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Odd Sayings

I'm just going to turn my bike round

Northern people also occasionally mention the necessity of wallpapering one's bicycle to get out of a tedious task.

The late actors Bill Waddington and Bryan Mosley (who played Percy Sugden and Alf Roberts) had a running joke about it;
'What're you doing Saturday afternoon, Bill?' 'The wife wants me to take her shopping but I've told her I'm wallpapering me bike.'
 
Not quite a saying, but a regional..or rather local...speech difference.....

That frozen fruit flavoured ice on stick..what do you call it?

It has different names in different places..popsicle, icepop, but - apparently - most people in the uk seem to call it an ice lolly.

But here in Liverpool (and a few other pockets of resistance no doubt) it has always been called a lolly ice. Most people in Liverpool don't know that the rest of you don't call it that. I've a friend from Bolton who finds it inexplicably hysterical. Any mention of it has him mockingly reversing other compound nouns, as if we all speak like Yoda here.
 
Not quite a saying, but a regional..or rather local...speech difference.....

That frozen fruit flavoured ice on stick..what do you call it?

It has different names in different places..popsicle, icepop, but - apparently - most people in the uk seem to call it an ice lolly.

But here in Liverpool (and a few other pockets of resistance no doubt) it has always been called a lolly ice. Most people in Liverpool don't know that the rest of you don't call it that. I've a friend from Bolton who finds it inexplicably hysterical. Any mention of it has him mockingly reversing other compound nouns, as if we all speak like Yoda here.

I was teaching an American about Scousers and their interesting dialect recently. He pronounced 'chicken' particularly well after some practice. I was proud of him.
 
I'm in Australia but haven't heard ice blocks for years.
I remember having 2 pennies and buying a block they had frozen and put in a square cone when I was very small.
 
Some sayings from here, (Canada) that are used to excuse yourself to use the facilities...

I've got to see a man about a horse,
I've got to drop the kids off at the pool.

To denote stupidity...

Not the brightest bulb in the chandelier.

To denote uselessness...

Couldn't find their way out of a wet paper bag.
Couldn't drive a stiff c*ck into a pail of water.
 
His cheese is sliding off the cracker. We used to get called piss-ants when we where kids.
 
I'm in Australia but haven't heard ice blocks for years.
I remember having 2 pennies and buying a block they had frozen and put in a square cone when I was very small.

We had square ice-cream in the UK too! Small blocks with a square cone, and also long rectangular things that your nan would slice you a bit off with a knife.

I've got to drop the kids off at the pool.

And that's a favourite of mine, always make me laugh.
 
I was teaching an American about Scousers and their interesting dialect recently. He pronounced 'chicken' particularly well after some practice. I was proud of him.
It's taken me ten years of deliberate practice (on and off obviously) to perfect how to say 'chicken' in a Norfolk accent .. pronouncing the 'k' can't be done and neither can ignoring 'k' completely .. the Mrs (Norfolk through and through) has pointed out that it's weird because her 'homies' traditionally drag words out but when it comes to saying 'chicken', they say it as fast as possible (she's right). Perhaps ancient Norfolkians commited unspeakable crimes against chickens in the past so try to say it as quickly as possible out of guilt ? ... to say it in this style ?, imagine taking a pair of scissors and cutting the letter 'k' in half from bottom to top .. it should sound something like "Ch-un".
 
I've got to drop the kids off at the pool.
A Peterborough (UK) saying is similar: 'I'm just going to see some friends off to Fengate' means 'I have to go for a poo'.
Fengate is where Peterborough's sewage plant is located.
 
It's taken me ten years of deliberate practice (on and off obviously) to perfect how to say 'chicken' in a Norfolk accent .. pronouncing the 'k' can't be done and neither can ignoring 'k' completely .. the Mrs (Norfolk through and through) has pointed out that it's weird because her 'homies' traditionally drag words out but when it comes to saying 'chicken', they say it as fast as possible (she's right). Perhaps ancient Norfolkians commited unspeakable crimes against chickens in the past so try to say it as quickly as possible out of guilt ? ... to say it in this style ?, imagine taking a pair of scissors and cutting the letter 'k' in half from bottom to top .. it should sound something like "Ch-un".

I don't know if it's an urban myth but I heard that the original slogan for Bernard Matthew's turkeys was "Bernard Matthews Turkeys - they're Norfolk and Good." But because of his accent they decided not to use it :D
 
I don't know if it's an urban myth but I heard that the original slogan for Bernard Matthew's turkeys was "Bernard Matthews Turkeys - they're Norfolk and Good." But because of his accent they decided not to use it :D

On a similar note ...

A half-century ago (in the American South) we pre-teens counted among our little 'dirty word' gags the Norfolk (Virginia) High School Fight Song (sung to the tune of Camptown Ladies):

"We don't drink, and we don't smoke!
Nor f**k! Nor f**k!"

NOTE: The second line precisely reflected the clipped pronunciation of 'Norfolk' used in that region, where the city is located.
 
On a similar note ...

A half-century ago (in the American South) we pre-teens counted among our little 'dirty word' gags the Norfolk (Virginia) High School Fight Song (sung to the tune of Camptown Ladies):

"We don't drink, and we don't smoke!
Nor f**k! Nor f**k!"

NOTE: The second line precisely reflected the clipped pronunciation of 'Norfolk' used in that region, where the city is located.
'Gnaw foke' sounds like someone who isn't from England trying to say 'Gnaw fuk' to me ... I've never met anyone even outside of Norfolk who pronounces it as 'Gnaw foke' but I'll be looking forward to that now :) ...

Apologies to any U.S. readers but my flat mate used to do a really funny 'in an American accent' impression of some Stateside tourist we used to often get stopped by .. "Excuse me but we're looking for The Shire, y'know? .. where all the little Hobbits live ?" .. okay, nobody ever actually asked us that, this probably belongs in the 'You had to be there thread' instead .. ;)
 
as someone else has mentioned... im going to drop the kids off at the pool.... well what about ; ive got a turtles head? or im touching cloth?? OR as my maltese mate said to his wife.. im holding cloth.... the poor woman had no idea what he was on about.. lol
 
as someone else has mentioned... im going to drop the kids off at the pool.... well what about ; ive got a turtles head? or im touching cloth?? OR as my maltese mate said to his wife.. im holding cloth.... the poor woman had no idea what he was on about.. lol

Or if you're really in dire straits it's 'touching sock'.
 
Poor Vlad - he didn't quite cut it.
 
"Stop yer troshin!" ... Norfolk for "Stop talking crap" ... I've got a coffee mug covered in Norfolk sayings :)
 
An odd response to me, is "not at all" in reply to a "thank you". It doesn't make sense as a response.

It's more appropriate in reply to a question such as "are you interested in hearing about the kardashians on a daily basis?"

Always strikes me as peculiarly British.
 
An odd response to me, is "not at all" in reply to a "thank you". It doesn't make sense as a response.

It's more appropriate in reply to a question such as "are you interested in hearing about the kardashians on a daily basis?"

Always strikes me as peculiarly British.

The online Cambridge English Dictionary cites the version you find odd ("used as a polite reply after someone has thanked you") only under 'British English'. However, I can assure you it's common in American English as well, as attested by its sole-entry citation in Merriam-Webster:

  1. —sometimes used as a polite response after an expression of appreciation or thanks <“Thank you for all your trouble.” “Not at all.”> <“That was very kind of you.” “Not at all. It was the least I could do.”>
 
I found out yesterday what a poppety ping is. Google it to find out. It isn't rude and made me chuckle.
 
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