Butt Hole Road

Butt Hole Road

Former street sign, shown with tourists posing
Other name(s) Archers Way (2009–present)
Length 380 ft[1] (120 m)
Location Conisbrough, Doncaster, England
Postal code DN12 3BN
Coordinates 53°29′05″N 1°12′41″W / 53.484691°N 1.211447°W / 53.484691; -1.211447Coordinates: 53°29′05″N 1°12′41″W / 53.484691°N 1.211447°W / 53.484691; -1.211447
South end Dead end south of Ravens Walk
North end A630 Sheffield Road

Butt Hole Road is the former name of a street in the town of Conisbrough, Doncaster, England, within the county of South Yorkshire. The short, residential street gained fame for its suggestive name and was frequented by tourists who would stop to take photos by its street sign. Residents living on the street experienced issues with their address, as they were refused services due to the name and were the target of pranks and jokes. After privately raising funds for a new street sign and seeking approval from the local government, residents had the name of the street changed in 2009.

Description and popularity

Butt Hole Road was a short, residential street in Conisbrough. It extended approximately 380 feet (120 m) south from the A630 Sheffield Road, and intersected with two other streets, Butterbusk and Ravens Walk, prior to terminating at a dead end. The street featured four homes on its east side,[2] numbered 1, 3, 5, and 7.[3] It gained international notoriety for its suggestive naming, as the term "butthole" is slang for "anus" in American English.[4][5] In 2004, a Reuters article widely circulated on the internet about a family who moved out of their £150,000 bungalow on the street, simply because they were embarrassed by the street's name.[6] Doncaster Council, the local governing body, has no record of where Butt Hole Road got its name;[7] however, residents of the street believe that it was named after a communal water butt that was originally located in the area.[8] One resident living on the street initially thought the address "would be fun", but claimed that the novelty quickly wore off.[9] After a picture of the street sign appeared on the internet, the street became so famous that tour buses would stop at the street for American tourists to visit.[2] The street sign was constantly stolen over time, and tourists would be seen taking pictures in front of the sign with their buttocks exposed.[7]

While it was a popular destination for tourists, businesses such as delivery and taxicab services would not serve residents living on Butt Hole Road, believing that the name was simply a prank.[10] Those living on the street would also receive phone calls from pranksters making a joke about the street name,[7] and the residents eventually had their phone number removed from public listings.[10] The name of the street inspired authors Ed Hurst and Rob Bailey to create the book Rude Britain, a compilation of inappropriate place names in Great Britain, after reading an article about a couple who purchased a house on the street.[8]

Name change

The street was renamed to "Archers Way" in honor of the nearby Conisbrough Castle.

Residents of Butt Hole Road were determined to have the name of the street changed to deter tourists from visiting the street and to put an end to the jokes made about the street's name.[11] Planners allowed the change as all of the residents on the street were in favour of the new name. Because Doncaster Council would only replace a street sign for free if it was damaged or in a state of disrepair, the residents of Butt Hole Road had to raise £300 for a new street sign.[12] On 22 April 2009, the street was renamed to "Archers Way", in honour of the 930-year-old Conisbrough Castle, located half a mile (0.8 km) away.[9][11] Shortly after the name change, an informal Facebook petition was created to change the road back to its original name.[9] The renaming of the street gained worldwide attention and was featured in such international publications as The New Zealand Herald,[13] Bild (Germany),[14] and Het Laatste Nieuws (Belgium).[15]

In reference to the name change of Butt Hole Road, in 2015, residents of the similarly-named "Butthole Lane" in Shepshed, Leicestershire said they plan to keep the name of their street and are not bothered by the "puerile humour" that is affiliated with it, with one resident claiming that the street is "part of the tradition of Shepshed".[16]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Google (21 October 2013). "Archers Way/Butt Hole Rd to Archers Way/Butt Hole Rd" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved 21 October 2013.
  2. 1 2 Dubroff, M Dee (27 May 2009). "What's in a Name? Ask Residents Living on Butt Hole Road". DigitalJournal.com. Retrieved 6 September 2009.
  3. ↑ "Butt Hole Road Conisbrough Doncaster DN12". House Prices. Retrieved 7 September 2009.
  4. ↑ "Butthole". Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House. Retrieved 9 September 2009.
  5. ↑ "Butthole". Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English. Pearson Education. Retrieved 13 September 2009.
  6. ↑ Lake, Matt (2007). Weird England. New York: Sterling Publishing. p. 203. ISBN 1-4027-4229-0.
  7. 1 2 3 "Family made butt of jokes". BBC News. 24 October 2003. Retrieved 24 January 2009.
  8. 1 2 Lyall, Sarah (22 January 2009). "No Snickering: That Road Sign Means Something Else". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 January 2009.
  9. 1 2 3 Kessen, David (27 May 2009). "Residents club together to finally change embarrassing street name". The Star. Yorkshire Post Newspapers. Retrieved 6 September 2009.
  10. 1 2 "What's in a Name? Everything When the Name is Butt" (reprint). Reuters. 24 October 2003. Retrieved 7 September 2009.
  11. 1 2 "Residents of 'Butt Hole Road' club together to change street's unfortunate name". Daily Mail. 29 May 2009. Retrieved 6 September 2009.
  12. ↑ "Residents rename Butt Hole Road". RAC News. RAC plc. 28 May 2009. Archived from the original on 26 July 2009. Retrieved 7 September 2009.
  13. ↑ Samways, Ana (29 May 2009). "Sideswipe: Butt Hole Road". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 6 September 2009.
  14. ↑ ""A***-Loch-Straße" bekommt neuen Namen". Bild (in German). 9 June 2009. Retrieved 6 September 2009.
  15. ↑ "Bewoners 'Kontgatstraat' veranderen straatnaam". Het Laatste Nieuws (in Dutch). 27 May 2009. Retrieved 6 September 2009.
  16. ↑ Wheaton, Oliver (10 March 2015). "People living on Butthole Lane say they would never change their street name". Metro. Retrieved 28 April 2016.
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