LAGER LOUT

noun (People and Society) In the UK: a young (usually affluent) man who typically spends leisure time drinking large quantities of lager or other beer as one of a group in a pub, and takes part in rowdy, aggressive, or boorish group behaviour. Etymology: Formed by compounding: a lager-drinking lout. This form takes advantage of the alliterative effect of two words beginning with l--a factor which gives it more popular appeal than the original coinage lager culture (see below). History and Usage: The idea originated with a speech by John Patten MP, then Home Office Minister of State responsible for crime prevention, in September 1988. Lamenting the increase in violence, especially in country towns which had formerly been thought of as quiet and peaceful, Mr Patten put the blame on affluent young men who would normally act respectably but had nothing better to do with their leisure time than drink too much beer. He described this as a lager culture and asked responsible citizens to help the police stop what he called 'lager culture punch-ups'. The form lager lout started to crop up in the newspapers about a fortnight after Mr Patten's speech; Sun journalist Simon Walters claims to have been the first to make the transformation, although lager lout itself is often attributed to Mr Patten. The form lager culture has since died out, but lager lout continues to be used and has even been used figuratively and as the basis for an adjective, lager-loutish. Lager louts...may be educated into drinking at a much earlier age than executives in the alcohol industry believe. Independent 13 Dec. 1988, p. 17 I would ask you to dismiss the idea that this was lager-loutish behaviour. The Times 27 June 1989, p. 3 Having produced so many phoney dummies, the editor of the new lager-lout among 'quality' newspapers has only himself to blame. Private Eye 15 Sept. 1989, p. 6