Comments
TooMad t1_iqqhxfy wrote
That's less vulgar than I was hoping for.
theservman t1_iqr030q wrote
Put your fig leaf in my basket?
gregorydgraham t1_iqsmdjp wrote
The British are weirdly hung up on “bastard”
BrokenEye3 t1_iqq1vtm wrote
TIL "bastard" was once considered obscene enough to require a euphemism
grat_is_not_nice t1_iqq3xws wrote
And my invention thrive, Edmund the base. Shall top the legitimate.
I grow; I prosper: Now, gods, stand up for baskets*!*
William Shakespeare, writing for the BBC
locks_are_paranoid t1_iqq71qd wrote
The real TIL is always in the comments.
[deleted] t1_iqr24w1 wrote
It’s still considered a curse word in the UK (and places like India)
NoNeedForAName t1_iqwo8kv wrote
It's a curse word in the US, too, but a mild one like damn or hell. At least in my part of the US.
SuperJetShoes t1_irydxfl wrote
Brit here. I'm sure most of my compatriots will agree that it's still quite a strong insult/profanity in the UK - but it needs to be spat out angrily, as in these fine examples from Sean Bean.
dmk_aus t1_iqr5dy9 wrote
And for the euphemism to also be banned.
xX609s-hartXx t1_iqr5ita wrote
I remember Orwell saying it was the worst word you could call a British man during the 30s/40s.
Inevitable-Year-9422 t1_iqr1y5f wrote
I feel dumb because I can't tell if you're joking or not
dizzley t1_iqqajeh wrote
I seem to remember hearing this in conversation in the 1960s in the UK: “you silly old basket”. I was just a kid and it was just a harmless bantering insult. It was really old fashioned even then. My parents banned me from saying “twit” though.
wkomorow t1_iqrv4sq wrote
Bloody hell!, could you image what little dialogue Owen Newitt would have is if he were banned from saying things like that. One of my favorite episodes is the swear jar episode.
DexterBotwin t1_iqqdlgn wrote
Is the fig leaves because it’s what Adam and Eve are usually shown covered up with?
FriendlyPyre t1_iqrw3fe wrote
That explains why it's still sometimes used as an interjection in Singapore, always wondered where it came from.
themanfromoctober t1_iqquuks wrote
I learned Lucky basket from the Likely Lads
Rin_Seven t1_iqsnjxd wrote
So a 'basket case' is actually a bastard instead of a crazy person?
BrokenEye3 t1_iqux8yv wrote
Apparently not, but the official etymology makes zero sense to me
Alsaki96 t1_iqzwqnp wrote
When my great aunt was in primary school she was on a trip one day and unexpectedly saw her father (affectionately known in the family as dirty Bertie) pushing a pram with their nanny. Turns out he had a whole other family and she still talked about the 'baskets' up until her death a few years ago. Had never heard it anywhere else!
[deleted] t1_iqr012n wrote
[deleted]
Jaggedmallard26 t1_iqrugv4 wrote
I wonder if thats were the term "basket case" comes from.
minutemash t1_iqtn95l wrote
"Bassssstard in a BASKET!"
- Daniel Plainview
Snuggly-Muffin t1_iqpdg46 wrote
i wana put my fig leaves in your basket
BrokenEye3 t1_iqq1yby wrote
Later
Cold_Situation_7803 t1_iqratcd wrote
Enough with the sexy talk - this isn’t that kind of sub!
GeraldoFubar t1_iqpek96 wrote
And then Monty Python came around and said, "Hold my pint and watch this..."
wegqg t1_iqqq51y wrote
No they were actually relatively tame at least initially - they did push barriers but nothing like what Peter Cooke & Co had done.
xX609s-hartXx t1_iqr5pdu wrote
I don't know those other guys but did they have a guy who got so fat he exploded in full detail?
Cold_Situation_7803 t1_iqrawfj wrote
That was in a movie, not on their TV show.
xX609s-hartXx t1_iqrfhc0 wrote
Wasn't that a movie made up of patched together TV clips?
DoofusMagnus t1_iqrsh7j wrote
No, Mr. Creosote (the guy who explodes) is from The Meaning of Life. The film that was repurposed TV sketches was And Now for Something Completely Different.
Cold_Situation_7803 t1_iqrl9ig wrote
No, it was way too racy for tv (and about a decade after “Flying Circus” went off the air).
BrokenEye3 t1_iquxgcy wrote
Had a visibly higher budget too.
nalydpsycho t1_iqro4lu wrote
It really is interesting to think how British co edy changed over the 15 year span from late 60s to early 80s. I can totally get why people were stunned by it. But I love the changes.
TepidHalibut t1_iqrzut1 wrote
But, going further back, The Goon Show REALLY shook things up, and set the scene for the Pythons, Pete n Dud, etc. Spike Milligan is the perfect illustration of the thin, blurred line between genius and madness.
BillHicksScream t1_iqsftpa wrote
Wankle Rotary Engine.
kapege t1_iqraajo wrote
Why did my mind read this in a very Bri'ish accent?
SillyCubensis t1_iqpc8fv wrote
Piss, shit, cock, cunt, motherfucker, bitch, tits.
iwannagohome49 t1_iqpdrf5 wrote
*fig, baskets
critfist t1_iqph2b0 wrote
Alright motherfucker that's too far, I'm revoking your comedy license!
Card_Zero t1_iqpf7as wrote
semprini
Ludwigofthepotatoppl t1_iqphw66 wrote
bobby cops descend
BrokenEye3 t1_iquxxlp wrote
Belgium
kapege t1_iqra6jn wrote
McGillycuddy of the Reeks
GrahamCrackerSnacks t1_iqpnej3 wrote
First time caller, long time listener here but how does one use the word “basket” in an overtly vulgar manner? Asking for a friend.
PN_Guin t1_iqqhd5o wrote
It used to be an euphemism for "bastard".
v1s1onsofjohanna t1_iqr9di8 wrote
"Banned too was any reference to The McGillycuddy of the Reeks, or jokes about his name, in response to previous complaints." I still haven't found an answer as to why this family was specifically protected.
Phantomzero17 t1_iqtupjk wrote
The real TIL in the comments
sweetteanoice t1_iqpriin wrote
Makes total sense they wouldnt allow the use of such a vulgar work like basket during one of their minstrel shows!
Peepsandspoops t1_iqriw9q wrote
I'm really surprised that that show lasted like 20 years.
ketjap-manis t1_iqq8zw8 wrote
There's lots of things like this at the BBC including a pronunciations internal website for broadcasters etc.
Ex beeb.
BillTowne t1_iqrgpj7 wrote
> The word "n-----" was banned, although the phrase "N----- Minstrels" was still tolerated.
Reminds my of when I was a child. My parents never used "n-------" except to say "Brazil nuts" since that was the only phrase for them at the time.
Pure-KingOfSkill t1_iqskjro wrote
What the what
turniphat t1_iqsmyqt wrote
Just1morefix t1_iqph1th wrote
"I tell you what, I'll gladly do you from behind. Provided of course you reach behind and gently cup my basket. Thanks in advance!"
paullbart t1_iqpo46a wrote
Where’s mi wash board
TronOld_Dumps t1_iqpjcix wrote
Got some fig leaves to clean up your cum basket.
theservman t1_iqr0clk wrote
Don't call my wife a "cum basket"!
Wryot t1_iqrhe7m wrote
Why would fig leaves be a banned topic?
BuccaneerRex t1_iqrpmf3 wrote
The 'fig leaf' is used in classical art to hide the genitals. Sometimes it's intended by the artist, sometimes they're added in recreations of the art. It's common to see, for example, Michelangelo's David in miniature with a leaf over the twig and berries.
It's actually that rule that probably led to this specific Monty Python sketch:
Thus the term 'fig leaf' as meaning a 'polite fiction to hide what we all know is there', and the use of 'fig leaf' in the same sense that we might use 'bathing suit area'. Although perhaps not in the same scenarios.
Cetun t1_iqsecwv wrote
"Fuck you, I won't do what you tell me"
[deleted] t1_iqphplb wrote
[removed]
drion4 t1_iqpy1nk wrote
Knowing the British, fig leaves and baskets may have some double-meaning.
Wakayamaben t1_iqqvgrj wrote
I thought basket was from basket case, as in a reference to mental illness.
kyste t1_iqr4635 wrote
They had to after George Formby did the windows at BBC hq.
verasev t1_iqr5k53 wrote
"He's a real basket-case if you know what I mean."
Fine_bobby t1_iqr8sz3 wrote
This reads like an excerpt out of hitchhikers guide
Livid-Ad4102 t1_iqsewu1 wrote
I'd love for this to be re-written in that exact style haha
RolfDasWalross t1_iqredm8 wrote
I thought Gaddafi published the green book
angry_old_dude t1_iqsun4l wrote
Some tiskits, some taskets, she's has giant, uh, baskets
D3monVolt t1_iqswp6w wrote
what do you get when you stuff fig leaves in your ass? Basket
CorvusBlackthorne t1_irllnw6 wrote
This sounds like part of a Monty Python sketch.
GarysCrispLettuce t1_iqpcnl8 wrote
Cancel culture
Narvarre t1_iqpfipl wrote
Back then it was The Hays Code, Cancel culture nobs couldn't even be original.
The history of the code is worth looking up, it a good read.
BillHicksScream t1_iqsfotm wrote
>"I have 10-15 nouns that explain humanity."
Winter-Adagio7650 t1_iqpwzjn wrote
Why did I see BBC and think this was about something else?
Livid-Ad4102 t1_iqsftxm wrote
The big black cock released a book? Really?
shimi_shima t1_iqpgz85 wrote
FYI for the curious like me: Basket (old UK usage) is a euphemism for “bastard”
Source: https://greensdictofslang.com/entry/ngppq4i