Can you lend me a few bob?

[cd365]

A few bob is on its way out. Youngsters don't use it.

I'm over the age of 40 and don't use it!

 

[albion]

Not a brass farthing even?

 

[pubrunner]

If you really don't know -

A bob was a shilling

Do you remember in the 60s (& possibly early 70s) the Scouts raised money during 'Bob a Job' week ?. They'd go around houses and carry out odd jobs, such as washing a car or cleaning windows etc., for which they'd receive a shilling.

In return, the householder would receive a green sticker (IIRC) which contained a yellow 'tick' mark, to display in a window where it could be seen. This informed other scouts that the house had been 'done' and so they would not call there.

I guess that they'd charge a bit more nowadays !

 

[Dan B]

Do you remember in the 60s (& possibly early 70s) the Scouts raised money during 'Bob a Job' week ?

"Scout Job Week" (as it subsequently was renamed) was still running in the 80s. Going rate was around 50p, ime

 

[BrumJim]

Modern ones:
1) The sign for a level crossing without gates shows a steam engine. This is common across Europe, despite steam engines having been pensioned off many a decade ago.
2) If you save a document in most software packages using the toolbar, you will click on a little image of a 3 1/4" floppy disc. Even though these things are now defunct - when was the last time you saw a computer with a floppy drive in it?

 

[Dan B]

Modern ones:
1) The sign for a level crossing without gates shows a steam engine. This is common across Europe, despite steam engines having been pensioned off many a decade ago.
2) If you save a document in most software packages using the toolbar, you will click on a little image of a 3 1/4" floppy disc. Even though these things are now defunct - when was the last time you saw a computer with a floppy drive in it?

Speed camera signs are similarly retro. And the car pictured in the "no motor vehicles" sign ceased production in the early 80s

 

[Glow worm]

Modern ones:
1) The sign for a level crossing without gates shows a steam engine. This is common across Europe, despite steam engines having been pensioned off many a decade ago.

Some of these speed camera signs look as if they should have a black blanket attached, under which a Victorian Gentleman in a top hat is about to duck to take the shot.

As for metric (shudder), I suspect you are more likely to be done for dealing drugs in ounces nowadays in the UK than for dealing the drugs themselves such is the dedication to duty of the metric facists.

I always read posters on here who write about being say ''3m'' from the kerb for example, as ''3 miles''. I guess that's that's some dedication to adopting primary for you!

 

[lukesdad]

Do you remember in the 60s (& possibly early 70s) the Scouts raised money during 'Bob a Job' week ?. They'd go around houses and carry out odd jobs, such as washing a car or cleaning windows etc., for which they'd receive a shilling.

In return, the householder would receive a green sticker (IIRC) which contained a yellow 'tick' mark, to display in a window where it could be seen. This informed other scouts that the house had been 'done' and so they would not call there.

I guess that they'd charge a bit more nowadays !

Remember it ? I did it, back in the days, when we were allowed to do those kind of things.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

Modern ones:
1) The sign for a level crossing without gates shows a steam engine. This is common across Europe, despite steam engines having been pensioned off many a decade ago.

1968? 1971? 1989? take your pick

The old BR double arrow logo is still used universally to indicate a railway station, despite the fact that it became defunct in 1997.

Are they not allowed to do it in the UK any more?

I don't know, but if they don't, then you can thank the Sun and Daily Wail reader types for cultivating the whole 'Peadofear' scenario.

Every single man without exception is a peado you know, and whats more, *ITS ON THE RISE!! (wailed hysterically)*

How it can be on the increase, I don't know. It is getting detected more, yes, but there isn't some sort of massive rise proportionately in the number of males in the population or anything.

 

[Mozzy]

If you really don't know -

A bob was a shilling

A tanner was 6d (pence) now 2.5p

A shilling is 5 pence (since 1971)

McDonalds is American and Americans never did understand British pre-decimal currency.


(Ice cream vans and the like used interesting counting coventions before 1971 with tourists...

Change was always counted up in days before electronic tills.

The pennies up to the next shilling (always called a bob to confuse them even more) ... 8, 9, [next] bob. Then if possible the next shilling was tanner, ninepence, [next] bob. Then, if the original total was over 10s accept going up to £1 as 20s, if less than 10/- count up to the 10, and call it a [decimalised?] pound (always a quid or nicker to obscure matters).

It was blatant fraud and needed careful targetting but was done by all the street traders. I helped several times on a friend's dad's ice cream van at a London tourist site in the late 1960s and saw it in action. The scale of the fraud was huge and the proceeds, much more than the pay, were shared out at the end of the day. Needless to say I, being scrupulously honest, never joined in with these despicable, discriminatory and illegal practices.

Some Europeans spotted it - particularly the Italians and French - but I don't recall American or Japanese tourists complaining.

I never heard of any prosecutions by Weights and Measures, but there certainly should have been.

The other game, which may still go on, was to let the Americans pay in dollars, which appealed to their conceit about their 'world' currency (a supply of US change was kept in a separate till drawer). The exchange rate was mind-boggling at about a dollar to the bob instead of about 4US$=£1! They were delighted and nearly always thanked the seller for being ripped off for not having to cope with the difficult English money.)

Excellent.

 

[lukesdad]

Are they not allowed to do it in the UK any more?

They still do it here. But not for a bob any more!

11 year olds knocking on doors demanding money with menaces ? I think it still goes on but not under the Scout banner.