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Revision as of 15:56, 12 August 2009 by 195.224.52.34 (talk) (Another expression)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff) For other uses, see Bob's your uncle (disambiguation).Bob's your uncle is a commonly used expression known mainly in Britain, Ireland and Commonwealth nations. It is often used immediately following a set of simple instructions and carries roughly the same meaning as the phrase "and there you have it"; for example, "To make a ham sandwich, simply put a piece of ham between two slices of buttered bread, and Bob's your uncle."
Etymology
It is a catchphrase dating back to 1887, when British Prime Minister Robert Cecil, Lord Salisbury decided to appoint Arthur Balfour to the prestigious and sensitive post of Chief Secretary for Ireland. Not lost on the British public was the fact that Lord Salisbury just happened to be better known to Arthur Balfour as "Uncle Bob". In the resulting furore over what was seen as an act of blatant nepotism, "Bob's your uncle" became a popular sarcastic comment applied to any situation where the outcome was preordained by favouritism. As the scandal faded from public memory, the phrase lost its edge and became just a synonym for "no problem."
Usage
In some places in Britain, "Bob's your uncle" is also a way of saying "you're all set", "you've got it made!" or "that's great!" and is used as an expression of jubilation at good fortune. It is used thus in the Alastair Sim film Scrooge, a version of the classic Dickens story A Christmas Carol, where a reformed Ebenezer Scrooge confronts his housekeeper, Mrs Dilber, on Christmas morning. He gives her a guinea (£1.05 in that era, and equivalent to about $100 today) as a Christmas present, and announces he will significantly raise her salary. In a burst of excitement the housekeeper responds, “Bob’s yer uncle! Merry Christmas, Mr Scrooge, in keeping with the situation!”. However, this may be an anachronism, as A Christmas Carol was first published by Dickens in 1843 and the expression might not have been in use prior to 1890.
Usage has also evolved to the expressions "Robert's your father's brother", "Robert's your auntie's husband" and "Robert's your mother's brother" as synonymous phrases.
See also
References
- http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=P4gCzZsOY0UC&pg=PA75&lpg=PA75&dq=charles+dickens+%22bob's+your+uncle%22&source=bl&ots=bPy-6rUuqQ&sig=JF3W-4A4m1K0gsFkRKsfmjYdj1I&hl=en&ei=GdzbSbu0DoTUjAfj_4nCCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2 Doug Lennox, Now You Know More: The Book of Answers, Dundum Press, 2004, p. 75
- http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/empire/episodes/episode_78.shtml BBC Radio 4 Empire, EPISODE 78 - 31/05/06
- http://babyduckagreatcanadianwhine.blogspot.com/2004_12_01_archive.html quoting the UK newspaper, The Guardian from 23 December 1999