strange expletives passed down

[Stanwix England]

I remember being called a 'barnpot' by my Mum when I was silly. She could have got it from her Leeds born Dad or Sunderland born Mum.

[bykerlads]

From my West Yorks childhood, 2 expressions of surprise:
-well, I'll go to the foot of our stairs!
- well, I was fair capped!

[LizzieW]

We used the expression barmy for someone silly, perhaps your barnpot is similar and in Lancashire it was barmpot.  We used to say I'll go to the foot of our stairs, but as my ancestors came from Lancashire, Cheshire, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire in the 1900s, I think the expressions my parents used were a mixture of them all.

[Greensleeves]

My mother's favourite when cross:  Oh, my Gordon Highlanders! 

[confused73]

I rather like the Welsh nefi blw and bobl bach.

[ankerdine]

Llandinam - I must try that on my daughter-in-law from Carmarthenshire!

I love this topic - I have been laughing out loud this morning.

Can anyone tell me what this means or where it comes from?

My mum used to say when I was a very small child "Today I'm going to work like Billy O". Is it something to do with William of Orange?

Judy

[confused73]

Yes I can remember hearing that one but like you no idea what it means, but it certainly could refer to William of Orange, be interesting to hear if anyone knows.

[bykerlads]

My grandma used to say "crickey Moses!"
One interesting thing about expletives/swear-words is how the exact translation from, say, French or Italian does not give any indication of usage or acceptability. Foreign words which "mean" something really very rude in English are not viewed in the same way by their speakers.
EG: some years ago the GCSE German Listening exam had the expletive"Ach Sch**sse!" in it- a sure indication that it is not as unacceptable an exclamation as its English "translation" ( you can just imagine the electric-schock of thrilled disbelief which ran through the exam hall full of 16 year-old candidates on hearing it!)
A colleague once pointed out that her French grandmother( 90 years old, very refined) often was heard to say "m**de"- my grandmother would never in a million years have uttered the English "translation" of this word, which in French is clearly not such a strong expletive.

[Guyana]

Muckhack/Muck hack,I haven't a clue what it means but it was aimed at me in our house..

The only interpretation I know of Much Hack is that it is a long handled fork with the tines turned at right-angles, for pulling manure from a cart. Can't see the connection, though.