Bob's your uncle
Nightjar
ArtKramr <artk...@aol.comnojunk> wrote in message
news:20000219184042...@ng-fj1.aol.com...
> Anyone know the origin of the Britishism, "Bob's your uncle".?
My recollection is that it is connected with the slang use of uncle to
mean a pawnbroker, but I cannot recall the deatils.
I have cross-posted this to uk.culture.language.english, which is
usually a good place to ask this sort of question.
Colin Bignell
Garry J. Vass
<nigh...@pavilion.co.uk> writes
'Bob's your uncle' is said to have come from the promotion of one A. J.
Balfour by his uncle Robert (Lord Salisbury). After three promotions to
visible positions in the Tory government, people began to think almost
anything is possible if 'Bob's your uncle'.
Kind regards,
--
Garry J. Vass
Geoff Butler
>
>ArtKramr <artk...@aol.comnojunk> wrote in message
>news:20000219184042...@ng-fj1.aol.com...
>> Anyone know the origin of the Britishism, "Bob's your uncle".?
>
>My recollection is that it is connected with the slang use of uncle to
>mean a pawnbroker, but I cannot recall the deatils.
>
>I have cross-posted this to uk.culture.language.english, which is
>usually a good place to ask this sort of question.
Bob was Robert, Lord Salisbury. His nephew was, er good grief, I've
forgotten, Balfour I think, who was elevated to the post of Prime
Minister by sheer nepotism despite his utter incompetence.
"Bob's Your Uncle" was the headline in The Times,
-ler
Phil C.
Geoff Butler <ge...@gbutler.demon.co.uk> wrote in message
news:QFqQnZAP...@gbutler.demon.co.uk...
> Nightjar <nigh...@pavilion.co.uk> wrote
> >
> >ArtKramr <artk...@aol.comnojunk> wrote in message
> >news:20000219184042...@ng-fj1.aol.com...
> >> Anyone know the origin of the Britishism, "Bob's your uncle".?
> >
> >My recollection is that it is connected with the slang use of uncle to
> >mean a pawnbroker, but I cannot recall the deatils.
> Bob was Robert, Lord Salisbury. His nephew was, er good grief, I've
> forgotten, Balfour I think, who was elevated to the post of Prime
> Minister by sheer nepotism despite his utter incompetence.
>
> "Bob's Your Uncle" was the headline in The Times,
It was a good headline but the expression is older. Peng. Dic. Hist. Slang
give the origin as c1890 possibly from the adjective `bob` (C18th-20th)
meaning lively or pleasant. In 1890 Balfour was in his first major post as
Chief Secretary for Ireland, which hardly seems likely to have caught the
public imagination. He became PM in 1902.
Balfour was not (AFAIK) particularly incompetent, nor was nepotism unusual
in Conservative administrations. Balfour had both Joseph and Austen
Chamberlain (father and son) in his government. Lord Salisbury himself could
hardly claim to be a poor boy made good.
`Uncle` was used to mean a pawnbroker (e.g by Dickens) but doesn`t seem to
relate to this expression. (It was also used to mean a privy and bed!)
`Your uncle` is given as a late C19th expression for oneself (cf. `yours
truly`) and both `bob` and `uncle` seem to have been widely used for slang
expressions at the relevant time. So `Bob`s your uncle` meaning `I`m
alright` doesn`t seem to need any special explanation. Pity really.
Phil C.
________________________________________
philandwoody*at*meem*dot*freeserve*dot*co*dot*uk
stephen tweed
<ge...@gbutler.demon.co.uk> writes
>Nightjar <nigh...@pavilion.co.uk> wrote
>>
>>ArtKramr <artk...@aol.comnojunk> wrote in message
>>news:20000219184042...@ng-fj1.aol.com...
>>> Anyone know the origin of the Britishism, "Bob's your uncle".?
>>
>>My recollection is that it is connected with the slang use of uncle to
>>mean a pawnbroker, but I cannot recall the deatils.
>>
>>usually a good place to ask this sort of question.
>
>forgotten, Balfour I think, who was elevated to the post of Prime
>Minister by sheer nepotism despite his utter incompetence.
That has a familiar ring about it:>
--
The moving finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on:
nor all thy piety nor wit
Shall lure it back to cancel half a line,
Nor all thy tears wash out a word of it.
http://www.greenpen.demon.co.uk