# Wide boy > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Wide_boy > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Wide_boy.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wide_boy > Source revision: 1330732357 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|British slang term}} {{About|the British slang term|other uses|Wide Boy (disambiguation)}} '''''Wide boy''''' is a British term for a man who lives by his wits, wheeling and dealing. According to the ''[Oxford English Dictionary](/source/Oxford_English_Dictionary)'' it is synonymous with [spiv](/source/spiv).[Oxford English Dictionary](/source/Oxford_English_Dictionary) accessed 13 Dec 2010 The word "wide" used in this sense means wide-awake or sharp-witted. It applies to the wide-lapelled suits and broad ties, commonly called ''[kippers](/source/Kipper_tie)'', after the similarly broad fish. The term was used in a 1936 autobiography Benney, M. (1936). Low Company. London: P. Davies to describe criminal culture during the First World War. Newspapers of the late 1940s and 1950s often use both terms in the same article about the same person when dealing with [ticket tout](/source/ticket_tout)s, fraudsters, and [black market](/source/black_market) traders. It has become more generally used to describe a dishonest trader or a petty criminal who works by guile rather than force. An early use of the term was in the 1933 film ''[Friday the Thirteenth](/source/Friday_the_Thirteenth_(1933_film))'', where the character, played by [Max Miller](/source/Max_Miller_(comedian)), a loud, quick-witted, [Cockney](/source/Cockney) market trader, is heard to say "I'm the widest boy ever put on a pair of shoes!" The term came to public attention in 1937 with the publication of ''Wide Boys Never Work'' by [Robert Westerby](/source/Robert_Westerby),Robert Westerby (1937). ''Wide Boys Never Work''. London: Arthur Barker a novel about gamblers and hustlers. During [World War II](/source/World_War_II) such individuals became involved in the [black market](/source/black_market), but the term only began to appear in newspapers from 1947.''People'', 22 June 1947''Daily Mirror'', 14 October 1947. ==Fictional portrayals== Fictional wheeler-dealer characters such as [Del Boy](/source/Del_Boy) from ''[Only Fools and Horses](/source/Only_Fools_and_Horses)'', [Frank Butcher](/source/Frank_Butcher) from ''[EastEnders](/source/EastEnders)'', [Private Walker](/source/Private_Walker) from ''[Dad's Army](/source/Dad's_Army)'', Jim London from ''[Up the Elephant and Round the Castle](/source/Up_the_Elephant_and_Round_the_Castle)'', Vincent Swan from ''[White Gold](/source/White_Gold_(TV_series))'', and [Flash Harry](/source/Flash_Harry_(St_Trinian's)) from the ''[St Trinian's](/source/St_Trinian's)'' films, all exemplify various wide boy "types". The term was used as the title for the 1952 film starring [Sydney Tafler](/source/Sydney_Tafler) and [Susan Shaw](/source/Susan_Shaw), ''[Wide Boy](/source/Wide_Boy_(film))''. ==Musical references== [The Kinks](/source/The_Kinks) referred to the term in the lyrics to their song "Scum of the Earth" on their 1974 album ''[Preservation: Act 2](/source/Preservation%3A_Act_2)''.The lyrics read "For even wide boys, hoods and spivs / Have got the right to live." This is an early usage of the term in a modern rock song. Kinks songwriter [Ray Davies](/source/Ray_Davies) later used the term again in his song "Stand Up Comic". In Richard Thompson's song "I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight", on the album of the same name by Richard and Linda Thompson (1974), the lyrics include the line "The wide boys are all spoiling for a fight". When he performs the song live, Thompson often changes it to "big boys". [Ultravox](/source/Ultravox) released the song "Wide Boys" on their [eponymous first LP](/source/Ultravox!_(album)) in 1977. The 1970s rock band [Foghat](/source/Foghat) had a popular song "Wide Boy" on their 1981 ''Girls to Chat Boys to Bounce'' album, and [Godley and Creme](/source/Godley_and_Creme) released a single of the same title in 1980 which was to start their careers in video direction. [Kevin Mooney](/source/Kevin_Mooney), formerly of [Adam and the Ants](/source/Adam_and_the_Ants), formed the short-lived band Wide Boy Awake in 1982 who disbanded after a couple of EPs. [Nik Kershaw](/source/Nik_Kershaw) also released a single called "[Wide Boy](/source/Wide_Boy_(song))" in 1984, making Top Ten in the UK. Rick Lloyd's song of the same name was sung by Perry Cree for [Sue Townsend's](/source/Sue_Townsend) musical "The Ghost of Daniel Lambert"; this song was later covered by [The Flying Pickets](/source/The_Flying_Pickets) on their album ''Lost Boys'' in 1984, and also appeared in the 1977 television play [Scum](/source/Scum_(television_play)). [Marillion](/source/Marillion) released the song "Heart of [Lothian](/source/Lothian)", which includes a section called "Wide Boy," on the 1985 album ''[Misplaced Childhood](/source/Misplaced_Childhood)'', in which the lyrics mention "wide boys, born with hearts of Lothian". The [Tom Robinson Band](/source/Tom_Robinson_Band) referenced a "wide boy kicking in a window" as one of several examples of social unrest in their 1978 single "Up Against the Wall." ==Other usage== "Wide boys" is used humorously but now commonly to refer to [wingers](/source/Midfield) in [Association](/source/Association_football), [Gaelic](/source/Gaelic_football) or [Rugby Football](/source/Rugby_Football)."Why England boss Bobby Robson is looking for wide boys", ''[Daily Mirror](/source/Daily_Mirror)'', 6 April 1984, p.30"Hey presto, defenders were held and the French wide boys streaked over twice", ''[Daily Telegraph](/source/Daily_Telegraph)'', 3 March 2003 ==See also== * [Underground economy](/source/Underground_economy) * [Teddy Boy](/source/Teddy_Boy) * [Confidence trick](/source/Confidence_trick) * [Dave Courtney](/source/Dave_Courtney) ==References== {{Reflist}} ==External links== {{Wiktionary|wide boy}} * [http://www.london-books.co.uk/BOOKS/wideboys.html London Books: Wide Boys Never Work] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180621015659/http://www.london-books.co.uk/BOOKS/wideboys.html |date=2018-06-21 }} essay review by Martin Knight, 2008 Category:Informal economy Category:English-language slang Category:United Kingdom home front during World War II Category:Social class subcultures Category:Black markets --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Wide boy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wide_boy) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wide_boy?action=history)). 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