Black Country Dialect (1970s) | a traditional joke and a poem

The Black Country is an area of the English West Midlands. It is known for its role in the industrial revolution, and supposedly got its name after Queen Victoria commented on the black soot that filled the air as she passed through on a train.

This video shows a fairly conservative Black Country dialect. The Black Country Dialect was largely rhotic at the beginning of the twentieth century, but this speaker uses a non-rhotic variety.

The speaker is the entertainer and poet Harry Harrison (1922-2007).

At 0:40, he says "How do, our kid?". The dialect phrase "How do?" (found parts of the Midlands and the North of England), became "howdy" in the United States.





0:00 Traditional Enoch and Eli joke https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aynuk_a...

Wim¹ in Gornal, Wim dahn eer in Gornal Football Club, Albert Sargent² all the footballers. Gonna tell you a quick Enoch and Eli joke. Pin your lugholes back³.
Enoch is in the boozer one Sunday dinnertime with Eli. He's there. Enoch says "I do feel bad". An Eli says "ya look it" and drops Jed⁴ to prove it see. Anyroad⁵ they buried him. Three months after, Elis going down the street, he sees this co-op 'oss⁶. He's there delivering coal. He guzz⁷ by this 'oss, th' 'oss says "how do, our kid?"
Eli looked at him, he says "you sound just like our Enoch". He says "well I've been Enoch" he says "you ay come back as 'oss"?" He says "arr"⁷. He says "hown⁸ you like it?" He says "ay⁹ so bad" he says "the gaffer ay so bad" he says. "He ay too bad".
Then the 'oss started to wink his eye ya know. He says "ay up¹⁰ mate" he says "coming down th' entry¹¹." He says "walk down the street hundred yards or so, I'll talk to you in a minute" he says "if he sees me talking to yow" he says "he'll have me shouting bloody coal in the morning!"¹²

¹ Wim/Weem - BC folk tend to say "am" instead of "are" , so this is basically an even shortened version of "we am in Gornal"
²Albert Sargent was a well known local author with the Black Country Bugle and Black Country Society magazine. Active in organising the old carnivals at Gornal Football club.
³shut up and listen
⁴Jed = dead
⁵ Anyroad = anyway
⁶co-op used to have horse drawn carts delivering bags of coal down the streets
⁷arr = yes
⁸Hown - how do
⁹ay = ain't
¹⁰ay up- usually stated to mean "have a look at this/here we go
¹¹entry - alleyway (see number 10 - ay up, the gaffer is coming down the entry)
¹²the horse's job is to pull the coal cart, the gaffer's job is to shout coal to let people in the houses know the coal cart is here. If the gaffer finds out the horse can talk, he'll save himself the hassle of shouting coal himself and make the horse do it!




1:20 Original poem

Off Dudley Castle's a bostin' view
And yow can see where we live for a mile or two
And the Black Country, it's like everywhere else, it's a changing scene
And all of the modern stuff, I bay ["not"] keen, mind you.

The new Tipton Gas Works, they fascinate me
Like the big lit-up flats, them a sight to see
But it th' old-fashioned places what I like the best
For me, that's where there's interest.

The Black Country, it's world famous for jobs what it's done
Th' iron and the steelworks gone everywhere under the sun
But in the factories and the foundries and the shaps (shops) and all sorts don't fret
The folks am some of the best as you've met
And we've got we own sense of humour
So don't let 'em think we dow (don't) loff (laugh), 'cause it's only a rumour

But midst th' hammering and the banging, th' heat and the sweat
They work hard and they play hard, don't you forget
It's where I live, it's the place of my birth
As for me, God bless you ladies and gentlemen, yow've been the salt of th' earth.