I come from Chorley, a place of renown
For very little, it’s a sleepy old town
It has a street market and a couple of gas tanks
And quite a few pubs and one or two banks
Now I’ve searched ev’rywhere both here and around
In back-streets and parkland, even underground
It’s named from a river that no-one has found
Where is the river in old Chorley town?
It’s quite a conundrum when you’re in Astley Park
There’s fields and there’s trees but of water no mark
I’ve gone up the hills and I’ve come down the valleys
Marched up the high roads and crept down the alleys
I’ve stopped and asked questions till I have to be muzzled
But even when silent I’m still really puzzled
I’ve sat there in silence with my throat really sore
From asking in Chorley where is the River Chor?
They tell the town’s name comes from where it stands
In meadows by a stream with its own river strands
Now I’ve wandered and searched and I’ve given my best
To find the answer to my humble quest
Even in Székesfehérvár, our Hungarian twin town
Till repeating myself is just getting me down
So will someone please tell me, I’m getting a bore
Where the flippin’ ‘eck in Chorley is the flippin’ River Chor?
The place had some factories but they’ve all closed down
Replaced by brick boxes of a dormitory town
(If you want somewhere to burn, loot and pillage
You couldn’t do much better than that damn Buckshaw Village!)
And in the far past there were pits underground
But never will you hear a brook’s babbling sound
Can someone please tell me as the point’s pressing sorely
Where’s there a river flowing through township Chorley?
Now I’m getting weary and I want me some peace
But it seems that my query, it never will cease
I think of the Amazon, the Thames and the Nile
But mention the Chor and I just wryly smile
I’ve searched and I’ve searched till my time’s nearly done
But if I go to heaven I’ll ask the Great One
As I am going through St Peter’s great door
Where in God’s name in Chorley is God’s River Chor?
For very little, it’s a sleepy old town
It has a street market and a couple of gas tanks
And quite a few pubs and one or two banks
Now I’ve searched ev’rywhere both here and around
In back-streets and parkland, even underground
It’s named from a river that no-one has found
Where is the river in old Chorley town?
It’s quite a conundrum when you’re in Astley Park
There’s fields and there’s trees but of water no mark
I’ve gone up the hills and I’ve come down the valleys
Marched up the high roads and crept down the alleys
I’ve stopped and asked questions till I have to be muzzled
But even when silent I’m still really puzzled
I’ve sat there in silence with my throat really sore
From asking in Chorley where is the River Chor?
They tell the town’s name comes from where it stands
In meadows by a stream with its own river strands
Now I’ve wandered and searched and I’ve given my best
To find the answer to my humble quest
Even in Székesfehérvár, our Hungarian twin town
Till repeating myself is just getting me down
So will someone please tell me, I’m getting a bore
Where the flippin’ ‘eck in Chorley is the flippin’ River Chor?
The place had some factories but they’ve all closed down
Replaced by brick boxes of a dormitory town
(If you want somewhere to burn, loot and pillage
You couldn’t do much better than that damn Buckshaw Village!)
And in the far past there were pits underground
But never will you hear a brook’s babbling sound
Can someone please tell me as the point’s pressing sorely
Where’s there a river flowing through township Chorley?
Now I’m getting weary and I want me some peace
But it seems that my query, it never will cease
I think of the Amazon, the Thames and the Nile
But mention the Chor and I just wryly smile
I’ve searched and I’ve searched till my time’s nearly done
But if I go to heaven I’ll ask the Great One
As I am going through St Peter’s great door
Where in God’s name in Chorley is God’s River Chor?
The Bridge On The River Chor
6 comments:
Oi! I live on Buckshaw Village!
I saw a kingfisher on the River Chor once. Haven't seen it there since though... maybe it's also finding it difficult to relocate the Chor!
To bii.
I really am very sorry. Honestly.
The River Chor is a largely culverted stream in the Lancashire town of Chorley. Its name was back-formed from "Chorley".
The source of the river is in the hills near Heapey.
Subsequently, the young stream flows through Chorley North Industrial Estate, past B&Q and then underground to Astley Park.
The river exits at the Southport Road end of the park, flowing behind Chorley Nissan and through Big Wood at the foot of Stansted Road, before connecting into Gillibrand Reservoir.
At the end of the reservoir, the river continues for several hundred metres and flows into the River Yarrow.
Gosh, I never knew all that! I've been past the reservoir and along the Yarrow many times. So it's nice to know.
I was being slightly ironic, though, probably in the Socratic sense.
And I genuinely apologise for my comments about Buckshaw village.
Hi Nicky - no worries, I took it as a good natured dig which I returned with tongue in cheek indignation. No offense caused, or meant for that matter.
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