Cycleops
Legendary Member
- Location
- Accra, Ghana
I was reading a plug for a new book about this recently and it took me back to Sunday lunchtimes in the sixties when Round the Horne was broadcast. Kenneth Williams and Hugh Paddock took the parts of Julian and Sandy who appeared every week in a new sketch with Kenneth Horne.
Remember homosexuality was still illegal then so it was useful to communicate in a way so that outsiders couldn't understand.
Mary Whitehouse was leading a campaign to clean up television but she might have overlooked the medium of radio. Scriptwriters Barry Took and Marty Feldman always took the opportunity to drop in as many 'double entendres' as possible. Even by today's standards the material was very risqué but apparently the BBC bosses were so fuddy duddy they just didn't get it so never censored it.
Polari if you don't know was a language developed by gays, much like cockney slang.
Can't remember much of it but here's a few translations ;
Palomi....Man
Omee Palomi...Woman
Vada... look/see
Bona...good
Vera....gin
Eek....face
So “Bona to vada your dolly old eek" is Good to see your nice old face.
View: https://youtu.be/E_w8qa2sMMQ
Anybody else remember the show and these characters with affection?
Remember homosexuality was still illegal then so it was useful to communicate in a way so that outsiders couldn't understand.
Mary Whitehouse was leading a campaign to clean up television but she might have overlooked the medium of radio. Scriptwriters Barry Took and Marty Feldman always took the opportunity to drop in as many 'double entendres' as possible. Even by today's standards the material was very risqué but apparently the BBC bosses were so fuddy duddy they just didn't get it so never censored it.
Polari if you don't know was a language developed by gays, much like cockney slang.
Can't remember much of it but here's a few translations ;
Palomi....Man
Omee Palomi...Woman
Vada... look/see
Bona...good
Vera....gin
Eek....face
So “Bona to vada your dolly old eek" is Good to see your nice old face.
View: https://youtu.be/E_w8qa2sMMQ
Anybody else remember the show and these characters with affection?
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