Bashful Alley, Lancaster

 

In the city of Lancaster is a pretty backstreet not far from the railway station and castle. It is called Bashful Alley and contains a number of quaint little shops. I grew up in Lancaster and was often intrigued by its name. This was in fact the name given to it by the Victorians who understandably were a little embarrassed by its original two-word name which cannot be repeated on a church website. Suffice to say it began with the word 'grope' and was evidently the place at which the Lancaster professional ladies plied their trade from mediaeval times.

What a transformation! A dingy stew of vice should now be a charming side street with a pretty name. Bashful means shy or not wishing to draw attention to oneself, the very opposite of the alley's former denizens. 

My son, attend unto my wisdom, and bow thine ear to my understanding:

That thou mayest regard discretion, and that thy lips may keep knowledge.

For the lips of a strange woman drop as an honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil:

But her end is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword.

Her feet go down to death; her steps take hold on hell.

-Proverbs 5