I’m interested in finding out when and why little traditions and things we take for granted started?

[Britpopbaby]

Like…
Having ice cream at the theatre.

Popping money in a purse before gifting the purse to someone ( I think this might be geographical)

Bringing sweets back from your holiday.

These are weird examples you give

this

@devilla how are the OP's examples weird?

I love this idea for a thread :)

In our family, we have 'pressie practise' on Xmas eve after supper, essentially a family Secret Santa of silly gifts before a sensible grown up gift each the following day. Always makes for a laugh. Even the dog gets to 'take part' ha.

When I first moved to London years ago, I lodged with an older lady who I struck up a friendship with - I moved out aged student-y 22yrs old after 3 months, bit still to this day aged 33yrs, she writes letters and sends me a mug for my birthday because I became known as "the mug hoarder" haha (I.e. I used to end up with all her tea stained mugs in my room for a week at a time... oops...) love her to bits

No they're not.
And also, why be such a Grinch?

DSis and I have a weird one. We both have dogs and sometimes go to the same places to walk them, but unplanned and arrive at different times. It’s now compulsory for the one who leaves first to lift the windscreen wipers up on the other’s car.

The ice cream at the theatre is a bit peculiar. I guess it's not noisy to eat. Or smelly.
I reckon it's a simple as an ice-cream company rep pitching/ selling it to a company that runs theatres and it took off. I always remember it was always the same one brand in all the theatres in London. I guess they worked out it was profitable. Small volume per product for a high price?

Someone will Google it I'm sure but that's my boring guess.

Popping money in the purse is to ward off money problems, ie if you give an empty purse it’ll never stay filled. It’s a wealth ritual of the same thinking as tucking a coin in the baby’s pram, basically wishing them prosperity.

I remember when ice cream was the only food sold in cinemas and theatres. During the intermission an usherette would stand at the front with a tray of ice creams on a strap around her neck and sell them to customers, so not peculiar at all.

Putting a coin in a purse or coat pocket is an old custom in Scotland called handseling.

And everyone would bring back gifts of sticks of rock from holidays!

Oh, I love this kind of thing. Some clever people might now the answer, but I always wonder about why we salute magpies, and when we started throwing coins into wishing wells, and who first called “shot gun” for sitting in the front seat.

Also, different but in my mind adjacent, why some foods definitely are or aren’t for breakfast.

Back in the day the films were on projectors and needed changing so there was an intermission. An usherette would sell small items to be enjoyed and ice cream was one most people wouldn't have at home as there were no freezers.

It was considered good luck to pop a coin in a purse symbolising prospective wealth.

Such a lovely reply.

Your old landlady sounds brilliant.
We do similar on Christmas Eve.

Surely shotgun was simply because the person in that seat had a shotgun to protect the driver and passengers.

That never even occurred to me! But of course would make sense.

What an odd response

Ahh - that makes sense

Why do brides do the whole something borrowed, something blue, something old and something new.

Comes from a 19th century rhyme
Brides traditionally wear or carry these items on their wedding day for good luck, to bring prosperity, and to ward off the "evil eye"

Op in Danish wedding tradition the groom get his socks ends cut off directly after the first dance is over. Both my son in law and my nieces new husband (Swedish) had theirs cut off by the Danish people there

The ends are then traditionally given to the new wife to mend his socks and present to her mother in law to show she could look after her new husband. Dd1s mil told her in no circumstances did she want her sons smelly socks back 😆 but the guests loved this tradition.

Dhs gran would not allow us to be gifted a knife or scissors without giving a penny in return so you could "buy" them but not have them as a present as then they would always be blunt.

Definitely not weird examples.

I rhink the sweets comes from the days when it was unusual to go on holiday so you shared your luckyness being able to go. I remember bringing back small gifts for family and close friends - called a Minding.

The magpie thing is because magpies mate for life. If you see a solitary one, it's assumed that its mate has died, therefore the bad luck. If there's two, then that's good luck (i.e. there'll soon be baby magpies).

I guess the saluting is to ward off the bad luck they supposedly bring by being single.

A bit late to find out after the wedding that your daughter-in-law can't darn your son's socks. 😄

You know what I like about this thread? No one has run to ChatGPT to give us the answers (and I say that as someone who uses it daily!).

Yes but I think op is asking WHY? Why is a coin in a purse actually lucky and who did it first? Who made it into a thing? Who was the first bride wearing something old, new, borrowed and blue?

Like veils are so the devil can't tell you're the bride and bridesmaids are there like decoys but who the hell came up with that to start with?

Shotgun comes from the fact that people used to ride next to the driver on a stage coach carrying a shotgun in case of attack

I want to know who decided we stand on the right on the London Underground escalators

We have Bonfire Night and Halloween.
But who decided on Mischief Night?

Which many of you Southerners won't know about