Digging to Australia
(by Simon Barron and Rosalind Brady)
When I was seven or eight I had a friend called Michael Beale
And me and Mikey we were thick as thieves
Always we were out along the waste land and the fields
And Mikey never wanted to go home
Now Mikey was a quiet lad and I mostly made the plans
For pirate raids and cowboy afternoons
But one day after hearing something teacher said in school
It was Mikey who decided what to do
Digging to Australia down below the ground
If I keep going I’m bound to get there
Digging to Australia if the earth is round
Down below the ground I’m bound to get there
We took a spade from Mikey’s dad- Mikey didn’t ask
Mikey said he wouldn’t understand
Down the fields to no-man’s-land far beyond the path
Mikey had his schoolbag filled with cans
We took the spade in turns but I found the going tough
And soon it was I tired of the game
But Mikey was determined and he told me with a laugh
He’d send a postcard when he reached the end
Digging to Australia down below the ground
If I keep going I’m bound to get there
Digging to Australia if the earth is round
Down below the ground I’m bound to get there
Now Mikey wasn’t big and he wasn’t very smart
And teacher said he’d always be behind
He missed a lot of days from school and no one seemed to mind
Well I wished my dad was like his at the time
But when I left him on that day digging in the dark
I saw a look of steel upon his face
I thought if teacher saw him now she’d put a golden star
In the empty effort column by his name
Digging to Australia down below the ground
If I keep going I’m bound to get there
Digging to Australia because the earth is round
Down below the ground I’m bound to get there
Now when I last saw Mike it’s difficult to say
They put him with another family
And in my head I jumbled this with what I saw that day
It left me with a tale of make believe
For after all the trouble passed I just forgot his name
My mother said it’s better done that way
And now that I remember him- well I see him on his way
Digging to Australia that day
Digging to Australia down below the ground
If I keep going I’m bound to get there
Digging to Australia because the earth is round
Down below the ground I’m bound to get there