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Brummie sayings & language

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Who remembers going for a jimmy riddle?
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I do, about five minutes ago....


It was always 'A piece' of jam, or dripping, or whatever. Bet they don't say that these days
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In Scotland, if you buy a sandwich in a pub or a restaurant, then it's a sandwich; but if you make sandwiches yourself it's a 'piece'. A 'piece' when I was a brat was a thick slice of bread and butter (my Mom wouldn't buy marge...)

Big Gee
 
Big Gee said:
I do, about five minutes ago....


.
In Scotland, if you buy a sandwich in a pub or a restaurant, then it's a sandwich; but if you make sandwiches yourself it's a 'piece'. A 'piece' when I was a brat was a thick slice of bread and butter (my Mom wouldn't buy marge...)

Big Gee
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No Big Gee I never knew what marg was either, it was always best butter.
 
Glad you remember that too Dolphie. How about Mythering (don't know about spelling of that one), but they don't use that one around here, so was it another Brummie one?
 
I definitely remember that expression maggs, mithering...oh yes indeedy. I dont think people up here (North East) use it so maybe we can claim it as a Brummie-ism?
 
my memories of snow on the ground outside, sitting in front of the fire toasting fork in hand bread or pikelets at the ready butter on a plate on the hearth softening up. with the radio in the background and Sandy on the blackpoole organ. Sunday nights listening to the Black and White minstrels.oh cosy memories.
does anyone out there remember
Journey into space. PC 49. Mrs Dales Diary(Our Jim)or Dick Barton. or am I showing my age
 
Hello Tiny, we must be a similar age because I remember all those things. Oh god, pikelets. Happy days.
 
maggs said:
It was always 'A piece' of jam, or dripping, or whatever. Bet they don't say that these days.
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If you managed to sneak out with the jam doorstep or piece, the next door would grass us up or twit on us by saying to mom "see's yor johnny as cut is hand again" and we would get our ears boxed for showing mom up by eatin food in street got me own back on er though with a reel of cotton 1 drawing pin and 1 button anyone tell me how we used these to annoy the neighbours.
does anyone remember the game of piggin, played with 2 short sticks about 12inch and one long about 2ft.
 
hi sticher, did you ever have the bottles of sugar water and sugar pieces. for the picnic's up the Likkies
 
I remember all those things Tiny. I planned my dad around Mrs Dales Diary, such innocent times. Weren't they?
 
My grandmother, a Brummie born and bred, used to say, in response to me asking about something she did not want to elaborate on, 'Oh, san fairy ann' or that is what it sounded like. I did read somewhere it was something to do with WW1 but can't remember what. Does anyone have any ideas?

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My Brummie roots: Bracey, Tibbins, Horton, Lyons. etc.
 
brum baby said:
My grandmother, a Brummie born and bred, used to say, in response to me asking about something she did not want to elaborate on, 'Oh, san fairy ann' or that is what it sounded like. I did read somewhere it was something to do with WW1 but can't remember what. Does anyone have any ideas?

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My Brummie roots: Bracey, Tibbins, Horton, Lyons. etc.
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I Think its French "Sans faire rien" meaning "without doing anything".
Not sure about the translation but troops picked up lots of French and pronounced it their own way.
 
thanks for that, it must have been current usage for her. Her two brothers fought in WW1, one survived the other killed at 19.
 
I married a Leicester lad and many of the saying I grew up with were foreign to him and of course many of those he grew up with were new to me I remember the first time he took me to his grandmother's she kept asking me if I was starved, I answered politely no I'm fine. A bit later she commented that I looked half starved and I told her I had eaten not long before visiting. It turned out that starved, in Leicestershire meant cold. I was sitting in her house, in the middle of the winter, in my little mini skirt.
 
Another one for you Len - who was 'sweet fanny Ann'? as in you know sweet fanny ann! - is that just a verson onf the same thing?
 
brum baby said:
My grandmother, a Brummie born and bred, used to say, in response to me asking about something she did not want to elaborate on, 'Oh, san fairy ann' or that is what it sounded like. I did read somewhere it was something to do with WW1 but can't remember what. Does anyone have any ideas?

............................
My Brummie roots: Bracey, Tibbins, Horton, Lyons. etc.
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Hi Brum Baby

Brought back from France by the soldiers during WW1, the expression
'Ca ne fait rien' means 'It doesn't matter'. When I've heard it used
in Birmingham, (and you dont hear it today) it always seemed to be
a mildly abusive expression such as 'bu***r it!'

Kind regards

Dave
 
Dave89 said:
Hi Brum Baby

Brought back from France by the soldiers during WW1, the expression
'Ca ne fait rien' means 'It doesn't matter'. When I've heard it used
in Birmingham, (and you dont hear it today) it always seemed to be
a mildly abusive expression such as 'bu***r it!'

Kind regards

Dave
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Well done I knew it was something like that. hile we are on the subject of French....an old one....who knows the motto of the French Navy???
 
Hello Dave 89, that is exactly how my Mom frequently used the phrase.
 
Hello Tiny, I am sorry I missed your post about the sugar water, and the answer is yes. I suppose it was the same with you when the Lickeys was a great day out. Do you remember the big steps to go up the one hill?
Oh happy days.
Trevor.
 
Hi Leonard Job,

the motto of the French Navy is, or was, "Honneur, Valeur, Patrie, Discipline". C'est ca! When we sank their fleet during WW2, the motto was changed to 'merde aux les Anglaises!' Vrai!

The word 'plonk' that we use for cheap wine comes from the French 'vin blanc', which to the ears of a WW1 English soldier would have sound like v'blonk, courtesy of the French habit of losing consonants in their pronunciation. Sante!

Le Grand Gee
 
Hi Folks
Have just joined forum and had a quick look through Brummie Sayings.I apologise if I missed the following one and this is a repeat.
As kids when we came in from playing a saying my mother often used was.
"look at your face it's as red as a turkey cocks a**e"
 
Jean & Pembroke, my mom and dad used the turkey cocks a**e one and if we were miserable we were called mardy a**e. Ha Ha.
 
I don't know if this is Brummie or that it hasn't been posted here before, but my auntie 'Liz' used to chastise her son, when he did something wrong, with; "I'll knock seven different sorts of s**t out of ya!", Graham.
 
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