Tic Tac is also a form of
sign language, used by
bookmakers on British racecourses to indicate fluctuations in
betting odds. Practitioners can be seen at courses across the land, wearing
white gloves (or sometimes incredibly
garish gold rings), standing on wooden crates and waving their hands about frantically as the odds change on particular
horses.
Tic Tac comes with its own
slang, which is usually derived from the parts of the body being touched to indicate a particular price. Here's a selection -
Levels You Devils -
Even money. Self explanatory.
Tips - 11/10. (Indicated with the
tips of the fingers).
Wrist - 5/4.
Ear'ole - 6/4.
Shoulder - 7/4.
Bottle - 2/1. (Although I'm not sure why).
Top Of Head - 9/4.
Face - 5/2.
Carpet - 3/1.
Burlington Bertie - 100/30. (Also known as "
scruffy and
dirty").
Rouf - 4/1. (It's backwards, see?)
Shoulders - 9/2.
Hand - 5/1.
Nevis - 7/1. (Should be Neves, really, but it isn't).
Net - 10/1.
Double Carpet - 33/1.
So, the next time you see
John McCrirrick spouting
gibberish on the telly, you'll be able to understand him better. Although it's still safer to just switch channels.