"Waiting at the Church" is a popular British music hall song written by Fred W. Leigh (words) and Henry E. Pether (music) for Vesta Victoria, and copyrighted in 1906. It is sung by a bride-to-be who has given her

fiancé An engagement or betrothal is the period of time between the declaration of acceptance of a marriage proposal and the marriage itself (which is typically but not always commenced with a wedding). During this period, a couple is said to be ''fi ...

, Obadiah Binks, all her money to buy a ring or a house, only to be left "waiting at the church"; she finds out the truth when Obadiah sends her a note telling her he is already married. It has featured in a number of films since the earliest days of cinema. The silent film '' Waiting at the Church'' featured a performance by Victoria as she acted out the lyrics. Several other silent films were made to accompany recordings of the song. Sound films which use the song include ''

Here Come the Huggetts ''Here Come the Huggetts'' is a 1948 British comedy film, the first of the Huggetts series, about a working class English family. All three films in the series were directed by Ken Annakin and released by Gainsborough Pictures. Jack Warner and ...

'', ''

Millions Like Us ''Millions Like Us'' is a 1943 British propaganda film, showing life in a wartime aircraft factory in documentary detail. It starred Patricia Roc, Gordon Jackson, Anne Crawford, Eric Portman and Megs Jenkins. It was co-written and co-directed ...

'' and '' I Thank You''. Richard Thompson included it on his album '' 1000 Years of Popular Music''. It has also been covered many times, including by Julie Andrews and

Miss Piggy Miss Piggy is one of the Muppet characters known for her breakout role in Jim Henson's ''The Muppet Show''. Since her debut in 1976, Miss Piggy has been notable for her temperamental diva superstar personality, tendency to use French phrases i ...

. The song became famed in British politics when the second half of its refrain was sung by the then Prime Minister James Callaghan at the Annual Congress of the TUC in September 1978, to indicate that there would not be a general election that year. Callaghan misattributed the song to the better-known

Marie Lloyd Matilda Alice Victoria Wood (12 February 1870 – 7 October 1922), professionally known as Marie Lloyd (), was an English music hall singer, comedian and musical theatre actress. She was best known for her performances of songs such as " T ...

, an error which has in consequence become common.

References

{{Reflist Music hall songs British songs 1906 songs James Callaghan 1978 in British politics The Muppets songs Richard Thompson (musician) songs Songs with lyrics by Fred W. Leigh