"A load of old cobblers" and variants such as "what a load of cobblers" or just "cobblers!" is British slang for "what nonsense" that is derived from the Cockney rhyming slang for "balls" (testicles) of "cobbler's awls". The phrase began to be widely used from the 1960s and is still in use but has become less offensive over time as its origins have been forgotten.

Origins

The phrase originated as

Cockney rhyming slang Rhyming slang is a form of slang word construction in the English language. It is especially prevalent among Cockneys in England, and was first used in the early 19th century in the East End of London; hence its alternative name, Cockney rhymin ...

where "cobblers" refers to

cobbler Cobbler(s) may refer to: *A person who Shoemaking, repairs, and sometimes makes, shoes Places * The Cobbler, a mountain located near the head of Loch Long in Scotland * Mount Cobbler, Australia Art, entertainment and media * The Cobbler (1923 ...

awls Awl may refer to: Tools * Bradawl, a woodworking hand tool for making small holes * Scratch awl, a woodworking layout and point-making tool used to scribe a line * Stitching awl, a tool for piercing holes in a variety of materials such as leathe ...

which rhymes with "balls" (

testicles A testicle or testis (plural testes) is the male reproductive gland or gonad in all bilaterians, including humans. It is homologous to the female ovary. The functions of the testes are to produce both sperm and androgens, primarily testostero ...

), as in the exclamation " Balls!" for "Nonsense!". The use of the rhyme allows a taboo word, in this case the vulgar exclamation "balls!", to be avoided. The use of "cobblers" as a synonym for balls dates back to at least the 1930s.

Contemporary use

The term "load of old cobblers" and similar variants only gained wide currency from the 1960s, for instance in

British sitcom A British sitcom or a Britcom is a situational comedy programme produced for British television. Most British sitcoms are recorded on studio sets, while some have an element of location filming. A handful are made almost exclusively on location ...

s such as ''

Steptoe and Son ''Steptoe and Son'' is a British sitcom written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson about a father-and-son rag-and-bone business in 26a Oil Drum Lane, a fictional street in Shepherd's Bush, London. Four series were broadcast by the BBC in black and w ...

'' (1962–74) which featured two rag-and-bone men based in west London. It has also been exported to Australia and other countries to which the British have migrated and according to

Collins Collins may refer to: People Surname Given name * Collins O. Bright (1917–?), Sierra Leonean diplomat * Collins Chabane (1960–2015), South African Minister of Public Service and Administration * Collins Cheboi (born 1987), Kenyan middle- ...

became popular with the

tabloid press Tabloid journalism is a popular style of largely sensationalist journalism (usually dramatized and sometimes unverifiable or even blatantly false), which takes its name from the tabloid newspaper format: a small-sized newspaper also known as ...

Eric Partridge Eric Honeywood Partridge (6 February 1894 – 1 June 1979) was a New Zealand– British lexicographer of the English language, particularly of its slang. His writing career was interrupted only by his service in the Army Education Corps an ...

and his successors mention that the phrase and its cousin "cobblers to you!" is often used by people unaware of its vulgar origins and has become less offensive.Partridge, Eric, & Paul Beale (Ed.) (1984)
A Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English
'. 8th edition. Abingdon: Routledge. p. 691. . Partridge suggests that a comparison with "cod's wallop" (complete rubbish) is inevitable. In 2016, Sir James Dyson said that concerns that Britain's international trade would be damaged by Brexit were "absolute cobblers". ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' used the phrase in 2018 to describe comments made by the sports coach Eddie Jones, saying "Nice try, Eddie, but what a load of old cobblers." In February 2019, ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'' used it in a comparison of beauty products, saying "Whether or not you think crystals are a load of old cobblers, I guarantee you'll fall hook line and sinker ..." It has also been used as a pun in a headline after builders covered cobbles with asphalt. In the TV series

Yes Minister ''Yes Minister'' is a British political satire sitcom written by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn. Comprising three seven-episode series, it was first transmitted on BBC2 from 1980 to 1984. A sequel, ''Yes, Prime Minister'', ran for 16 episodes fr ...

, the term was used in the episode ''Equal Opportunities'' where the characters are describing what code to use on a letter - "It stands for Consignment of Geriatric Shoe Manufacturers. Load of old cobblers, Minister."https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0751809/quotes/?ref_=tt_trv_qu IMDb

References

External links

{{Wiktionary inline, cobblers British English idioms British slang

Origins

Contemporary use

See also

References

External links