to ask for your help solving this impossible riddle/joke

[killingtime9198]

My best friend's family have a family 'joke', which she originally told me about when we were about 12/13. When she originally told me she didn't get the joke either, but then later did manage to work it out. When she first met her now husband he didn't get it, but he later also worked it out. I have never managed to get it, and every now and again I will remember the saga of this joke (this has been going on for about 20 years now), try desperately for a few days to work it out and then forget all about it for months.

Anyway, I wonder if the powers of mumsnet can either locate someone who has heard this 'joke' before, or who can work it out!

The joke is:

'There once was a man called Boswell. For short they called him Bos, and he walked up the post office steps.'

The joke is definitely NOT that there is no joke, and they're all having a laugh at me for trying to work it out - I am 100% confident of this.

Well I suppose if OP has waited 20years already, she can wait till Thursday 😒
😡🤬😡

23 pages in and still no confirmed answer! FFS

OP have you tried asking Alexa?

Maybe it relates to someone or someplace they know? Once friends DH had seen/met 'it' the riddle clicked into place.

Similar volumes of the complete OED then would also work for Philomenas DDs puzzle. I dispute 'map' - a picture of a tree would have a trunk. ...so do the OS tree symbols.

This "joke" is a thousand times worse than my friend's non-joke offering:

Friend: Ask me if I'm an orange

Me/victim: Why??

Friend: Just ask me if I'm an orange

Me/victim: Are you an orange?

Friend: No?!

Me:

Shameless place mark from a vexed mumsnetter here!!!!

He lives in London so when he walks up the post office steps he stands next to the post code, and thus becomes BosW11!
No, seriously, I’ve not nothing. This is driving me mad

Errol DD told it wrongly, she should have said "a tree but no wood".

Or:
Q: what's the difference between an elephant and a lemon?

...then hope your victim gives the expected reply 'I don't know, what's the difference?'
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So you can reply, 'blimey, if you don't know that I'm never going to ask you to make me a G&T' (or buy me some lemons, or whatever lemon-dependent activity you wish)

Errol DD told it wrongly, she should have said "a tree but no wood".

The devil is in the detail.

23 pages and still no answer?!? Loving "have you asked Alexa?" 😂 Yes OP please do this and report back

Mornington Crescent!

@PhilomenaButterfly cool, thanks.

Regarding this 'joke'... still nope.
🐐🐐🐐

'There once was a man called Boswell. For short they called him Bos, and he walked up the post office steps.'

Where are people getting the extra "and?" It can't be Boswelland, there's no "and," there.

I think it's dumb, but my best guess is that Bos is four short of Boswell (- well).

Also, if this was my friend, I think I'd be too frustrated to ever speak with her again.

This is an old one...

HIJKLMNO + NACL ... what's the solution?

You won't be getting anything from father Christmas at this rate! Look at how many people are annoyed with you now.. PHONE HER now!!

I need to get on with my life!!!

As much as I like Boscombe Down didn’t the op say that there was no need for Bos to be going up anywhere for the joke to work?

Am I the only one getting shades of 321 and Ted Rodgers?

Sample Clue: “The Arches Might Provide A Clue, Not Strolling But He’s Going Too”, accompanied by some sheet music.

Ted’s Baffling Explanation: “Well the first three letters of arches might have been clue enough, but we also said not strolling but he’s going too. Well if you take away HES from arches, all you have left is ARC. If you rearrange that with the sheet music, you’re left with ‘Music Maestro Please’. So what do think that means? Maestro! The British Leyland Maestro! You’ve won the car!”

I agree with 'for short' being a wordplay on 4 letters short of his full name. The steps is just to throw you off.

HIJKLMNO + NACL ... what's the solution?

Brine!

It’s Boswell Forshort
Or it’s completely made up nonsense.

JosephineBucket Ha ha, I was thinking that!

I have a theory (but absolutely no evidence) that the 3-2-1 riddles were actually interchangeable, and the prize the winning couple would walk away with was fixed from the outset.

@ErrolTheDragon - saline

DoodleLab Did you go to school in North London by any chance?