British Billy takes the Mickey

  • Published
  • By British Billy
  • 48th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
ROYAL AIR FORCE LAKENHEATH, England --  A few years ago, I met a young Airman named Michael who became a particular admirer of mine. The British phrase, 'He's taking the Mickey', could have been coined in his honour. Loosely translated, it means, 'He's making fun of you', and Michael certainly fancied himself as a bit of joker.

Such odd little phrases as this pepper our languages and make them all the tastier. I am sure that American English has its fair share - 'boondoggle' springs to mind, and you no doubt have lots more you sprinkle liberally over your conversation.

'Taking the Mickey' is one phrase my American pals have questioned me about, so I thought I would share with you a few English idioms, their meanings and possible origins. I won't begin to explore Scottish, Welsh or Irish idioms, as each is a rich vein in itself to be quarried on another occasion perhaps.

'Taking the Mickey', which can also expressed as 'taking/extracting the Mick/Mickey/Michael', has its origins in Cockney rhyming slang, and the whole phrase should actually be 'taking the Mickey Bliss'.

None the wiser? Don't worry about it. I wrote an article on Cockney rhyming slang a while ago which left a lot of you scratching your heads after reading it.

Here are a few other phrases you may come across, as you commune with your neighbours:

Best of British - If someone says, "The best of British to you", it simply means 'good luck'. It is short for 'best of British luck'. I have no idea why British luck is any better than anyone else's, but I take my luck wherever I can find it.

Give us a bell - This simply means 'call me'. You often hear people over here use the word 'us' to mean 'me'. Another version is, 'Give us a ring'. It harks back to a time when phones actually had bells that rang rather than microchips.

Her Majesty's pleasure - When visiting England, try to avoid being detained at Her Majesty's pleasure. This means being put in prison with no release date. It is a legal term derived from the fact that the authority for all governance in the U.K. stems from the Crown.

Throw a spanner in the works - This is an expression that means 'to wreck something'. The British throw spanners, but you might not know that the phrase 'sabotage' comes from the tendency of 15th century Dutch peasants to throw their 'sabots' -- a sort of wooden shoe -- into textile looms. I just thought I'd throw that one in myself for a bit of continental colour.

Shufti - Pronounced 'shooftee', this means to take a look at something, as in 'let's have a shufti!' It's an old Arabic word, picked up by British soldiers during World War II, in North Africa.

Similar in meaning is:

Butchers - To have a 'butchers' at something is to have a look. This is another Cockney rhyming slang word that has come into common usage. The reason 'butchers' means 'look', even though it doesn't rhyme, is because it is short for 'butcher's hook', and 'hook' of course, does rhyme.

Knees up - If you're having 'a knees up', then you're off to a lively party. For example, you might say, "There's a bit a knees up at Billy's tonight!" There's a well-known London song called 'Knees up, Mother Brown', which I am sure any passing Brit will sing to you. Mother Brown evidently had a very distinctive way of dancing.

Commit these phrases to memory and listen out for them as you travel around this fine country of mine. If you dare, tune into some of our fine British television 'soaps', and you will soon be immersed in a world of strange dialects and idioms.

TTFN!*

*(Ask an older Brit what that means.)