nannarose. I was truly shocked when I realised one day that my Mum and Granddad's San Fairy Ann, was in fact their version of ça ne fait rien, which Granddad has obviously learned in WW1 in France. He also used to point out that something was "kaput" if it needed fixing. A German word.
When asked for something which we couldn't find, Mum would often respond that it was probably "up in Annie's room behind the clock". A family friend had very bandy legs and he was described as someone who "couldn't stop a pig in a passage" and a response to what's for supper, would often be "bread and pullit" or 'pig's bum" (I sometimes make a pudding now called Pig's Bum and always laugh when I think of the childhood remark!) Granddad, if told off by my Gran for using any bad words in front of the children would always respond "well, it's enough to make a Parson swear". Anyone a bit slow and not very bright would often be referred to as "dim as a Toc H lamp". As regards "A dying duck in a thunderstorm" - in our house the remark was always aimed at anyone who looked miserable or out of sorts. And if your hair was untidy or windblown, my Mum would say "you look like a besom in a fit" and, for herself, if she wasn't happy with how she looked to go out, she'd say she looked like "Whistler's Mother" or "The Wreck of the Hesperous". Both paintings, but something she wouldn't have known.
I think it's wonderful how some of the sayings that our own Grandparents used have been passed down through the years and well remembered, especially when they are regional ones.
William and Catherine’s Anniversary Photo
