On the Ning Nang Nong

"On the Ning Nang Nong" is a poem written by the comedian Spike Milligan. The poem was featured in the book named Silly Verse For Kids which was written in 1968. In 1998 the poem came first in the BBC's poll of top comic poems. It is also remembered for a song sequence on the Australian version of Play School, featured on the albums There's A Bear In There and Play School Favourites, and on the 'B' side of Milligan's own "Badjelly the Witch".

Poem

The 17-line poem opens with:

On the Ning Nang Nong

Where the cows go Bong!

Several subsequent lines also use the phrase "Nong Nang Ning" or "Nong Ning Nang" (but never "Ning Nong Nang", "Nang Ning Nong" or "Nang Nong Ning"). The poem ends with a crescendo-like "Ning Nang Ning Nang Nong!"

Various animals, plants and created objects "say" or, more often, "go" various sounds (capitalization in the original): monkeys say "Boo", trees go "Ping", tea pots "Jibber Jabber Joo", mice go "Clang", cows go "Bong". Some do this more than once in the poem.

The poem's rhyme scheme is AABCCBDDBAACCDDAA.

References

• BBC News (1998-10-10). "Top poetry is complete nonsense". The BBC. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/190291.stm. Retrieved 2007-01-23.