Poulton Revisited

 

 by Ashley Lister

 I enjoy a challenge as much as the next person. However, writing something about vintage Poulton has proved somewhat problematic.

Initially I started by trying to incorporate the fun of an existing local vintage poem into the theme – but it didn’t quite work:

There’s a famous seaside place called Blackpool

That’s noted for fresh air and fun

But the Ramsbottoms got lost on the way there

And they ended up stuck in Poulton…

So, instead, I researched some of Poulton’s history and scraped together the following lines:

It sits in North West Lancashire

The scenery is quite fine

And for orienteers trying to locate the place

It’s OS grid reference SD3439…

…which was coming across as a little bit like a McGonagall, so I abandoned it.

My issues with Poulton are down to my personal ignorance of local history and geography. It doesn’t help that the only person I ever knew who proudly bragged about her Poulton heritage was someone I didn’t particularly like. However, it was with that thought that I was inspired to come up with the following idea:

In days gone by [err]

Near the River Wyre

Lived a woman whose life was a mess

She was callous and cruel

She came from Skipool

She was Pauline: the Poulton Princess

Today I’m off to the workshop at the library in the hope that inspiration can strike in a more sensible fashion. If not, I believe I might write more on the ballad of Pauline the Poulton Princess.