Tongue-twisting Cheshire dialect
Is yer yed all of a missock, or are yer a lommeryed?

Old Cheshire dialect is nothing short of fascinating and to the uninitiated it must be as decipherable as Chinese, or Double Dutch ! Here are just a few examples of words and phrases which me might still hear amongst Cheshire diehards:

For instance, how about “Heef a pond o’summat as blurted o’er a greet” ? This means, simply, half-a-pound (or whatever that is in metric!) of fresh meat. And then there is ”bullyed” for tadpole, “cur” for a sharp watchdog, “essole hooning” for sitting by the fireside, “batters” for the railway embankments, etc etc.

A favourite is some parts is “lommeryed” which refers to someone who looks a wee bit simple, or “borsun”, for someone with a full, fat face.

Or when you’re confused or being pressured, the response is either “mithered”, or “me yed’s all of a missock”.

There’s the story of the old Cheshire woman who, years ago, was being pushed into having electricity installed in her cottage, like the rest of the village. She preferred the old oil table-lamp and steadfastly refused to budge, until one day a religious gentleman called, about the “New Light”.

The old woman thought he was something to do with electricity and when he asked her to consider the “New Light”, she quickly put him in his place: “Hee mon, how dun yer expect an owd wooman fer lommer up ter ceiling every neet fer put th’damned thing ite?”

An dun yer know thee've fund a wale in Winsfert Flashes?
Ah, a bicoicle wale!!!


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