“I say, I say, I say: can a lady with a wooden leg change a pound note?”
“I don’t know: can a lady with a wooden leg change a pound note?”
“No she cannot. Why? Because she’s only got half a nicker.”
(Spike Milligan, 1957)
As if to prove my point, from from John Koster’s original script:
SECOMBE: I say! I say! Can a lady with a wooden leg change a pound note?
MILLIGAN (off): Can a lady with a wooden leg change a ten pound note? Yes!
SECOMBE: No, she can’t.
MILLIGAN: And why not?
SECOMBE: All together folks - she’s only got half a knicker!
Doesn’t improve much in the telling, I got to admit.
And Prince Charles is a fan. Enough said. I wonder if he git his Tampon line from the Goons.
Well, dudes- remember that most of the confusion comes from the slang terms (like “bob” ) for many of the coins. America- even though we have a decimal coinage- has just as many slang terms, many of which can be confusing to those not conversant:
penny= cent
Nickel= 5 cent peice
“two bits”= 25 cent peice or quarter
“fin” = five dollar bill
Sawbuck = $10
dime= 10 cent peice ( i think the term “dime” could be a real US Treasury term?)
We don’t even think of “penny or nickel” being slang terms, but they are- or were so originally anyway.
Pjen- good article, but it doesn’t mention that for centuries the old roman bronze coins (worn flat) were still in circulation, which is why they didn’t bother to mint any copper/bronze coins until well into the Middle ages.
Futile Gesture and Celyn - you both mention that a Pound note is “too small” and that the coin is better- but here in the USA the populace has resisted strongly any of the new dollar coins, and dollar bills are very much in circulation- and a dollar is worth less than a pound. However- i do agree- we should get rid of the paper dolalr- stop printing them- and even make a $5 coin.
“Dime” is one of the four official units of American money (the other three being dollar, cent, and mil, which nobody’s ever heard of either). But you’re right that “nickel” is a slang term, after the metal from which the five cent coin used to be made (now they’re mostly zinc). Canada has more of the metal than the US does, and made nickel five-cent pieces fairly recently, but I don’t think they do any more either. Penny is also slang, after the British coin: Those little copper (covered) coins are properly called cents. But it should be noted that “penny” and “nickel” refer only to the coins, not to the amounts: If I pay a dollar for something that costs 93 cents, I’ll get seven cents in change. I would not say that I got seven pennies change, since the change would most likely be a nickel and two pennies. Likewise, one would never say “three nickels” in place of “fifteen cents” (unless the amount were actually tendered in three five-cent coins, and probably not even then).
There are also a great many slang terms for “dollar”, but most of them are clear from context (“smackeroos”, “big ones”, etc.). Slang terms for larger amounts are seen sometimes, but not often: A C-note is $100, a grand is $1000, as well as “fin” and “sawbuck” DrDeth mentioned, and “double sawbuck” for $20. Bills can also be referred to by the portrait on them, so a single is a Washington, a five is a Lincoln, a $100 is a Ben Franklin, etc.
Why? Paper money is much lighter and more compact and it’s not all jingly. I avoid carrying change with me whenever possible; it’s such a pain.
Yes, it’s nice that it is lighter - it’s jsut that it seems a good enough habit to leave coins in my pockets, and put paper money in a wallet in my handbag. Therefore, one tends to associate paper with a certain useful amount of money…
So, if one is of very little brain, it can be sad to find tht a couple of the notes are really only pounds.
Conversely, it’s fun to investigate what might be a pocketful of copper coins only to find (oh joy 
) that it is mostly pound coins.
Of courses, all of this might only suggest a lack of money and an inability to organise it.
We still use one pound notes in the Isle of Man. I suppose they are issued by the Isle of Man Bank which is part of the Royal Bank of Scotland.
I personally hate them. gimme those 2 quid two-metal things. I think they were inspired by a certain french coin with a two-metal design.
The Canadian govt phased out the $1 bill in the late 80’s, and the $2 bill in the mid-90’s. In the late 90’s I spent a few years in the US. Having used both systems, here are my thoughts:
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Weight is really a non-issue. Volume and weight differences are overblown to begin with (Try folding a dollar bill into a space the size of a loonie. Good luck.) In the States my wallet would get fat from having lots of singles. Here it gets fat from loonies and toonies. Not much difference. Anyways, one tends to try to spend the large coins rather than using the next largest bill and collecting more change, i.e., pay with a 10 and two toonies rather than a 20 and get 6 bucks back.
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The difference in vending machines alone is worth it. How many times have you struggled to buy a coke with a tattered $1, only to give up? Guess how often that happens with $1 coins.
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The cost to taxpayers of keeping $1 bills in circulation is huge. They last a few months, and they’re not cheap to print. Coins last decades. You’re paying for your preference for paper singles.
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It’s really cool to dig into your change and realize you’ve got 10 bucks in there.
Nugget is another one for the quid.
For larger denominations, don’t forget the archer 
This site says it started in 1663 as a coin worth one pound.