The song quotes: "He'd had away 'n' wrap 'is tail 10 times roond Penshaw Hill".

It is a common misconception that the Penshaw Hill mentioned in the song is the hill where a mock Greek temple was erected by one Lord Lambton (19th century?). This monument and its hill used to be known locally as Lambton's Folly.

However, this particular hill has nothing to do with the song.

About a mile north and west of this more famous Penshaw Hill there is another (small) hill that my grandmother called Worm Hill. You can find it if you go from Penshaw village and down to the river Wear. Just over the river (at Fatfield bridge?) you will find Worm Hill. It is said that there is a circular path at its foot where the worm wrapped its tail, and where, to this day, the grass still will not grow. This is the 'Penshaw Hill' of the song.

Brian Childs