FANCY A COUPLE OF BRITNEYS AND AN ANDY MURRAY? COCKNEY RHYMING SLANG GETS A NEW TWIST
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| Andy Murray….curry |
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| Britney Spears…beers |
Would you Adam and Eve it? Traditional Cockney rhyming slang, in use since the 18th Century and which many language experts feared was dying out, is being given a new twist in London’s East End.
The new “Popney” (popular Cockney) features the names of modern-day celebrities and is becoming widely used throughout the city according to researchers.
Now, a couple of Britneys (Spears) means beers, a Winona (Ryder) is cider and Paul Weller has replaced Nelson Mandella for Stella.
The new argot has even reached the boardroom where executives in a meeting are said to be “in a Ronan” (Irish pop star Ronan Keating).
If you’re Hank Marvin (starving) you go for an Andy Murray.
What a Steffi (Graf)!
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