HARD CHEESE OF OLD ENGLAND
(A Traditional English Food Song Pre-dating Lymeswold -Les Barker)

There's Cheddar and Cheshire and Lancashire too,
Leicester's bright orange and Stilton is blue.
It waxes so lyrical what can you do –

Oh the hard cheese of Old England,
In Old England very hard cheese.


Derby's got green bits because of the sage,
And when it gets older it's kept in its cage.
And what does it hum when it reaches this age –

Chorus

The double Gloucester is twicest as nice,
They say double Gloucester there I've said it twice.
It's nice in potatoes but nicest in mice,

Chorus

Those damn foreigners aren't worth a mention,
Old Gorgonzola's renowned for its stenchen.
His brother Emil wrote novels in French en –

Chorus

There's Swaledale and Wendslydale, Rutland to add,
Shropshire and Cornish you may not have had.
It's not bad on salads this ballad's not sad –

Chorus

My young love said to me my mother won't mind,
And my father once liked you for your lack of rind.
No cheese greater love for his food than mankind.

Chorus
11/