But back to the drunken sailor. Bookstart's excuse that the reason it's now 'what shall we do with the grumpy pirate?' (I kid you not) was so that it fitted with pirate-themed reading events is SO pat and SO well practiced and SO disingenuous that it's probably true. It was just a very stupid thing to do. Like Baa Baa [insert culturally-appropriate fully-inclusive ovine-related colour choice here]
The question isn't "can you remember any nursery rhymes?", it's "what did Little Miss Muffet sit on?" or "how many blind mice were there?". To gauge what people know in their soul you listen to what they sing when they're drunk, not what they recite at speech day.
I admit, I have a soft spot for the drunken sailor and the perennial problem of what to do with him. When Eldest was being induced (badly) and I was on the Gas-And-Air after 36 hours without sleep or food, I apparently sang all the verses I knew, then treated my husband and the midwife to a disquisition on the importance of the song as a social barometer. I rest my case.
Anyway, if you're running a pirate-themed event and do not wish to mention intoxication to the children, what's wrong with this ?http://lair2000.net/Mermaid_Lyrics4/lyrics/You_Are_A_Pirate.html