Something Rhymes with Purple

It’s an honor to have you with us today Purple People as we plow through the colorful world of the lexicographer, author, language reformer and perhaps famously the dictionary creator, Noah Webster.  Known as the father of American English, he is the man principally responsible for the loss of the ‘u’ in the American spelling of words like ‘color’ and the person responsible for adding J and V to o...

Pick up your finest trowel and join us as we dig around the etymology of archaeology. Find out the link between helmet and hell, why we have an ancient king to thank for grand mausoleums, and why a thesaurus is even more of a treasure trove than you might first think. Elsewhere Susie has some great examples of fossil words that you might like to bring back to life and Gyles gets passionate about S...

This week we’re going goo-goo and gaga as we investigate the wonderful words associated with babies.  We cut the umbilical cord, discover the Roman connections with c-sections, and reveal the link between a fountain and a baby’s head.  So, depending on where you are in the world, pop a dummy or a pacifier into your mouth and hop into our linguistic pram/buggy and we’ll whizz you through the langua...

Join us under the Big Top this week as your ringmasters Susie and Gyles crack their etymological whips to tell the stories of the freaks, geeks, and clowns that populate our circuses.  We discover the famous hands Gyles has shaken at one remove thanks to Popov The Clown, we learn about the joke behind jugglers, and we ask what’s the point of acrobats?  A Somethin’ Else Production.  Susie’s Trio: Q...

Postman Purple is back with his big sack of Purple People correspondence!  You heard it right folks, Gyles and Susie are diving into the mail bag where we are going to explore what connects airports and kitchens, what happened when Susie tried charcoal toothpaste and we have some Purple People theories on your ‘Aunt Nels’ (spoiler: includes shells and elephants).  We also venture into the world of...

Chocks away! Roll out! Hello! It’s another Tuesday and we’re pushing the envelope (well, not really, but we love alliteration) and presenting you, our Purple People, with another episode!  The last year and a half has been almost entirely devoid of holidays. Have you missed the miniatures? Have you longed for a drink as you fly over the drink? Have you ever had a Delsey dinner with a crumb crunche...

Roll up, roll up and scream if you want to go faster!  This week Gyles and Susie take a spin on the carousel (or should that be merry-go-round) as they waltz their way through the general hoopla of fairgrounds and carnivals. They marvel at the ironic profession of the inventor of candy floss, they toss away the notion that coconuts are shy, and Gyles reminisces about his father’s attempts to knock...

Bona to vada your dolly eek, Purple People! Now, if the above greeting to today’s episode is wholly incomprehensible then let Gyles and Susie decode it for you as they take us through the fascinating language of Polari. Whether you want to add a bit of Zhuzh to your conversation or if you have experienced something a bit naff recently, Susie is here to tell us to how these words found their way in...

Happy Tuesday! We must ask, are there many Purple People in the Peri-perineum? It is the perfect way to spend a blursday! Now that we’ve properly exchanged pleasantries- get read… set and go! Because this week we are doing a Tom Daley and diving deep into the wonderfully relevant world of the Olympics! Do you fancy an ancient ritual in honour of Zeus? Given the tight leash on demographics oh so ma...

We can hear the bells today, Purple People! Here in the UK, we have hit wedding season so Susie and Gyles have decided to provide you with some charming titbits to entertain those table guests you’ll be next to on the big day.  The time for firkytoodling is done so, get out your best tux (or morning suit as Gyles will passionately advocate), find your finest corsage and we hope you remembered to R...

Bears, Bulls! High, Low! Buy, Sell! And welcome, Purple People, to another episode. This week we’re scaling the wall of Wall Street and trekking the Square Mile of The City as we climb the ladder of high finance! Who knew that the world of bankers and brokers was so full of broken benches, brutish beasts and and bad behaviour. Are you a stag? Have you seen a dead cat bounce? Are you standing on a...

Happy Tuesday Purple People, how do we find you? Listening in the bath? Camped out under the stars? Out for your daily stroll? If it’s the latter- well how serendipitous! As this episode we are taking a look at nation’s favourite pastime. Whether you’re a walker, a hiker or a orienteer there will be something in this episode for you. Susie strides ahead, boldly marches and struts her stuff through...

Well it’s a new week Purple People, and we’re coming to you from a very rainy July in England. Despite the grey and shortening days (thanks for the reminder Gyles), we’re bringing you a seed of summer with a lovely chat about flowers. Susie reminds us of one of our favourite, most misleadingly named flowers - the Jerusalem Artichoke (do check out our other episode on Flowers called Edelweiss), exp...

Purple People hello and welcome to this week’s episode! If you’re feeling a bit powfagged never fear, we’ll be guiding you through King of the Dad Joke, the “highest form of literature”… yes, we are of course talking about Puns! Yes puns, or paronomasia if you’re being a real word nerd (which we always are). From our favourite famous punster William Shakespeare, to punny kebab shops (Abrakebabra,...

We have a very intense episode for you this week… Or rather we should say in-tents, because this week we are fixing the guy ropes and battening down the hatches as we Carry On with Camping! Whether you’re a camping champion, prefer glamping with champagne or love to cook yourself a mushroom omelette over your fire pit, we’ve got all you outdoorsy-types covered. Elsewhere Susie explains why you mig...

Hello to our poor, powfagged Purple People! Aren’t we tired this week? Whether you’re sitting in digs having just dashed off staged or weary after a hard day at your sexy occupation, we are here for you! And this week we'll be guiding you through the entertaining and esoteric world of… video games! Are you a fan of Space Wars circa 1977, or are you a 7th generation lemming? Are you a speed bump or...

Good day Purple People, we hope you’re all enjoying some summer sun and using your umbrellas the old fashioned way as we dive, this week, into the weird and wonderfully wordy world of James Joyce! Whether you’ve read Ulysses, are feeling particularly uxorious or are listening while peloothered, we’re here to ringroundabout you with joy. Gyles tells Susie how the sausage got made, Susie explains wh...

The purple postman has arrived ready for a full episode of your correspondence. Today we’ll delve into the tweets, letters and emails from you all to discover what ‘clockwise’ was before the invention of clocks, the turbulent tale of the word ‘manufactory’ and Gyles shares many an anecdote of a younger Gyles using the pen to woo admirers. Susie's Trio: Begrumpled - left a bit displeased or affront...

Today we are getting all in a tangle (and we will be entertaining the 8 legged type that has fittingly titled today’s episode) as we dive into the devilish world of plurals in the English language. We will watch our one foot transform into two feet, see a solitary goose find some friends and become geese, and find out why a mouse does not multiply into meese. Susie is on hand to steer us through t...

It’s all aboard the HMS Purple this week as Admirals Dent and Brandreth navigate their way through the linguistic flotsam and jetsam of the Royal Navy. With a good wind behind them they sail through the official ranks before unpicking the complex slang used above and below deck.  And there’s time for a quick word with the Sky Boatswain before sitting down to a delicious helping of ‘Adam and Eve on...

Pay little heed to the title Purple People, this is still your weekly words and language podcast, Something Rhymes with Purple and not an Only Fool and Horses parody podcast but it does introduce us nicely to the subject of today’s episode: catchphrases! Ever wondered how something becomes a catchphrase? How catchphrases differ from a slogan or a quote? If you can even trademark a catchphrase? The...

This week we’re peeking behind the magician’s cloth to trick you into a world of tricks, rigs, and prestidigitation. With characteristic sleight-of-hand our mesmerising hosts saw in half the language of magicians, Gyles shares some jaw-dropping tales from being up close with TV magicians, and Susie recounts a tale of when Countdown’s Nick Hewer was scammed on the street.  Warning: this episode doe...

Today is an episode for the bookworms (and we are assuming that that will be many of you, Purple People) as Susie and Gyles will be delving into the world of books. Come (digitally) leaf through the chapter of this volume of the Purple anthology to hear what chapters and cabbages have in common, why our index finger pointed out the perfect name for the index page and why having the book thrown at...

This week we’ve donned our lycra, packed our panniers and we’re free-wheeling through the language of cycling. Whilst whizzing on two wheels (Susie) or three (Gyles) we’re ditching the granny gears and aiming for the maillot jaune as we bring you up to speed on everything from Boneshakers and Penny Farthings to bonks, breeks, and RLJs, whilst hopefully avoiding an an endo. As always there are plen...

Welcome to this week’s tissue meeting where we’re doing our finest Mad Men impressions to get you subliminally hooked on the words we have to offer. From ‘5 o’clock shadow’ to ‘va va voom’ we’ve put a ‘tiger in our tank’ to discover the language that advertising has gifted to us in this episode which ‘does exactly what is says on the tin’. Simples. After discussing the most memorable advertising t...