Shanty clmbs charts

Auckland: A sea shanty called Wellerman is rising up the UK record charts about 190 years after the Weller family settled in Dunedin.

The Longest Johns' rendition of Wellerman has made it into the official UK top 40 charts.

Before that, it was a viral sensation on TikTok, sung by Scottish postie Nathan Evans, who now has a record deal.

The song immortalises whaling family the Wellers, who settled in Dunedin in 1831.

The song describes the hardships of life on a whaling ship and includes the refrain ``soon may the Wellerman come with sugar and tea and rum''. — RNZ