Saturday, 21 July 2012

Yes. No. Absolutely. 2012

I asked some of my younger friends a year or so ago if they'd noticed people saying "Yes. No." to agree with something. They weren't aware of it, although I thought they, like most people under fifty (45?), did it themselves. I'm glad to see that the excellent BBC TV Olympic satire "2012" often has people say it, along with all sorts of current media and PR speak, "We gotta move up a level, guys", "It's all good", "You so have" etc. Of course people in the US have already written books about this sort of thing. There's even one called, I hear, "Yeh. No. Totally." Anyone remember the old "Yes / No Interlude"? "Are you ready?" "Yes." BONG!
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4 comments:

  1. subcentralized3 May 2014 at 16:34

    I think the "no" is short for "no kidding" or some such. There is a paint commercial that goes "pick a color, any color. No, really, ANY color."

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  2. Clydesdale Jefferson4 May 2014 at 05:12

    Could be - good suggestion, thanks!

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  3. EricD20 July 2015 at 02:26

    Or "Yes, no doubt" - so there is no ambiguity.

    I Googled [Yes No Absolutely] having heard a delightful interview on BBC Radio 4 'Today' programme this morning 07:41.
    I don't know how many days or how worldwide the following 'online catch-up' link will work:
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b062jsmq
    Starting at 1:41:10, Virginia Portman, of the 'National Trust' (curates stately homes and monuments for the nation) is interviewed about wartime bunkers under Beachy Head.
    http://www.kentonline.co.uk/dover/news/wartime-tunnels-set-to-be-reopened-17245/

    1:43:04 "So they're fairly extensive?"
    "Yes No Absolutely - it would take about 45 minutes to do a tour"
    Agreeing with a statement more than answering a question. Note both have a 'rising inflection'.

    1:43:42 "You've been reliant on your volunteers to clear the site, haven't you ?'
    "Yep No Absolutely"

    It's partly due to the interviewer feeding her answers, instead of asking questions.
    She is 'gushing', but not posh - lots of umm, err, sort of, really, actually, and her accent is regional - I'm Scots so wouldn't know Kent vowels from Cornwall ! Glottal Stop, too.

    I don't know why she seems to be on a satellite link, or delayed as though from a different planet - BBC don't usually use a 'profanity delay' AFAIK.

    It's also worth pointing to Jim in 'vicar of dibley' - "no no no no yes", but that's probably unrelated.

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  4. Clydesdale Jefferson20 July 2015 at 07:43

    Thanks, Eric. Glad in a way that Google finds old posts on this blog. I noticed it years ago but younger relatives didn't know at first what I was on about. Then I googled it and found books about it, in US.

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