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Brummie sayings & language

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Our local sop in Sparkhill used to sell a stick of liquorice in a bag of kali - that would last ages.

Maurice
 
Maurice I hated liquorice so I licked it off the end of my finger. It used to end up all wrinkly. Jean.
 
Anyone listen to Tony Rigby's Country show wednesdays 7pm to 9pm on Big City Radio. He has a fantastic Brummie accent.
 
Hey Astonian what about as slow as Brown's Cows, whoever he was, and gawping in class like a pillock. Regards, David
 
We had a chimney fire during the black out which caused a big panic i can tell you. Ten minutes after dad put it out the sirens went for our usual heart starter as dad called it. Regards, David.
 
My ears used to ring like the bells of Saint Mary's when my mother caught me a whopper for ripping a tater in my gansy and the powk on my eye was always fixed with Granny White's wedding ring but I never worked out why. Also warts were rubbed with a bit of meat and the meat buried somewhere and as sure as I'm sitting here on this camel crossing the Simpson Desert it used to work. Regards, David.
 
If we as kids had done something right, our mom used to say 'go to the top of the class and give the pencils out'.
 
My Grandfather always referred to the Toilet as 'Going to the Lar Pom' ... which may be a corruption of La Pomme (French). But where did that come from?
 
My Dad always referred to it as the "pom". I always assumed as you have that it comes from the french and I thought it was brought back by his Dad from his time in France during WW1. My Mom always refers to an underskirt as a "shimmy" which I think comes from the french chemise and again I think that expression was brought back from WW1.
 
Hey sospiri, remember when you sucked the kali too hard it would almost take your breath away and make you choke? Regards, david.
 
Here's another, I think, when someone was upset about something they were 'cut up'. I remember when my day was fire watching and he was near a glass roof he told his mate that if he slipped and fell he'd be 'very cut up'. His mate had hysterics. Regards, David.
 
hi guys
my expression when in company and want to leave the room to get to the clossy ; is i;m going to see the tailor
astonian
 
My husband remarked that we needed a new broom for the garden use. I said do we need a new stale too. He said 'what's that'. I said that's what we used to call the handle in Brum. Does anyone else remember that? You could either buy the brush part or the stale whichever needed replacing. I'm sure this isn't the case these day's.
 
HI Maggs
i remember the word used for the stale meaning the handled stick for the broom
because my dear old mother used to refer to it as that and she used to send us down to alibones on spring hll
there hardware department she never brought the brush end oftern it was always the handle getting broken by us kids when stick fighting ;
and yes i wonder how many more people know what you mean by the stale its a word not used now ;
take care best wishes astonian ; alan
 
You remember the word Stale (possibly spelled Stayle) Alan. I still use that word today. I also remember Alibone and Bachelors on Spring Hill. It was so difficult to get the stayle to stay in the hole on the broom. I remember my dad used to put a nail through, but after a few uses it always used to come apart again. I bet your mother would remember that. Shopping on Spring Hill was really good, I think there was very little you couldn't buy there.
 
I wonder why the word Stayle was only used in connection with a broom. I also use it today. Michael and I always laugh at the fools and horses comment about Triggers broom which he was so proud of as he had had it for over 20 years. He said had, I think? three new heads and four new handles. When we comment on things like Nelson's ship the Victory Michael always says it's like Triggers broom....lol

I have not heard the word used in connection with anything else or anywhere else for that matter.
 
I'd never heard the word 'stale' until maggs mentioned it in Post #623. I looked it up immediately; it does exist. As the question of spelling has now come up, dictionary.com gives me 'stail' : A handle, as of a mop. It adds that the spelling in England is 'stale'. My New Shorter Oxford English Dictionary (1993) does not list 'stail' or 'stayle', but defines 'stale' as 'the handle or shaft of a tool'. The same dictionary also tells me that 'stale' was once used to mean the rungs of a ladder; before that it meant one of the two uprights of a ladder.
Thanks for the new word, maggs. David
 
db84124 said:
I'd never heard the word 'stale' until maggs mentioned it in Post #623. I looked it up immediately; it does exist. As the question of spelling has now come up, dictionary.com gives me 'stail' : A handle, as of a mop. It adds that the spelling in England is 'stale'. My New Shorter Oxford English Dictionary (1993) does not list 'stail' or 'stayle', but defines 'stale' as 'the handle or shaft of a tool'. The same dictionary also tells me that 'stale' was once used to mean the rungs of a ladder; before that it meant one of the two uprights of a ladder.
Thanks for the new word, maggs. David
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Hi David, you should never cast doubt on a word just because you
have never heard it! Stale was in common use when I was young, it certainly isnt a new word.Always remember, you
learn something new everyday of your life. Bernard
 
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