Singing Sewermen 'release debut single'
A reworked version of the centuries-old Christmas carol 'God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen' was released online today by London's Singing Sewermen.
In a first for the UK water industry, a choir of "flushers", who keep London's sewers moving by digging out multi-tonne build-ups of congealed fat, issued their sensational debut song, 'This Christmas Think of Sewermen', to the tune of the classic English carol.
The carol, part of Thames Water's 'Bin it - don't block it' campaign to combat sewer abuse, is a seasonal plea to customers to avoid washing grease from turkey dinners down drains because it cools in the sewers, sets hard and causes horrible blockages.
The song is released as the flushers tackle the estimated 500 tonnes* of fat - the equivalent of almost 1.8m standard blocks of lard** - that go down 13.6 million Thames Water customers' drains each December.
The rough-and-ready musical masterpiece, recorded on a hand-held camera in Thames Water's Victorian sewers under East London, can be viewed by clicking the link below.
Watch the Singing Sewermen video
Singing Sewerman Rob Smith, Thames's chief flusher, said:
"Britain's pop artists need not worry: we haven't officially released our song into the music charts - yet. It's just a bit of fun with a serious seasonal message, Bin it - don't block it, which we've posted online. If it does snowball into something bigger then clearly, Simon Cowell, we're open to offers!
"We spend about £12m a year clearing around 55,000 blockages in our sewers. But half of these could be avoided altogether if people cut out sewer abuse. Christmas is our busiest time of year, when around 25 per cent more fat, oil and grease is poured down drains as people tuck into their turkey dinners.
"People forget that sewers are only meant to take away water, toilet tissue and poo. Anything else, especially turkey fat, is a big 'no no' because it blocks our drains and in some cases results in sewage flooding into people's homes - about 1,000 a year - which is just horrible."
Rob suggests the following methods of disposing of fat, oil and grease:
- Cooking fat should be poured into a container and, once cooled, put in the bin.
- Beef or lamb fat can be mixed with seeds or food scraps to make nutritious bird feed.
- And, of course, meat fat also goes well in gravy.
This Christmas Think of Sewermen, the Singing Sewermen's 2009 Christmas song (sung to the tune of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen) can be viewed by clicking the link below.
Watch the Singing Sewermen video
Carol lyrics
Here are the words so you can sing along with Thames Water's choir of flushers:
(verse 1)
This Christmas think of sewermen
Who tremble in dismay
When grease from goose and fatted fowl
Is idly poured away
It clogs the drains of London
And it must be scraped away.
(chorus)
Put your fat in the rubbish in a bin
Throw it all in
Put your fat in the rubbish in a bin
(verse 2)
So when you've had your Christmas meal
Of turkey, wine and pud
Remember our poor sewermen
And treat them as you should.
Don't pour your hot fat down the drain
'cause it will do no good.
(repeat chorus)
* An estimated 500 tonnes of fat goes down Thames Water customers' drains during December - said by the Consumer Council for Water to be 25 per cent more than during other months of the year.
** Lard as bought in a supermarket, in wrapped blocks weighing about 225g (similar to butter).
