Slang Entry # 13 - iggie

iggie noun a feigned ignorance. Circus and carnival usage. Often used in the phrase 'give them the iggie' US, 1961

Slang Entry # 12 - gnat's piss

gnat's piss noun a weak beverage such as tea or beer UK, 1984

Slang Entry # 11 - lookie-loo

lookie-loo noun 1 a customer who enjoys looking at merchandise but has no intention of buying, US 1978. 2 an inquisitive observer. A Los Angeles term, personified in the character Look-Loo Woman in Quentin Tarantino's 1994 film Pulp Fiction US, 1989

Slang Entry # 10 - cockaleekie

cockaleekie adjective impudent, cheeky. Rhyming slang, formed on a type of soup UK, 1998

The Archive at Reading University and Live on BBC Radio 5

Today I witnessed the birth of several of Eric Partridge's books eighty-odd years ago. Together with Routledge's Andrea Harthill I went to the Archive at Reading University and had a delightful time browsing ancient correspondence that seems as immediate as e-mail - one letter from his publisher asked 'Dear Partridge' to postpone a meeting until later in the day that the note was sent. The Archive is a treasure.

also:
On Sunday I am due to do an interview for BBC Radio 5 Live.

Have fun

Terry

Slang Entry # 9 - jakey

jakey noun 1 Jamaica ginger, a fruit flavoured alcoholic drink CANADA, 1999. 2 a meths drinker, thus an alcoholic in desperate staits. From JAKE (methylated spirits as an alcoholic drink) UK, 2001

jakey adjective 1 alcoholic UK, 2002. 2 socially inept, unaware of current fashions and trends US, 1989. 3 odd looking US, 1964. 4 said of a light jail sentence. JAKE (methylated spirits as an alcoholic drink) UK, 2000

Slang Entry # 8 - no way!

no way! used for expressing disbelief at that which has just been said US, 1968.

no way, Jose used as a humorous, if emphatic, denial. The catchy reduplication makes this a favourite early in a young person's process of slang acquisition US, 1981.