Why are “folk” a standard for queerdom? Where does the phrase for the Showtime series come from? This might be a General Question, but I thought Cafe Society might allow for broader discussion.
It’s an old saying, “There’s nought so queer as folk,” which means “There’s nothing as strange as people,” or, more idiomatically, “People are funny.”
It’s a Northern English saying…“There’s nowt so queer as folk”, which means that of all the strange things in the world, there’s nothing so odd as human beings and the way we act. When they decided to make a drama about a group of gay men in Manchester, I’d imagine they remembered the saying, realized that “queer” had a double meaning, and used it for the title.
“There’s nowt as queer as folk” is a venerable Lancashire expression meaning “[shrug], people are strange”. Gay British folk have a history of wordplay (The film about Joe Orton, “Prick Up Your Ears” obviously refers to an anagram orifice). The term “Queer as fuck” was used in posters and - IIRC - magazines as a way of outing people in the the late 80s and early 90s. I seem to remember some litigation. I assume the TV programme (which I haven’t seen) is a remake of the UK series of the same name.
Just to say it is deffinately ‘nowt’ not ‘naught’ as this is a Lancastrian saying. For best results say it whilst wearing a cloth cap and walking a whippet.
'Libertarian changed name to Liberal, well ‘t all goes to show that there’s nowt as queer as folks.’ - Bippy wanders off looking for Foggy and Clegg.
Yes, I realized just after clicking “submit” that I should have used that spelling.
–Biffy the Elephant Shrew (never been north of Cambridgeshire)
It is indeed an American version of the UK series of the same name. So, it’s not surprising that the expression is British.
Whatever you do, don’t climb into that contraption that will let you ride around the country roads in style - it’s sure to go out of control and crash into that old stone wall!
And stay away from Nora Batty.