24/02/2026
Lumps of Pudding is a lively hand-coloured etching from 1811 by William Heath, after a design by Henry William Bunbury. Made up of five joined sheets, this spectacular print stretches an impressive 239 cm (93.7 inches) — nearly 2.4 metres (8 feet) long!
The strip design features 18 extravagantly dressed couples dancing with comic energy and varying degrees of grace. Look closely and you’ll spot some wonderfully eccentric headpieces — including a blue dragon, a windmill, and even a sailing ship perched atop towering hairstyles.
“Lumps of Pudding” was also the name of a popular 18th-century country dance tune, typically performed in progressive sets of four. The print captures the spirit of the dance perfectly: mismatched couples whirl vigorously (and sometimes awkwardly) along the line. The women wear simple, high-waisted gowns, while the men’s hairstyles reveal their age — older gentlemen sport powdered hair with neat pigtails, and younger men wear natural, frizzed styles without powder. All are equipped with sensible, flat-heeled dancing shoes.
In progressive dances, the top and bottom couples sit out alternate rounds before rejoining further up or down the set — a welcome chance to catch one’s breath! In the print, the resting dancers are easy to spot: the couple at the far left and the exhausted gentleman at the far right, mopping his brow and clutching his wig. Whether his partner has wandered off or is the fan-wielding lady a few places away, he certainly looks relieved to pause.
If you’ve ever been to a ceilidh, barn dance, or Scottish country dance, you may recognise the scene — the exuberance, the exhaustion, and the joy of it all.
Photos courtesy of Brighton and Hove Museums.
