Hi all - great replies. I have some catching up to do! I've toyed with the idea of singing 'Witch of the Westmorland' by Archie Fisher, but the faux Arthurian themes stick in my throat a bit. I'm also wary of singing hunting songs to folk aficionados, for fear of dying an ironic death at the hands of outraged vegetarians. ;)

I'll read Sue's doctoral thesis - or I might just skip to the conclusion, which is a sneaky time-saving trick I learned as a student. I like the idea of a song centred on Morecambe Bay - I suppose what I'm looking for is something to make my own, so I might have to resort to writing it myself. Oh no - work!

Paul and Linda Adams sound interesting. I think a lot of Border Ballads might have Cumbrian roots - in fact, I feel strangely drawn to them. I have a few Armstrongs in my family tree, so I might try singing 'Johnnie Armstrong'.

Cheers - John