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Bow bells is the name given to the peal of bells belonging to the church of St Mary-Ie-Bow, Cheapside, London, and celebrated for centuries. One who is born 'within the sound of Bow Bells' is considered a genuine Cockney.
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Baroness Angela Burdett-Coutts was an English philanthropist. She was born in 1814 and died in 1906. Her name was taken for the London Cockney rhyming slang for boots - Burdett-Coutts.
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Cockney is a term which was originally applied (with regard to people) to the inhabitants of any town, and implied their ignorance of farming and agriculture. During the 17th century its use became limited to the inhabitants of London, and more recently to those born within the sound of the bells of St Mary-le-Bow (Bow bells) in London. The cockney dialect is chiefly characterised by the substitution of f or v for th (e.g. brover for brother), of ah for ou (e.g. rahnd for round) and ou for o (nou for no) and also a tendency to nasalise many vowels. Other peculiarities are substituting a long i for a long a (e.g. lidy for lady) and oi for i (foin for fine) and the dropping or misplacement of the letter h ('e for he) and of pronouncing many words ending in 'ts' as two syllables, as though there were an 'e' between the 't' and the 's'.
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A Gothamite is a person from Gotham. The term is also used to describe a fool or an American cockney.
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Thomas Hood was an English poet and humorist. He was born in 1799 at London and died in 1845. During a residence at Dundee, and while only fifteen or sixteen years old, he contributed articles to a local paper and magazine. In 1821 he became sub-editor of the London Magazine, and in 1826 appeared his Whims and Oddities, which was followed by National Tales and a volume of serious poetry. From 1829 to 1837 he conducted his Comic Annual. At the same time his pen was employed on other subjects, and he published The Epping Hunt, a comic poem, ridiculing Cockney sportsmen; Eugene Aram's Dream, inserted in the Gem, of which he was for a short time editor; and Tylney Hall, a novel. In 1837, on the termination of the Comic Annual, he commenced a monthly periodical entitled Hood's Own, which consisted chiefly of selections from the former work.
His health now began to fail, and with a view to its recovery he paid a visit to the Continent. While there in 1839 he published his Up the Rhine, which, based on the lines of Humphrey Clinker, was very popular. Shortly after hia return he undertook the editorship of the New Monthly Magazine, and continued it until 1843. His principal contributions to it he published separately, under the title of Whimsicalities. His last periodical, entitled Hood's Magazine, was commenced in 1844; but his health shortly afterwards completely broke down, and his death occurred in the following year. It was during his last illness that he contributed to Punch The Song of a Shirt, The Bridge of Sighs, and The Lay of a Labourer. Thomas Hood is unrivalled as a punster, and he possesses a singular power of combining the humorous with the pathetic. He had the satisfaction of knowing that the pension of 100 pounds conferred upon him on his last illness by Sir Robert Peel was to be transferred to his wife.
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Alfie Bass was an English cockney comedy actor. He was born in 1921 and died in 1987 of a heart attack.
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Alfred Glenville Vance or Great Vance (real name Alfred Peck Stevens) was a British comedian and actor. He was born in 1838 at London and died in 1888. He became a touring actor, and later opened a dancing-school at Liverpool. He again toured as a character singer before appearing on the variety stage at the Metropolitan and South London music halls, where his humorous cockney songs soon became popular.
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Bernard Bresslaw is an English cockney comedy actor. He was born in 1933. First well-known for his role as 'Popeye' in the television comedy series 'The Army Game' he later became a regular in the 'Carry On' series of films.
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Bruce Forsyth is a British actor and television presenter. He was born in 1928 at London. He first came to prominence hosting 'Sunday Night at the London Palladium' which he hosted from 1957 to 1961 before hosting 'The Generation Game' from 1971 to 1977 and again from 1990 to 1994, but he also appeared in the 1971 'Bedknobs and Broomsticks' playing the Cockney henchman 'Swinburne' and in the 1983 'Anna Pavlova' playing Alfred Batt as well as other films and hosting other television shows.
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Dick Van Dyke is an American actor. He was born in 1925 at West Plains, Missouri. Dick Van Dyke shot to stardom for his role as 'Bert' in the 1964 film 'Mary Poppins', despite presenting the worse fake Cockney accent ever heard before or since.
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The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
©1993 - 2009 The Probert Encyclopaedia
Southampton, United Kingdom
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