Strange Places To Live - Part Three - Australia

I’m on a roll now. Not content with laughing at mad place names in Britain and America, I can now reveal to you that those lovely Pommie-bashing Aussies from down under (who are insanely jealous about how much better at sport we are than them) have an equally fantastic sense of humour and, judging by the list of place names below, are very happy to laugh at themselves. After all, if you can’t laugh at how poorly our Antipodean friends did in the recent Beijing Olympics what can you laugh at? I’m only kidding, guys – I love Australia!

Anyway, back to the point of the post. Here are some fantastic place names in Australia. Again these place names are genuine – please feel free to shove the name in Google Map to confirm:

Amphitheatre
Blackbutt
Boggabilla
Bong Bong
Broken Head
Chinaman’s Knob
Come By Chance
Foul Bay
Gobbagomblin
Grong Grong
Howlong
Humpybong
Humpty Doo
Innaloo
Kurri Kurri
Mamungkukumpurangkuntjunya Hill
Manly
Middle Intercourse Island
Monkey Jacket Creek
Mooball
Mount Buggery
Mount Speculation
Nevertire
Nobby Beach
Nowhere Else
Poowong
Punchbowl
Rooty Hill
Scone
The Entrance
Tittybong
Wagga Wagga
Wangi Wangi
Wee Waa
Wet Beaver Creek
Woolloomooloo
Wonglepong
Wuk Wuk
Yorkey's Knob
Younghusband

Once more, I hope you agree that these are wonderful names. And of course, as much as I enjoy taking the pee out of Australians, I think that they are wonderful people. I loved every minute of my three week visit to Australia in 2005.

I can’t wait to visit again. I think Manly is the place where I was born to be – Nowhere Else will do. Maybe Punchbowl will also be worth a visit as well. Kurri Kurri appeals too, and obviously if I have too much of that, Innaloo may provide some relief. There are certain places I may avoid though – Foul Bay and Chinaman’s Knob leap to mind. I can seek solace in Tittybong though.

A Strange Place To Live - Part Two - America

I have an announcement to make: Americans also have a sense of humour. I didn’t doubt this for an instant because some of my favourite comedy shows come from across the pond. However, I have always thought that Americans take themselves far too seriously and just don’t get our wacky British sense of humour.

But I may be wrong.

For every crazy town in Britain, there is an equally crazy town in the United States. Listed below are some of my favourites. The names may not be as funny as our British triumphs but they are amusing nonetheless. I would also like to add that these place names are genuine – if you don’t believe me then try popping them into Google Map:

Bald Knob, Arkansas
Bangs Beach, Maine
Beebeetown, Iowa
Boring, Maryland
Butztown, Pennsylvania
Christmas, Florida
Climax Springs, Missouri
Crapo, Maryland
Dead Horse, Alaska
Dickey, North Dakota
Dwarf, Kentucky
Eagle Butte, South Dakota
Earth, Texas
Elephant Butte, New Mexico
Experiment, Georgia
Fertile, Minnesota
French Lick, Indiana
Frostproof, Florida
Hell, Michigan
Hippo, Kentucky
Hookersville, West Virginia
Hot Coffee, Mississippi
Humptulips, Washington
Looneyville, Texas
Mollies Nipple, Utah
Monkeys Eyebrow, Kentucky
Mudd Butte, South Dakota
Mud Lick, Kentucky
Normal, Illinois
Paradox, New York
Santa Claus, Indiana
Slaughter, Louisiana
Tightsqueeze, Virginia
Tingley, Iowa
Toad Suck, Arkansas
Truth Or Consequences, New Mexico
What Cheer, Iowa
Whiskey Dick Mountain, Wisconsin
Why, Arizona
Whynot, Mississippi
Wide Awake, Colorado

Fantastic names – I’m sure you will agree. Next time I fly across the pond I may attempt to visit some of these special places. I’m particularly intrigued by French Lick, Hookersville and Tightsqueeze. I think I may avoid Toad Suck, Elephant Butte and Boring. And I’m having second thoughts about Why. But then again, Whynot?

A Strange Place To Live

One of the millions of things I love about Britain and British people is our uncanny ability to laugh at ourselves and our surroundings. We have a bizarre sense of humour, something that has been developed over centuries.

I live in a place called Manchester, which is a fairly sensible name for a city. There are, however, many rather bizarre towns and villages scattered throughout the United Kingdom with names that are far from sensible; in fact I would say they are crazy. Whoever conceived these names over the years must have had an eccentric idea of what constitutes a good name for the place that they live in. Or maybe our maybe our ancestors simply wanted to give their communities silly names as a joke.

Listed below are genuine names of British towns and villages. I can imagine that you will not believe that they exist but I swear that they do. I have discovered some on the internet but I promise you that I have actually been to or through these some of these places. If you don’t believe me, pop the name into Google Map.

Asick Bottom
Barton In The Beans
Besses o’th’barn
Biggar
Bishops Itchington
Bitchfield
Blackadder
Blubberhouses
Cockermouth
Crackpot
Crapstone
Dyke
Fatfield
Gaywood
Great Snoring
Horsey Windpump
Leatherhead
Loggerheads
Looe
Lover
Lower Dicker
Lower Slaughter
Nether Wallop
Nobber
Once Brewed
Outcast
Pant
Penistone
Pity Me
Pratts Bottom
Ramsbottom
Sheepscar
Spital In The Street
Splott
Tongue
Twatt
Ugley
Upper Dicker
Upperthong
Wetwang
Wyre Piddle

I often wonder why how these names came to be but it is probably more prudent to simply enjoy them and ask no questions. I’m off now to visit a friend in Pity Me though I will avoid Ugley, Pratts Bottom and Splott because I’ve heard traffic around there is dreadful. I may drive through Lover though just to see what it’s like.