I thought of a phrase this morning and just where it might have originated.  To some of you I’m sure you know all about this phrase and where it came from and what it all means, but I did not, at least until just a few minutes ago.

“Cock and Bull”…We all know that it means a very big story has been told and a story that is totally out in left field, far from being anything close to the truth.

Well, in my search, I actually found an English society that welcomes new guests, it costs nothing and they have an email newsletter that comes out whenever it comes out.  So, since I too am inclined to stretch some stories a bit, I joined them, and anxiously await my approval into their organization.  www.cockandbull.org.uk, if you too are inclined to visit their site.

My sources took me all over the place and I have to gather enough info from each of the sources to make my mind up as to what is true and what is cock and bull and this is what I have “condensed” about how Cock and Bull came to be.

I have to cheat some with some notes I had to take, because I’m not familiar with England and where these cities are located, but from my study, somewhere deep in the interior of England (the country), as equally far from any large ocean type water as can be gotten, is a town called, Stony Stratford.  This name lends itself to be more of a mans name than that of a city, but none the less, that is what it is called.  Perhaps we should go visit it some day.

So, way back when, in a time when there were no cars, only walking, horses or buggies and the like were used to get people from points A to B (sort of reminds you of Sir Butt doesn’t it?), the roads all seemed to come to a crossing point in this town of Stony Stratford.  Here the riders would disembark from their carriages and get on others to take them to their other points, but it was also a place where the travellers could refresh themselves, get something to eat and also to parch their powerful dries!  Thus the two pubs in town.

I picture these pubs across the street from each other, but I have no proof of that, only in my mind do they exist there.  When the travellers would enter they would of course order up an ale or whatever and set to enjoy their draught and talk to the locals.  The locals were always willing to hear the stories of where these people were coming from and going to and to also hear a bit about them in general.  (Again this all sounds like something out of  a Sir Butt story).

Well these stories would get rather stretched at times and with a few more ales would even get larger than life.  I imagine the locals having a very good time with the stories, especially after the travellers had gone on their way.  “Hey Joe, did you here that bloke tell me about that fish he caught out of the Tweed last week?”

And on it goes.

In the other establishment the same thing was happening and then the patrons of the two pubs would cross the street and begin to tell what they had just heard in the other establishment.  You will never believe the names of the two pubs….”The Famous Cock Hotel”  and “The Innfamous Bull”.

In America with our wealth of intermixed races and cultures, it is not at all unfathomable to take this Cock and Bull story and condense it down to just a Bull Session.  I’d have used another word there, but this is a family site you know.  But then by my definition, a Bull Session takes at least two people to pull off and so here I sit by myself typing away and it is a true story as far as I’m concerned.

Bears Butt

May 28, 2013