Over on Corrie Canuck, there's a discussion about the phrase "Neither use nor ornament" to describe someone that's a bit of a waste of space. I also wrote about this over on Corrieblog awhile back. One of the things i enjoy about Corrie and other British movies and tv shows is the language and expressions that are so much more colourful than ours here in Canada. This expression is one of the ones i've heard on Corrie over the years but isn't really one i've picked up and made my own though i should do. Some expressions really are incomprehensible such as "I feel like piffy on a rock bun" (feeling very out of place) or "Well i'll go to the foot of our stairs!" (somewhat akin to our "well you could have knocked me over with a feather!" which shows surprise)
One of the ones i love and use is "gobsmacked" which is just so much more colourful and appropriate than "shocked, incredulous, taken aback" or anything like that. I often use words like pillock, wanker, pratt and plonker and it's funny to see reactions on faces thinking "um, is that a bad thing?"
Some expressions you don't hear much as you used to on Corrie, such as "fur coat and no knickers", often used to describe Elsie Tanner by Ena Sharples. Another one i love is "all mouth and no trousers". I think Maud used this about Reg Holdsworth once and it's *so* exactly perfect for men like Reg. All bark and no bite, we'd say, or ... "he's got his head up his own arse" lol!
Because i watch so much British stuff, i pick up expressions and use them myself, though not all of them. It doesn't help that my fiance is from Salford and of course i have a lot of friends from various parts of the U.K. Most of my friends watch Corrie and so they use the expressions too. "What are you doing today?" "Nowt." I even catch myself thinking in "accent" sometimes! I think i need help! Or maybe....
I'll just get me coat shall i?
4 comments:
My mom is from Newcastle, and when I was in grade 8 we lived in England for a year (back in 77/78). Even though I was used to my mom, people say she has an accent which I don't hear, I felt like I was in a country with a foreign language. We lived in Bolton, and I was so confused when an uncle told me to put something in 'the boot', or a kid in school asked if I had a 'rubber' he could borrow. Now I find I have to translate some things on Corrie for friends, I get alot of "what did they say??"
I've just given my mother the box set of DVDs from the series Cold Feet. I know she's not going to be able to make out some of it, because some of the characters' accents are fairly strong but at least with dvd players, you can put english subtitles on! I've been watching corrie for nearly 20 years plus i've seen lots of older episodes and there's still the occasional word or phrase i don't get because they speak fast or a little garbled. Even my fiance sometimes has to translate himself lol
I tried a few different times to leave a comment on corrieblog, and for some reason it is not letting me. Hmmmm. I was curious about the Richard Fleeshman posting, have you heard the cd, or the single? I really liked what I saw of him on Soap Star Superstar, but that was a link on youtube, so maybe that isnt a fair thing to assess him by. I really hope he makes it in music, and coming from such a talented family, I think he will stay grounded. (fingers crossed) As you mentioned, he is going to do it right, even if that means taking a longer time to achieve his goals. That is showing he at least has a concept of reality. Sadly what are the chances of him showing up on Much Music anytime soon though.
Every once in awhile the commenting feature on corrieblog seems to hiccup. Sometimes it doesn't appear straigh away without a refresh too.
Anyway i do think R\ichard has a lot of talent and an excellent voice. I have only heard clips of the single but it sounded ok, not really my taste but it's good.
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