“The powder room”. Or what do you call it?

Maw the history books at primary school ...way back in the early 60's said "garde loo" came from "Regardez l'eau" If you know different/better thats fine .In Edinburgh two years ago with my Canadian cousin the bus tour guide repeated the same thing so I'll stick with that thanks .The Edinburgh that was at the heart of the Auld Alliance in the 1400's .Maybe they spoke more grammatical French by the time Mary Stuart came along ..who knows

My grandmother, mother and aunt always said, 'Going to see auntie'

I think I was about nine when I first heard, 'Going to the loo' and that's what I've said ever since.

I'm an adult and really have no need to tell anyone where I'm going or why.

When I was little, aeons ago, living in India, my ayah called it soo-soo.

As I said Paddyann there are various (similar) theories. If your primary school book knew better, so be it.

Howabout my MiL's "going to the tut" and of course the Aussie "going to the dunny" !

I say going to the loo. My granny used to say she was going to the lav, which I hate for some reason. Once when out for dinner my husband disappeared for a long time. My friend said he must have gone for a long sit down, which I thought was none of her business!

I sont think that regardedz l'eau was only used in Scotland paddy. I have been told a similar story lots of times on guided tours in England.

I always say loo, sometimes wee but we always announce it in our house as the bathroom door has no lock on it. My daughter always seemed to have have her seizures in the bathroom so we took the lock off and its never been replaced.

Loo,toilet or boy's /girl's room

Someone I know says rattle the porcelain

My friend used to say,' going to the head'; he was privately educated so I think it must have come from there. At school, it was called 'the bogs' but I would never have said that at home (1960s).

Loo or wee. My Nan used to say 'use the lavvy'.

I need the potty!!

I think spending a penny is being generous these days, as it costs a fortune to go to the loo.

Gosh, I've inspired a thread!

I occasionally refer to powder room as a throw back to my childhood when ladies lavatories in department stores were often called that. Jenner's in Edinburgh called their facilities 'powder room' well into the 1980's!

I think I mostly say loo, or with dh, going for a wee/pee, if I feel I need to announce it at all.

In Indonesia it's called the wah-say (WC) and in Nigeria you go to 'ease yourself'.

I would depending on the company, either say "I need to wee", or, "I'm going to the toilet".

In very formal company, I would just say, "Excuse me a minute, please." and leave the room.

At school we either said, "May I leave the room, please?" or "May I be excused, please?" so I might even use some version of one of these.

I think it is only in England that "lavatory" is considered acceptable. It wasn't in my childhood in Scotland, where the polite word was "toilet", although you could say, as most Americans do that you needed the bathroom.

I friend of mine who grew up in Pakistan, says she is going to the wash-room.

In France they used to talk about going to le petit coin, the small corner.

I think the word lavatory is perfectly acceptable in any company,

I have heard " just going to drop off Mr Brown "

I can remember some very glam powder rooms from my youth/childhood in the likes of Jenner’s, Forsyths, and Harrods. Mum would take me for afternoon tea and the visit to the “Ladies’ powder room” was part of the treat!
The sort with an attendant to hang your (mink?ha ha) coat up for you - on a padded hanger of course, an easy chair or chaise longue to “rest” on, proper triptych dressing table mirrors to check your hair from both sides, hair spray and even a selection of perfume atomisers too! I remember she could dispense safety pins in an emergency and even an aspirin.
Worth every penny - but of course free .
Oh happy days.

sodapop that is gross!

Yes, exactly that in Jenners, MawB!

Jenners introduced a baby room around the time I had my first daughter. It was luxury. Beautiful chairs to sit in for breastfeeding and lovely decor & facilities. I'd have cheerfully had a nap in there, if I hadn't had two boys and their dad waiting for me.

Lol at gransal and sitting down. When I was young and on days out my older brother would often come back from a public loo very quickly because there were "no sitting down toilets". It was only much later that I realised that this was to do with needing a poo rather than sitting or standing!!

I say loo. My DH has suddenly started saying 'going for a tinkle' which drives me mad. My brother says he's off to 'water his horse'.

Batheoom or lavatory does it for me!

I say I m just going to the loo, but my grandad always used to say he was off to point Percy at the porcelain and the other one was he was going to see a man about a dog. My mum, bless her , always went to spend a penny as you used to have to put an old penny in the public toilet door to use it