London ATM speaks Cockney
Some ATMs in London have the Cockney (besides, obviously, English) as the language option. Cockney is a kind of rhyming slang and the most famous (mostly, for its incomprehensibility) English dialect.
So how it would look like if you will choose Cockney as the ATM language?
Every amount of cash you can get from the ATM has its own name. Five pounds referred as “Lady Godiva”, because it’s rhyming with “fiver”. Ten is Speckled hen (rhyme!).
Fifteen pounds is doubled as “Commodore”. Don’t look for the rhyme here: £15 is three times £5 or three times “Lady Godiva”. There used to be a rock band in London, The Commodores, and they have a song “Three times a lady”. Cool, isn’t it?
Twenty—Horn of Plenty. But twenty five pounds is… Pony. Why? The most popular version says that in the 19th century the Indian banknote worth 25 rupees has the pony depicted on it. British soldiers who have coming back from India brought this slang home.
Thirty—dirty. Have you ever heard “Dirty thirty”? Now you know from where it come from.
£40—Double Top. The Double Top refers to the space at the top of a dart board which gets you double 20 points.
The Nifty rhymes perfectly well with fifty. And this is the end of the story, because British ATMs won’t give you more than nifty-fifty pounds (US$80) in one transaction. United Kingdom has the worst crime rate in Europe, so limiting the maximum amount of cash withdrawal allowed per transaction in ATMs is their way to keep you from being robbed.
London ATM speaks Cockney was posted by Vitali K. on 29th March 2011 as part of the Creativities section. Check the front page for the latest posts or use navigation links below:
the Double Top refers to the space at the top of a dart board which gets you double 20 points
Oh, thank you for clarifying it, Bob.
ATMs in the UK do give more than 50 pounds in 1 transaction, the security thing is wrong. They give at least 200 pounds or more depending on your own account’s limit. They just don’t have any higher denominations than the 50 because generally people don’t want a 100 pound note from the bank machine.
You’re wrong about not being able to take out more than £50. £50 is the biggest denomination of note, but you can withdraw up to £250 in one transaction (and up to £400 or more with certain bank accounts).
“There used to be a rock band in London, The Commodores, and they have a song “Three times a lady”. Cool, isn’t it?”
The Commodores was Lionel Richie’s band. Nothing to do with London.
Steve, that cash machine only spits out 10 five pound notes at a time.
“The Commodores” were from the USA, clearly NOT London. Lionel Richie — Nicole Richie, ring a bell?!?! I’m sure they were popular in London too, but America begot them!