Back in the olden days, when we used to listen to the radio non-stop as children, there were particular programmes for us, Children’s Hour, for example and Listen With Mother. But there were other things we heard which had an almost magical quality to them. One was the football results, the teams seemed to have such exotic names; Queen’s Park Rangers offered an image of cowboys galloping round the queen’s park, herding deer or whatever creatures the queen had.
However the most magical and mysterious of all was the shipping forecast; not only were there extraordinary names, but the forecast sounded dangerous and exciting, all the north-by-north-wests, and southerlies and warnings of gales. The names… I’m sure there are millions of people who can recite them, ‘Viking, Cromarty, Fair Isle’ for example, Dogger, Fisher, German Bite’ – German bite? Good heavens! What was that? It sounds dangerous! Trafalgar… that was where there was a sea battle, brave Nelson died! Biscay… I’d read so many adventure books with people crossing the dreadful Bay of Biscay! Viking… the Vikings, we know all about them and their fierce, brave ways! Portland – grandpa had a pub called The Portland! ‘Sole, Fastnet, Shannon, Rockall’ … strange and mysterious names conjuring lighthouses and hidden rocks, and sandbanks and terrible tides.
Some of the names have changed, Finisterre (end of the earth) is now FitzRoy, and there are new names, I’m sure there didn’t used to be north and south Utsire, however reading them or hearing them evokes wonderful images of wild adventure on the high seas, and a glimpse into my world as a little child, crouched by the radio listening to the wonderful incantation.
- Viking
- North Utsire
- South Utsire
- Forties
- Cromarty
- Forth
- Tyne
- Dogger
- Fisher
- German Bight
- Humber
- Thames
- Dover
- Wight
- Portland
- Plymouth
- Biscay
- Trafalgar
- FitzRoy (formerly Finisterre)
- Sole
- Lundy
- Fastnet
- Irish Sea
- Shannon
- Rockall
- Malin
- Hebrides
- Bailey
- Fair Isle
- Faeroes
- Southeast Iceland
Lois Elsden 
Have you read Attention All Shipping? Great travel through all these names. I can’t remember the author at the moment but I’ll find it. Fitzroy, invented the shipping forecast I think. and Bight, a loop of rope, naval knot term. And yes, I listen, fascinated still, even though I know what he’s talking about now. And finaly Seamus Heaney, one of my favourites,
http://www.photoverulam.co.uk/Guide/Poetry/heaney.htm
Jim
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Thank you JIm, for sharing Seamus – I had completely forgotten his poem, so it was lovely to have it brought back! Thanks also – bight, not bite, I knew that really!
I haven’t read ‘The Shipping News’ – it was by Annie Proulx and it is one of those I’ve always meant to read – so thanks for the reminder of that too!
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