The street lamp flickers
Thick fog hangs like custard
A woman in regulation knickers
is cutting the mustard.
She hangs round the fading light
Vinegar drapes around the bar
she is eating chips at midnight
while her teeth soak in a jar
her curlers retired years back
when the colour made a sad farewell
she stands under the Union Jack
where the church rings its bell.
They were together once, a time
when she was not such a fright
he saw red but did not commit a crime
even then she ate chips at midnight.