at

Jim Henson James Maury Henson (September 24, 1936 – May 16, 1990) was an American puppeteer, animator, cartoonist, actor, inventor, and filmmaker who achieved worldwide notice as the creator of The Muppets and '' Fraggle Rock'' (1983–1987) and ...

's memorial service during a segment where various Muppet performers sang Henson's favorite songs as their characters.

Rowlf the Dog Rowlf the Dog is a Muppet character, a scruffy brown dog of indeterminate breed with a rounded black nose and long floppy ears. He was created and originally performed by Jim Henson. Rowlf is the Muppet Theatre's resident pianist on ''The Muppe ...

sang a cover of this song in his album, '' Ol' Brown Ears is Back''. American singer

Amy Lee Amy Lynn Hartzler (; born December 13, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She is the co-founder, lead vocalist, and lead songwriter of the rock band Evanescence. Alongside her contributions with the band, Lee has also particip ...

of the band

Evanescence Evanescence is an American rock band founded in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1995 by singer and musician Amy Lee and guitarist Ben Moody. After recording independent EPs as a duo in the late 90's, and a demo CD, Evanescence released their debut ...

sang a cover of the song which was included on the 2011 album '' Muppets: The Green Album''. A cover of this song was sung in the Family Guy episode You Can't Handle the Booth!. In the episode,

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

gets stuck in the bannister slats of his staircase and dejectedly sings the song to pass the time.

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References

{{Reflist 1924 poems 1977 singles British poems The Muppets songs Poetry by A. A. Milne Songs based on poems