well, words are something of an interest to me, so i found this article rather interesting! it's always a curious thing to learn where phrases and words we take for granted come from. if you are of a mind that is equally interested in it, enjoy this article!!
Gordon Bennett! Revealed for the first time, the man who gave his name to a favourite profanity
The Gordon Bennetts of this world have probably got used to hearing their name blurted out in moments of surprise.
Now word detectives believe they have pinpointed how the quaint exclamation came about.
Gordon Bennett, often considered a euphemism for a four-letter word, has been traced back seven decades after the public responded to a TV appeal.
The phrase is one of 34 words and phrases that have been updated by the Oxford English Dictionary, with the help of viewers from the BBC2 programme Balderdash & Piffle.
Hundreds wrote in after the programme makers asked the public to help them trace the history of 40 well-known words and phrases.
It had previously been thought that one of the earliest mentions of Gordon Bennett was by the character Alf Garnett in 1967 in the BBC TV series Till Death Us Do Part.
With the help of viewers, the phrase was initially traced back a further five years to the comedy Steptoe and Son in 1962.
Now, however, experts have agreed its first mention comes in a novel about low-life characters written in 1937 by James Curtis.
The book - You're in the Racket, too! - includes the phrase: 'He stretched and yawned. Gordon Bennett, he wasn't half tired.'
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