|
The fortnightly British satirical magazine ''Private Eye'' has long had a reputation for using euphemistic and irreverent substitute names and titles for persons, groups and organisations and has coined a number of expressions to describe sex, drugs, alcohol and other aspects of human activity. Over the years these names and expressions have become in-jokes, used frequently in the magazine without explanation. Some have passed into general usage and can be found in other media and everyday conversation. == Euphemisms == *"Ugandan discussions", or a variation thereof (such as "discussing Ugandan affairs"), is often used as a euphemism for sex, usually while carrying out a supposedly official duty. The term originally referred to an incident at a party hosted by journalist Neal Ascherson and his first wife, at which fellow journalist Mary Kenny allegedly had a "meaningful confrontation" with a former cabinet minister in the government of Milton Obote, later claiming that they were "upstairs discussing Uganda". The poet James Fenton apparently coined the term.〔 The saying is sometimes wrongly said to derive from a slanderous lie told by the late Ugandan dictator Idi Amin about his female foreign minister, when he claimed that he had fired her on 28 November 1974 for having sex with an unnamed white man in a toilet at a Paris airport, but his lie came over 20 months after the phrase was first used by ''Private Eye'' on 9March 1973.〔Adrian Room ''Brewer's Dictionary of Modern Phrase and Fable'', London: Cassell, 2000, pp. 714–5〕 The euphemism has variations: for example, before his marriage a senior member of the Royal family allegedly went on holiday with an aging ex-Page Three girl, whereupon ''Private Eye'' reported he had contracted a "Ugandan virus". In 1996, "Getting back to basics" was suggested as a replacement euphemism after the policy of the same name adopted by John Major's government, which some ''Private Eye'' contributors regarded as hypocritical. This view was vindicated by Conservative MP Edwina Currie's subsequent confirmation of a four-year affair with John Major in her book ''Diaries''. *"Playing an away match in Uganda" is euphemistic for an illicit sexual liaison especially pertaining to married persons. *"Exotic cheroot" is used as a euphemism for a cigarette containing cannabis. *"Tired and emotional" was a phrase used to describe 1960s Labour party cabinet minister and Deputy Leader George Brown, who was an alcoholic. It first appeared in ''Private Eye'' in a parody memo supposedly informing civil servants how to describe Brown's conduct and state of mind. Due to the near-impossibility of proving intoxication without forensic evidence, journalists came to use the phrase as a way of describing drunkenness without inviting libel charges. In 1957 a trio of Labour politicians, Aneurin Bevan, Morgan Phillips and Richard Crossman, successfully sued ''The Spectator'' over just such an allegation, which Crossman admitted in his diary was true of one of the three. The phrase was allegedly first used by a BBC press officer in November 1963, as a description of Brown's condition when interviewed at very short notice on the night of the assassination of John F. Kennedy; the magazine subsequently borrowed the phrase.〔Nicholas Comfort ''Brewer's Politics'', London: Cassell, 1995, p.617〕 However, doubt must be cast on this claim because the programme on which Brown appeared was not broadcast by the BBC but by Associated-Rediffusion.〔Peter Paterson, "Tired and Emotional: The Life of Lord George-Brown", Chatto & Windus, London, 1993, pp. 147–164 ''passim''.〕 * 'Arkell v. Pressdram' was one of the frequent allegations of libel against the magazine, notable for its correspondence. The plaintiff's lawyers wrote a letter which concluded: "His attitude to damages will be governed by the nature of your reply." The magazine's response was, in full: "We acknowledge your letter of 29th April referring to Mr J. Arkell. We note that Mr Arkell's attitude to damages will be governed by the nature of our reply and would therefore be grateful if you would inform us what his attitude to damages would be, were he to learn that the nature of our reply is as follows: fuck off." In the years following, the magazine would refer to this exchange as a euphemism for a blunt and coarse dismissal: for example, "We refer you to the reply given in the case of Arkell v. Pressdram". *''"Trebles all round!"'' is often quoted to have been said by one who has, purportedly, made money as the result of corrupt or venal activity. *''(Takes out onion)'' is a mock stage direction inserted in articles when someone is allegedly faking sorrow (crocodile tears). Onions are well known for inducing tears when close to the eyes and were a useful prop for actors who were required to 'cry' in dramatic scenes, regardless of whether they would naturally be feeling sadness or despair. To this end, the phrase is therefore usually used to denote hypocrisy. It occurs as early as 1915, in cartoons by W. Heath Robinson. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Recurring in-jokes in Private Eye」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|