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Originally Posted by wolf
"Spend a penny" means taking a whiz, right? (I'm guessing it has something to do with either pay toilets or tipping the attendant)
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I can take pride in my age on this one as I can bear witness to the accuracy of the answer.
When I was a lad, a day-trip to the beach was a regular summer treat. The public toilets that were abundant at the seaside resorts (known more officially as 'public conveniences') required you to put a penny in a slot on the outside of the door, to release its lock if you wanted to gain access to a cubicle offering seated accommodation (paid for the daily bleaching!). Men who could stand at the communal urinal (could be the makings of a tongue twister there) didn't have to pay, and as you may have already guessed, women had to pay every time (such sexual discrimination was permitted in those days - women had only just got the vote, for God's sake, and the line had to be drawn somewhere!). The saying 'I'm off to spend a penny' became an accepted and relatively polite way for a lady to inform that she was off to the toilet!
