gottle o' geer

English

Alternative forms

• gottle o'geer
• gottle of geer
• gottle of gear

Etymology

Pronunciation spelling of the phrase "bottle of beer" with the labial consonants replaced by velars; labials are the hardest English consonants to produce without visible lip movement.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ɪə(ɹ)

Phrase

gottle o' geer

1. Stereotypical phrase spoken by the dummy of an incompetent ventriloquist
   • 1992, Spike Milligan, William McGonagall: Freefall‎^[1], Michael Joseph, →ISBN, page 109:

     ‘And a gottle of gear,' said Watson, trying to disguise himself as a dummy.

   • 2001 January 13, Brian Boyd, “Not only here for the geer [Review of Dumbstruck - A Cultural History of Ventriloquism]”, in The Irish Times‎^[2], page 15:

     Buyer beware: if you think this is a history of end-of-pier gottle of geer merchants, think again

   • 2016, Pat Stewart, The Girl in the Spotty Dress - Memories From The 1950s and The Photo That Changed My Life‎^[3], Kings Road Publishing, →ISBN:

     On the same bill was a ventriloquist called Arthur Worsley, who had a doll with the catchphrase 'gottle of geer'.