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'All The Bowling Ladies' Fight For Their Club With Beyoncé Parody

Move over Beyoncé, 'All The Bowling Ladies' of Chadstone Bowls Club are here.

Sick and tired of writing letter after letter pleading with their local council to spare their beloved club from demolition, the ladies of Chadstone 'Chaddy' Bowls in south east Melbourne have taken a creative approach to making sure their voices get heard.

On Saturday evening, Terry, Janine and Wyn -- with the help of mastermind Denise Wallish -- debuted their own version of Beyoncé's smash hit 'All The Single Ladies', appropriately titled 'All The Bowling Ladies'.

Lawn bowls is what these ladies prefer and deserve, and they're hoping that after seeing the clip, Stonnington City Council will reconsider its decision to earmark Chaddy Bowls as the site for a new indoor basketball and netball stadium.

"We've got to get into modern times... so I rejigged the lyrics to single ladies and asked a couple of the girls if they'd be up for a bit of fun," organiser Denise Wallish told HuffPost Australia.

"We're not against netballers or basketballers but I know with my own kids, basketball is one of many things in their lives -- but for the bowlers it is the [only] thing in their lives.

"For some of the elderly men, it's the reason why they get up in the morning."

Now put your hands up, we love our club, we've had enough, we're doing our bowling thing

There's no denying that with 70 percent of adult Australians being inactive, our ageing population is in need of the benefits that exercise brings -- and these aren't linked to just physical health, but mental well-being too.

"It's much more than just a bowling green. It's their social interaction and their connection with the community," Wallish said.

The ladies of Chaddy Bowls aren't going to take the council's decision lying down.
Chadstone Bowls Club
The ladies of Chaddy Bowls aren't going to take the council's decision lying down.

Despite only being uploaded to Facebook on Saturday night, Terry, Janine and Wyn have been forced to quickly embrace their newfound fame, with 'All The Bowling Ladies' already accumulating over 530,000 views.

"Sunday morning my phone woke me up, I got a fright, I thought somebody might've died!" Wallish joked.

"They're embracing it now -- they're loving it, they're great girls, full of life and full of fun.

'Cos we're bowlers and you can't take this away from us

"They're beating off single men with a stick!"

It's hoped that the video, which links viewers to a change.org petition with over 3,000 signatures, will force Stonnington City Council to reconsider its decision and abandon Chaddy Bowls as the preferred site for the new indoor sports stadium.

They've got moves that even Beyoncé would be jealous of.
Residents Against The Stadium / Chadstone Bowls
They've got moves that even Beyoncé would be jealous of.

"It's just amazing, it's just gone off... I think people get it, they get that it is morally wrong and they want to support it," Wallish said.

"Two wrongs don't make a right... if there aren't any other places then maybe we have to wait.

"Just to say 'Oh well there's no other site', I'm sorry that's just not good enough."

City of Stonnington Mayor, Jami Klisaris, told HuffPost Australia that the council would listen to the community while stressing "that no final decision has been made".

"As part of this process, Council is engaging all stakeholder groups and is working closely with the Chadstone Bowls Club and its members to develop a plan that caters for their future needs, should the project go head," she said.

"Before making any decision, Council will carefully consider the data and community feedback gathered through the feasibility study and make a decision to cater for the needs of the whole community."

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