It has been set to numerous other tunes, most commonly "Martyrdom", written by Hugh Wilson in 1800 but with an arrangement by Ralph E. Hudson from around 1885, and "Shackelford" by Frederick Henry Cheeswright from 1889. Robert Jackson, parish organist at All Saints‘ Church, Oldham, Lancashire, wrote a tune to "While shepherds watched their flocks by night" in 1903 for the Westwood Moravian Church there. Called "Jackson's Tune," it remains popular in Oldham. A note in "The English Hymnal" mentions "University" and "Crowle" as tunes to which is occasionally sung. In Cornwall, the carol is popularly sung to "Lyngham", a tune usually associated with "O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing". Another tune traditionally used for it in Cornwall is "Northrop". In the towns of villages in the Pennines of West Yorkshire such as Todmorden, "Shaw Lane" is used. "Sweet Chiming Bells" is an alternative folk version, commonly sung in South Yorkshire and Derbyshire, which uses the verses of the hymn but adds a new refrain.