In the movie 'Venus Peter' someone has a sprog and the old wifie uses the phrase, 'Boys from the Bass, girls from the May'. Was curious as to the origins of the phrase. Is it in common use along The Neuk? Anyone shed any light?

Ta.

Kots,think that iz a very old saying and i have never heard that one for a very long time.Jimmy has wrote a book about old fishing boats and got alot ov help from our old maths teacher at waid ,Pete Smith.He would maybe know better than me.As for Dyker,he's aboot 80 so theres a chance he'll kin au aboot it.I'm jist a young hing ye see.

Goony yer walkin' on Seterday.
Wis jist a sayin' Boys came fae the Bass Rock an' Lassies came fae the May Island.

Awright - cheers, guys. Just wondered.

Found this...

Fife Folklore - Childhood

In the days before children were told about pregnancy Fife and East Neuk bairns believed that girl babies came from the Isle of May and boys from the Bass Rock out in the Firth of Forth. It is interesting that in the Middle Ages barren women made pilgrimages to a holy well on the May Island to pray for a cure

Few ceremonies attended the birth of a child. There might be a family christening gown but the christening was commonly carried out at home and often when the father was away at some fishing There was no bairn s piece tradition as in many Scottish towns but people who stopped to see the new baby would rarely leave without handing over a silver coin saying: ”I'll have to give the bairn a luck penny”, or some such phrase.

The baby’s shawl was always hand-knitted and it was quite an honour to be asked to knit the lacy white shawl, almost always in the traditional Shetland pattern

Jonathan - my cousin from Gloucestershire had been keen to start a family for years without success. She then heard about the May Island legend and arranged to go over for a day trip when up visiting us.
When she returned she told us she'd prayed at the shrine and, hey presto, worked first time!

Meant to say, enfifer, it was Pete Smith who wrote the books about the fishing. I edited and published them for him.

Jonathan - should have said - she had a daughter (girls from the May).

Rather you than me Jimmy.The way he used ti rabble on during class was unreal.
"did you see the football last night sir?
"i,the ref.......(fer the next ten mins)
Then he would shout"Get on wi yer work!!!!"
a few minutes later someone would say
"sir ma grandad was on the ....fishing boat"
"i,a kent um weel....(fer inither 10 mins)
This would go on fer the whole time we were in iz class.Nay wonder a ca coont.

Is there something similar on the Bass Rock, or do you just have to lick seagull poo three times before the cock crows or somefin?

I should take a wee trip to the two isles.

Are you allowed to get off the boat and walk around?

Watch ye de get pregnant Jonathan. Oh silly me ye are

Ha ha!! That has actually made me laugh.

Too many of you know that I am fat.

I will go on a diet and keep a weekly blog on AFTN.

It will be called JoJo's Diet Blog.

I'll weigh myself tomorrow.

It wasn't only the christenings that took place when the men were out at sea...

Aye, it's noticeable that Jim C's cousin only got pregnant when she got back among faimily. Nothing to do wi' the May Isle visit, rather a whole different East Neuk tradition. Oh, sorry - I'm getting mixed up wi' Cowdenbeath.

Yes, very funny Kots.
Anyway, Jonathan - you can go for a trip to the May Island during the summer and stay for a couple of hours.
The May Princess sails from A*str*th*r ( ) during the summer (correct me if I'm wrong, enfifer) and believe me it's well worth the effort.
One of my favourite places in the universe.
As for the Bass Rock, I think you have to get special permission to go there. I managed to wrangle a visit in 1975 when I latched on to a party who had permission to land. An interesting place, but nothing like the May.

Just occured to me that if boys were associated with the Bass Rock maybe it was an early form of rhyming slang.

If a kin Johna(not so)thin iz gaun ti the Miy,i'll piy the skipper ti leav the bugger there!!!!!!!!!!!

Spookily enough, Eugene, the May Isle was actually discovered by a viking and was originally named

Stig Varey Danny Island after the person who first set eyes on it? I wonder if there is some sort of rhyming slang coincedence in that too?

So where were you born then Eugene? Wick?

Micht ha'e been Eugene !! Whit aboot the lassies en the Mey then

Goony yev hit the nail on the hid. Jonah in the whale's one in the same person. Watch oot fur 'im sailin' intae Si Minins herber as in "Twelve Month an a day" Hey a wis it scale wi' Chris Rush thit wrote it.