South of the river? No, not me, mate.
No, this isn't what Moses said before he parted the Red Sea!
Is it just apochryphal that all black cab cabbies use this as a response when asked to travel over many of London's river bridges? Or do they actually use it?
During a brief period when I was working in Leningrad, USSR (nowadays known as St Petersburg, Russia), I went out one night to celebrate with a couple of other Brits. Probably mid-June for the Festival of Lights when it doesn't actually get dark. Somehow, I ended up well after midnight on one of the islands, the other side of one of the main canals or river tributary from my hotel.
No problem, you might think - just walk back. No could do, as in those days - perhaps it is still the same - most,if not all of the main bridges, canal and river, were opened at midnight to allow water-borne traffic to move freely. And they didn't bring 'em down until early morning. So I spent the night in some hotel lobby.
But before realising all this, I had asked several cabs (in my superb Russian) to take me home - and received the equivalent to the London cabbie's alleged line; except I think they said 'north of the canal'.
Now if that had been the case in the past in London, late at night, I could understand a hackney carriage driver using this as a valid excuse, except that most of the bridges don't open anyway - I think Tower Bridge is the only one now, isn't it?
Maybe the flash northern Londoners thought that the South was a little rough, and the cabbies didn't fancy their chances. Maybe this is a carry-over from when they really were hackney carriages, horse and all.
Does anyone know the reason that this phrase, apocryphal or not, has entered common English usage?
Is it just apochryphal that all black cab cabbies use this as a response when asked to travel over many of London's river bridges? Or do they actually use it?
During a brief period when I was working in Leningrad, USSR (nowadays known as St Petersburg, Russia), I went out one night to celebrate with a couple of other Brits. Probably mid-June for the Festival of Lights when it doesn't actually get dark. Somehow, I ended up well after midnight on one of the islands, the other side of one of the main canals or river tributary from my hotel.
No problem, you might think - just walk back. No could do, as in those days - perhaps it is still the same - most,if not all of the main bridges, canal and river, were opened at midnight to allow water-borne traffic to move freely. And they didn't bring 'em down until early morning. So I spent the night in some hotel lobby.
But before realising all this, I had asked several cabs (in my superb Russian) to take me home - and received the equivalent to the London cabbie's alleged line; except I think they said 'north of the canal'.
Now if that had been the case in the past in London, late at night, I could understand a hackney carriage driver using this as a valid excuse, except that most of the bridges don't open anyway - I think Tower Bridge is the only one now, isn't it?
Maybe the flash northern Londoners thought that the South was a little rough, and the cabbies didn't fancy their chances. Maybe this is a carry-over from when they really were hackney carriages, horse and all.
Does anyone know the reason that this phrase, apocryphal or not, has entered common English usage?
