Hi,
On 5-2-2013 23:49, Jed Rothwell wrote:
Alan Fletcher <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>> wrote:
In Great Britain they say: my garden is smaller that England, but
bigger than a stamp.
OOOkay. Does anyone want to hazard a guess as to what that might mean?
Found a similar quote on this page
(http://www.statemaster.com/encyclopedia/Asterix-in-Britain):
Trivia
* In French, Obelix remarks on the tweed worn by Asterix's Briton
cousin, asking, "Is it expensive?" ("c'est cher?"); the Briton
replies, "My tailor is rich" ("mon tailleur est riche") --- an
allusion to basic lessons in English, available in many European
states. It has been said that "My tailor is rich" was the very
first spoken phrase said in the first Assimil
<http://www.statemaster.com/encyclopedia/Assimil> "English without
Pain" (Anglais sans Peine) English learning vinyl record volume
released circa 1960 <http://www.statemaster.com/encyclopedia/1960>.
* Later there's another gag with the same basic premise in reverse:
when Asterix remarks that his cousin's boat is small, Anticlimax
replies obscurely, "It's smaller than the garden of my uncle, but
larger than the pen of my aunt," a phrase used in English texts of
the period when teaching French.
It seems, that Andrea is actually saying something like: "I really have
no clue what those scientists who are performing the tests are thinking,
so I can't comment on it at all."
Kind regards,
Rob
