General Chat

Another of of my mum's sayings.was 'dont stand there like a tit in a trance' Now where did That come from??

Well, my mum and dad said that too, but then we were from Bermondsey! Some of my mum/dads were 'Stone the Crows', scream Blue Murder, and ?? 'Dont stand there like a shade of fruit' (when not assisting in doing something). And who was poor Phil Garlick - 'He was a right Phil Garlick' (meaning dozey) my auntie used 'Kate Carney' for the same meaning.

We used to say 'Bobs yur Uncle & Fanny's yur aunt' where did the 'Fanny' bit come from? or is it a Sarf Lundun fing!!

thanks margaret

I actually googled to get the full description as I was curious to this one myself. BEAT AROUND THE BUSH - '.It was once the custom to hire beaters to beat bushes and arouse game birds for the hunter to shoot at. So the beater stirred up the action, but the hunter got to the point.' From the 'Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins' by William and Mary Morris (HarperCollins, New York, 1977, 1988). Another source has a slightly different explanation. '.these beaters had to take great care when approaching the bush or they would 'start' the game too soon for the hunter to get a good shot. But etymologist Ernest Weekley and others believe that the expression, which dates back to at least the early 16th century, is a mixed metaphor. Weekley suggests that the old proverb 'I will not beat the bush that another may have the bird' joined with 'to around the bush,' an early expression used for a hound hesitating when circling the bush - and gave us 'beat around the bush.' From 'Encyclopedia of Word and Phrase Origins' by Robert Hendrickson (Facts on File, New York, 1997)

why do people say that you 'beat about the bush when you take your time doing something

theres an old guy who drinks in the pub where i work and every time he goes to the loo he says, 'Im just off to see what kept me out the wrens' and another one who says, 'im off to wring my sock out' toilet humour is alive and well in Grimsby

why do we add to Bobs your uncle and Fannys your aunt? perhaps its just my lot. Nan always says shes going to water the garden when she goes to the loo which I suppose is self explanatory

Hi Gwyneth Perhaps it was the Lancashire equivalent to your saying. Susan

thanks Cherry....A button boy, any other unusual names out there for occupations.........

Sandra, I'm only surmising but I wonder whether 'bright as a button' refers to the brass buttons on uniforms, polished until they shone? I've got a GUncle born 1877 Allahabad, India who was a buttons boy in the British Army and I'm assuming that he kept the officers buttons bright! Cherry

I've never heard that one, Susan. ' Bread and pullit, step and fetch it ' was the reply in our house.

What about 'Catch as catch can' my mother always used this remark when we asked what was for tea. Susan

Thanks ladies... It all becomes clearer. Another one that's puzzled me is :- When my Dad,( b. Portsmouth 1908 in case that helps) wanted someone to help lift something heavy, the other person would stand at the other end of the said object eg. large piece of timber and on Dad saying ' 2, 6 ' they would both lift together. What's that all about.?

Where does 'bright as a Button' originate..........

My google search gave me this: 'Bob's your uncle' is a way of saying 'you're all set' or 'you've got it made.' It's a catch phrase dating back to 1887, when British Prime Minister Robert Cecil (a.k.a. Lord Salisbury) decided to appoint a certain Arthur Balfour to the prestigious and sensitive post of Chief Secretary for Ireland. Not lost on the British public was the fact that Lord Salisbury just happened to be better known to Arthur Balfour as 'Uncle Bob.' In the resulting furor over what was seen as an act of blatant nepotism, 'Bob's your uncle' became a popular sarcastic comment applied to any situation where the outcome was preordained by favoritism. As the scandal faded in public memory, the phrase lost its edge and became just a synonym for 'no problem.' ...which is more or less what Ann said. Liz x

Hi Gwyneth I googled it and this is what came up!! I think I can help a bit. This relates (pardon the pun!) to an early example of nepotism. A Robert something-or -other (a Government Minister, or something of the sort, I think - I forget who it was, but I'm sure someone on the list will know), secured, for his nephew a favourable position doing I-forget-what, but because of this, the saying arose that everything would be all right, if Bob was your Uncle, and the saying came into common usage in England. Ann

For some reason earlier, I was thinking back on some of the things we might have said at one time and I wonder what they meant?......... Bob's your uncle....... Why?