At a time when King Henry VIII was confiscating church property, one monk appeased the king with the gift of a special Christmas pie.
Inside the crust were deeds to twelve manor houses secretly offered in exchange for his monastery.
The steward who carried the pie to London was Jack Horner, who along the way extracted a plum deed for himself.
It was for Mells Manor, where Homer’s descendants still live to this day.
The modern lyrics for Little Jack Horner are:
Little Jack Horner
Sat in the corner,
Eating a Christmas pie;
He put in his thumb,
And pulled out a plum,
And said What a good boy am I!
The character of Jack Horner appears in the Fables comic book by Bill Willingham.
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