Uploaded July 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Original Words & Music by Phil Hogg
When Hidalgo founded you, it was 1908
Business was expanding, you had the world on a plate
A diamond in the office, saving precious time
You helped us to communicate, a friend in word and rhyme
Imperial machines in every corner of the world
Like the Empire you were named after with its flag unfurled
A family’s prized possession, a household name
But what were the stories behind the fame?
Imperial
Imperial
From Leicester to the World
Imperial
By the late nineteen sixties, the world had changed
With a new big-corp owner and economies to be made
You began to turn the tables and look far and wide
For a source of cheap labour to keep the profits high
So you scouted through the countries where the Empire used to ride
Living up to your name, exploitation in your mind
When it came to fair conditions and a decent living wage
You were found wanting, the same story once again
Imperial, Imperial
Imperial, Imperial
Double-standards and mistreatment, impossible demands
To make the output rise and rise again, more than anyone could stand
And when the moment came, they couldn’t take it any more
The union sided with you and abandoned those who called out Imperial
12 weeks the workers stayed out, sacrificed their pay
Supported by their community, love will find a way
With women at the forefront, standing tall and proud
They showed the way to others and said something out loud like
Imperial
Hey, Imperial
We’re not inferior
You’re not superior
Imperial
No more Imperial
We’re not your slaves anymore
Imperial
And even though, in the end, you might ask what was achieved
Something had changed, something was believed
Like knowing who your friends are, and how power behaves
Self-determination, and a parting of the waves
Imperial, no more Imperial
Imperial, no more Imperial
And now 50 years later, I’m visiting my home
Looking though a cupboard, something sits there on its own
Open the container, like remembering a dream
With its keys and bells and ribbons, a magical machine
Imperial
Yes, it’s an Imperial
Imperial
Imperial
Imperial
It’s an Imperial
From Leicester to the World
Original Words & Music by Phil Hogg
When Hidalgo founded you, it was 1908
Business was expanding, you had the world on a plate
A diamond in the office, saving precious time
You helped us to communicate, a friend in word and rhyme
Imperial machines in every corner of the world
Like the Empire you were named after with its flag unfurled
A family’s prized possession, a household name
But what were the stories behind the fame?
Imperial
Imperial
From Leicester to the World
Imperial
By the late nineteen sixties, the world had changed
With a new big-corp owner and economies to be made
You began to turn the tables and look far and wide
For a source of cheap labour to keep the profits high
So you scouted through the countries where the Empire used to ride
Living up to your name, exploitation in your mind
When it came to fair conditions and a decent living wage
You were found wanting, the same story once again
Imperial, Imperial
Imperial, Imperial
Double-standards and mistreatment, impossible demands
To make the output rise and rise again, more than anyone could stand
And when the moment came, they couldn’t take it any more
The union sided with you and abandoned those who called out Imperial
12 weeks the workers stayed out, sacrificed their pay
Supported by their community, love will find a way
With women at the forefront, standing tall and proud
They showed the way to others and said something out loud like
Imperial
Hey, Imperial
We’re not inferior
You’re not superior
Imperial
No more Imperial
We’re not your slaves anymore
Imperial
And even though, in the end, you might ask what was achieved
Something had changed, something was believed
Like knowing who your friends are, and how power behaves
Self-determination, and a parting of the waves
Imperial, no more Imperial
Imperial, no more Imperial
And now 50 years later, I’m visiting my home
Looking though a cupboard, something sits there on its own
Open the container, like remembering a dream
With its keys and bells and ribbons, a magical machine
Imperial
Yes, it’s an Imperial
Imperial
Imperial
Imperial
It’s an Imperial
From Leicester to the World
