Historically, the term governor was used both in England and the US to mean a person’s father, cited from 1827.
It is also cited from 1844 as a form of address, meaning sir or fellow. I think it died in the US while still in the 19th century. But continued in England.
ice-cream short for ice-cream freezer rhymes with geezer meaning, oh never mind…
Anyway, only last night my Brummie(!) window-cleaner called be gov’nor and charged me a fiver for waving a dirty rag at my windows.
Ah, I thought there was a definite meaning behind the slang rather than taking the piss out of the concept.
I guess I was having a sense of humour failure at the time, trying to work out how mush was ice cream.
I’ve been here too long.
Also used by Police Constables to address their Chief Inspector.
I guess you have to be American to get the joke. I saw Ocean’s 11.
Now if you are British and haven’t seen Ocean’s 11 you’ll be really confused.
I did, but it was some time ago. I gather it was something that the mockney said?
Basher Tarr: We’re in Barney
Ocean’s 10: Blank stares
Basher Tarr: You know. . . Barney
Ocean’s 10: More blank stares
Basher Tarr: Barney Rubble. . . trouble!
P.S. Why is Don Cheadle uncredited? He has a relatively big part.
I’m afraid to say that Don Cheadle’s awful Dick Van Dyke accent - and the dreadful lines he was given to perform - were the only things in that film that I disliked. It was as bad as Sean Connery in pretty much anything he’s not meant to be Scottish in. If the actor isn’t good at accents and you’re casting a London part, for goodness’ sake get a London actor to do it. Or make the part’s nationality fit the actor if you absolutely want him in that role.
As for his non-billing, I guess that’s Hollywood for you. There were so many bigger names that he got shunted.
He presumably asked to be uncredited. I don’t think that there’s any circumstances in which an actor can be forced to be uncredited. Usually when an actor is unbilled it’s because they’re a major actor in a small role and they don’t want to fight it out with the other actors about who gets the higher billing.
When in London last week our hotel-link driver asked a construction worker if he could take his “hole” - which I found out was his recently vacated parking space. The construction worker told him “There isn’t going to be a hole in a second, guv” and we took off looking for another.
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A foivah? Foive bleedin’ quid? Roit Bahstad, he is! And it’s me windows, init? 