Said the actress to the bishop

Last updated

The phrase "said the actress to the bishop" is a colloquial British exclamation, offering humour by serving as a punch line that exposes an unintended double entendre. An equivalent phrase in North America is "that's what she said". [1] The versatility of such phrases, and their popularity, lead some to consider them clichéd. [2]

Contents

History and variations

The term, or its variant "as the actress said to the bishop", is British in origin. It supposedly originated from a conversation between the actress Lillie Langtry and the Bishop of Worcester. They were at a country house weekend party and on Sunday morning before church, they went for a stroll in the garden. On their walk, the bishop cut his finger on a rose thorn. Over lunch, Lillie enquired about his injury, asking: "How is your prick?" To which, the Bishop replied: "Throbbing", causing the butler to drop the potatoes. [3]

The supposed association of actors with amorality and the incongruity of what a cleric and actor could legitimately have in common to discuss explains its ribald connotation. The phrase was in popular usage in the Royal Air Force c. 1944–47, but may originate from the Edwardian era. [4]

The phrase is frequently used by the fictional character Simon Templar (alias "The Saint") in a long-running series of mystery books by Leslie Charteris. The phrase first appears in full in the second Saint novel Enter the Saint , published in 1930; abbreviations of both the phrase ("as the actress said on an auspicious occasion") and of the alternative version ("as the bishop said") appear in the 1928 Meet the Tiger . [1]

The version "as the girl said to the soldier" appears in a recorded sound test for Alfred Hitchcock's 1929 film Blackmail . [5]

Kingsley Amis uses the line in his 1954 novel Lucky Jim , where a woman offering relationship advice to Jim Dixon says "I can't show you, as the actress said to the bishop." [6]

The title character on the US TV show Archer , after several seasons of using "phrasing!" to draw attention to double entendres, briefly toyed with "...said Ripley to the android Bishop", a reference to both this phrase and the 1986 film Aliens .[ citation needed ]

British comic artist Brian Bolland has produced a comic inspired by the joke, The Actress and the Bishop . [7]

"That's what she said!"

By 1973, "that's what she said" had already been characterized as an "ancient one-liner". [8] In the early 1990s, it was a recurring joke in the Saturday Night Live sketch "Wayne's World". In the movie of the same name, the character, Wayne Campbell, uses the phrase after his partner Garth says, "Hey, are you through yet? 'Cause I'm getting tired of holding this", in regard to a picture he is holding. [9]

In the original BBC version of The Office , Ricky Gervais's character David Brent frequently used the phrase "as the actress said to the bishop" as an inappropriate joke. When the show was adapted for American audiences, also under the title The Office , the phrase was translated to "that's what she said" for Steve Carell's character Michael Scott. "That's what she said" (with an emphasis on the word "she") became a catchphrase of The Office and was used for the show's "That's What She Said" Sweepstakes. [10] [11] On several occasions, the phrase was adapted to "that’s what he said".

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingsley Amis</span> English author, critic and teacher (1922–1995)

Sir Kingsley William Amis was an English novelist, poet, critic and teacher. He wrote more than 20 novels, six volumes of poetry, a memoir, short stories, radio and television scripts, and works of social and literary criticism. He is best known for satirical comedies such as Lucky Jim (1954), One Fat Englishman (1963), Ending Up (1974), Jake's Thing (1978) and The Old Devils (1986).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pun</span> Form of word play

A pun, also rarely known as paronomasia, is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use of homophonic, homographic, metonymic, or figurative language. A pun differs from a malapropism in that a malapropism is an incorrect variation on a correct expression, while a pun involves expressions with multiple interpretations. Puns may be regarded as in-jokes or idiomatic constructions, especially as their usage and meaning are usually specific to a particular language or its culture.

In fiction, a MacGuffin is an object, device, or event that is necessary to the plot and the motivation of the characters, but insignificant, unimportant, or irrelevant in itself. The term was originated by Angus MacPhail for film, adopted by Alfred Hitchcock, and later extended to a similar device in other fiction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Double entendre</span> Wording that is devised to be understood in two ways

A double entendre is a figure of speech or a particular way of wording that is devised to have a double meaning, one of which is typically obvious, and the other often conveys a message that would be too socially unacceptable, or offensive to state directly.

<i>Rowan & Martins Laugh-In</i> American comedy television series

Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In is an American sketch comedy television program which ran for 140 episodes from January 22, 1968, to March 12, 1973, on the NBC television network, hosted by comedians Dan Rowan and Dick Martin. It originally aired as a one-time special on September 9, 1967, and was such a success that it was brought back as a series, replacing The Man from U.N.C.L.E. on Mondays at 8 pm (ET). It quickly became the most popular television show in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kim Novak</span> American actress

Marilyn Pauline "Kim" Novak is an American retired film and television actress and painter. Her contributions to cinema have been honored with two Golden Globe Awards, an Honorary Golden Bear, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

<i>Batman: The Killing Joke</i> 1988 graphic novel by Alan Moore and Brian Bolland

Batman: The Killing Joke is a 1988 DC Comics one-shot graphic novel featuring the characters Batman and the Joker written by Alan Moore and illustrated by Brian Bolland. The Killing Joke provides an origin story for the supervillain the Joker, loosely adapted from the 1951 story "The Man Behind the Red Hood!", which was written by Batman co-creator Bill Finger. The Joker's origin is presented via flashback, while simultaneously depicting his attempt to drive Jim Gordon insane and Batman's desperate attempt to stop him.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Bolland</span> British comics artist

Brian Bolland is a British comics artist. Best known in the United Kingdom as one of the Judge Dredd artists for British comics anthology 2000 AD, he spearheaded the 'British Invasion' of the American comics industry, and in 1982 produced the artwork alongside author Mike W. Barr on Camelot 3000, which was DC Comics' first 12-issue comicbook maxiseries created for the direct market.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beatrice Lillie</span> Canadian-born British actress, singer and comedic performer (1894-1989)

Beatrice Gladys Lillie, Lady Peel, known as Bea Lillie, was a Canadian-born British actress, singer and comedic performer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blonde stereotype</span> Stereotypes of blond-haired people

Blonde stereotypes are stereotypes of blonde-haired people. Sub-types of this stereotype include the "blonde bombshell" and the "dumb blonde". Blondes have been stereotyped as less intelligent than brunettes. There are many blonde jokes made on these premises. However, research has shown that blonde women are not less intelligent than women with other hair colors.

<i>The James Bond Dossier</i> Book by Kingsley Amis

The James Bond Dossier (1965), by Kingsley Amis, is a critical analysis of the James Bond novels. Amis dedicated the book to friend and background collaborator, the poet and historian Robert Conquest. Later, after Ian Fleming's death, Amis was commissioned as the first continuation novelist for the James Bond novel series, writing Colonel Sun (1968) under the pseudonym Robert Markham. The James Bond Dossier was the first, formal, literary study of the James Bond character. More recent studies of Fleming's secret agent and his world include The Politics of James Bond: From Fleming's Novels to the Big Screen (2001), by the historian Jeremy Black.

Michael Scott (<i>The Office</i>) Fictional character in NBCs The Office

Michael Gary Scott is a fictional character in the NBC sitcom The Office, portrayed by Steve Carell. Michael is the regional manager of the Scranton, Pennsylvania branch of Dunder Mifflin, a paper company, for the majority of the series. Like his counterpart in the earlier British version of the show, David Brent, he is characterized as a largely incompetent, unproductive, unprofessional boss, though he is depicted as kinder and occasionally shown to be effective at his job in key moments.

<i>Feminist Sweepstakes</i> 2001 Le Tigre album

Feminist Sweepstakes is the second studio album by American dance-punk band Le Tigre. It was released on October 16, 2001 by record label Mr. Lady.

An albur is a word play in Mexican Spanish that involves a double entendre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carol Wayne</span> American actress (1942–1985)

Carol Marie Wayne was an American television and film actress. She appeared regularly on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson as the Matinee Lady in the Art Fern's Tea Time Movie sketches.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob's your uncle</span> British phrase

"Bob's your uncle" is a phrase commonly used in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth countries that means "and there it is", or "and there you have it", or "it's done". Typically, someone says it to conclude a set of simple instructions or when a result is reached. The meaning is similar to that of the French expression "et voilà!".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Squeeze Box (song)</span> 1975 single by the Who

"Squeeze Box" is a song by the Who from their album The Who by Numbers. Written by Pete Townshend, the lyrics are couched in sexual double entendres. Unlike many of the band's other hits, the song features country-like elements, as heard in Townshend's banjo picking.

<i>Lucky Jim</i> (1957 film) 1957 British film

Lucky Jim is a 1957 British comedy film directed by John Boulting and starring Ian Carmichael, Terry-Thomas and Hugh Griffith. It is an adaptation of the 1954 novel Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dad joke</span> Type of short joke

A dad joke is a joke, typically a pun, often presented as a one-liner or a question and answer, but less often a narrative. Generally inoffensive, dad jokes are stereotypically told with sincere humorous intent or to intentionally provoke a negative "groaning" reaction to their overly simplistic humor.

<i>The Actress and the Bishop</i> British comic strip

The Actress and the Bishop is a creator-owned British comic story, written and drawn by Brian Bolland. It tells the whimsical misadventures of an actress and a bishop living together in suburban England. The characters have made rare appearances in various anthologies; as of 2024 four stories of varying lengths have been produced between 1989 and 2022. The strip features only occasional dialogue; instead, most text is told in rhyming narrative captions.

References

  1. 1 2 Hiskey, Daven (30 December 2010). "The British Equivalent of 'That's What She Said". todayifoundout.com. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
  2. ↑ Bans, Lauren (3 August 2010). "That's What She Said? Yeah, Give It A Rest". GQ. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
  3. ↑ White, Roland (2 August 2020). "Chancellor got up the king's nose". The Times. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
  4. ↑ Partridge, Eric (1982). A Dictionary of Catch Phrases (2 ed.). London: Routledge. p. 31. ISBN   1134929986.
  5. ↑ Graham, Nicholas (10 June 2010). "Hitchcock's 'That's What She Said' Joke Is Its First Known Recording! (video)". HuffPost .
  6. ↑ Amis, Kingsley (1998) [1954]. Lucky Jim. London: Penguin. p. 121. ISBN   0-14-027870-2. OCLC   60220440.
  7. ↑ Bolland, Brian (May 2005). "The Actress and the Bishop - An Introduction". Bolland Strips!. Knockabout Comics. ISBN   9780861661503.
  8. ↑ Addeo, Edmond G.; Burger, Robert E. (1973). EgoSpeak: Why No One Listens to You . Chilton Books. ISBN   0801958938 . Retrieved 28 September 2012. The cheapest shot of all, of course, is the ancient one-liner, "That's what she said." This reply can be used after virtually any remark, however innocent, and the speaker can summon up some hint of double-entendre.
  9. ↑ Spring, Corey (15 February 2007). "International 'That's What she Said' Day". Newsvine . Archived from the original on 17 February 2007.
  10. ↑ The Office US (15 July 2017), Every That's What She Said Ever - The Office US, archived from the original on 22 December 2021, retrieved 27 November 2017
  11. ↑ Diaz, Glenn (16 February 2010). "The Office Launches 'That's What She Said' Sweepstakes". Buddy TV. Retrieved 13 September 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.