origin of ‘all my eye and Betty Martin’
second half of the 18th century—a mere fanciful extension of ‘all my eye’—maintained in a sort of artificial life by persistent conjectures about its origin
Read MoreTag: theatre
meaning and origin of ‘Box and Cox’
from the name of an 1847 farce in which a landlady lets out, unbeknown to them, the same room to two tenants, Box and Cox, the one by day, the other by night
Read More‘Hamlet without the Prince’: meaning and origin
event taking place without the central figure—from an alleged performance of Hamlet in 1775 with the title role left out because the chief actor had fled
Read Moretheatrical origin and history of the noun ‘slapstick’
slapstick (USA): device used to make a great noise with the pretence of dealing a heavy blow, hence comedy characterised by horseplay and physical action
Read Moreorigin of ‘Boxing Day’ (the first weekday after Christmas Day)
from the verb ‘box’, ‘to give a Christmas-box’, i.e. to give a gratuity or present to tradespeople and employees—originally a box in which money was collected
Read Moreorigin and meanings of ‘jingo’
The current sense of ‘jingo’ originated in a 1877 patriotic song adopted by the bellicose factions within the Conservative Party during the Russo-Turkish war.
Read Moreorigin of ‘old chestnut’ and of French ‘marronnier’
The term old chestnut denotes a joke, story or subject that has become tedious and uninteresting through constant repetition. Here, the adjective old is simply an intensifier of the noun. The figurative use of chestnut originated in American-English theatrical slang. Diary of a Daly Débutante: being passages from the journal of a member of Augustin Daly’s […]
Read Moreorigin of ‘cold call’ (unsolicited visit or phone call)
FREE! For the Salesman who wants to add at least $50,000 to his income every year “Cold Call Selling” the great new approach that turns […]
Read Morethe mysterious origin of ‘tace is Latin for candle’
The Excommunication of Robert the Pious (1875), by the French artist Jean-Paul Laurens (1838-1921)—image: Wikimedia Commons The officiants have just excommunicated Robert by bell, book, and candle [note 1], and left the quenched candle behind. Robert II (972-1031), known as the Pious, the son of Hugues Capet, was excommunicated for incest by Pope Gregory V […]
Read Moremeaning and origin of the phrase ‘to play to the gallery’
the gods at the Comedy Theatre, London, 1949 source: Historic England – The Theatres Trust Via Middle French galerie, the noun gallery, attested in the late 15th century, is from the medieval Latin of Italy galeria, an alteration of medieval Latin galilaea, designating a porch at the entrance of a monastery’s church—hence English […]
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