When my oldest son was at school here, he used to come home in the afternoons raving about some character called Steve O'Steen. We had no idea who this Mr O'Steen was, but were informed that he was some sort of super-hero.
It was several years later that we discovered he was in fact 'Steve Austin' (the Six Million Dollar Man). The French pronunciation making him sound so much more exotic.
On another occasion I was listening to a French radio station when they announced an upcoming interview with Jean Matisse. Thinking that this was probably a son of the painter Henri, I marked the date in my diary and subsequently listened to the programme. It turned out to be Johnny Mathis.
Have you had similar problems?
No but I failed a whole spelling test when I was younger but they included the words
ReplyDeletebath, castle, grass, Auntie, etc.............. I grew up in London and remember wondering why every one said barf if it's spelt bath !
Many years ago, we were asking directions to Ulgham in Northumberland, where we lived at the time…….blank looks all round…it is pronounced " Uffam". Also, have you heard of Looboroo, or Louchbrouch? Differing ways of saying " Loughborough", not far from Leicester also known as Lycester, where we were brought up!
ReplyDeleteThere was a wonderful Guinness advert where two French men were in a bar asking for Guinsh.. Guish.. Guinshish.. etc.
DeleteI was in Greece asking for a cd with the song of the singer Elfeteria Arvanitaki but no one could understand me.
ReplyDeleteI think my blog and my comments are good examples for a case where there are more mistakes than words.
My favourite that still makes me laugh is my daughter aged three asking me to sing the song about the 'bear with the sausages'. It took a long time and a VERY tearful, frustrated three year old before I realised she meant 'Bear Necessities'.
ReplyDeleteThere was little Alex's version of Bastion Schweinsteiger recently which took me a moment of shocked silence to work out. I love deliberately confusing the Portuguese for 'battery', Pilha, with the Portuguese slang for c**k, Pila, Being a foreigner I can get away with walking up to a pretty shop assistant and asking for a large one.
ReplyDeleteOr how about a Cucumber Peeler?
DeleteI was living in Newcastle when Montgomery died. When I told my then boyfriend I had just heard it on the radio he went into shock and asked me what had happened. I thought it was a bit of an over reaction and shrugged and said old age or something. He had thought I was talking about Jim Montgomery the then hero of Sunderland Football Club.
ReplyDeleteAn easy mistake; I might have done the same (ahem).
Deleteooh I believe I was once in love with Lee Majors... my six million dollar heart throb!!
ReplyDeleteI have been known to learn the words of a song by ear only to find out later what a load of rubbish I was singing.
ReplyDeleteCan't really remember our children or grandchildren getting names wrong, although our daughter used to call knickerboker glory's a knick a bock of glory !! …. and, I know exactly what Elaine means … I did and still do the same.
ReplyDeleteRe your comment over at mine today Cro { and thanks } I LOVE your home. Those pictures of mine really hide the copious amounts of dust and, as much as I love our fireplaces and sash windows, we get gale force 9 through all of them !! All part of living in an old house. XXXX
Just popped over to say thanks for the advice on growing pine trees. So it is pine seed sandwiches to for tea tonight!
ReplyDeleteMany years ago, when I was in my teens, we were at a rather posh wedding. My father lived the whole of his life in the Lincolnshire Fens. He was an erudite and well read man but his accent was deepest Lincolnshire. A lady next to him , who came from London, was boasting about how her husband had won a 'cop' in a golf tournament. My father could stand it no longer and asked her, "what's a cop?" much to our embarrassment.
ReplyDeleteIn 1964/5 I was in my second year infants (aged about 6) and their was a boy in my class named Jimmy Norman. I was amazed when Roy Orbison released his song of the same name which reached no 1 in the charts. I remember the lyrics so well: "Jimmy Norman walking down the street..."
ReplyDeleteI have a lovely German neighbour. She had a baby and told me (I was fairly sure) that it was boy, so I shared the news with all the other neighbours and they sent blue gifts and cards. I went to visit her to take my gift and card and was very confused when she brought through a tiny baby dressed in a pink cardigan. I asked her what she had called the baby and she said "Ellen". I explained that I thought she had had a little boy and she said it was a boy, and made more of an effort to pronounce it Alan. I still looked confused until she further explained that the pink cardigan belonged to his older sister when she was a baby, and she was short of cardigans!!
ReplyDeleteI had that very Steve Austin doll when I was young, he had a bionic eye - a hole in the back of his head so you could see through it. He also had a button in his back and came with a plastic car engine to place in his hand, press the back button and lift his bionic arm. The 70s halcyon days :)
ReplyDeleteTwiggy
But I bet you didn't call him Steve O'Steen!
DeleteAs soon as I saw that figure, I was reminded of the scene from "George and Mildred" about the Action man. When Mildred asked Tristram what he wanted for Christmas, he replied "I want an action man with eagle eyes and gripping hands" to which she responded "Don't we all dear..." The recollection made me grin.
ReplyDelete