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This article is from the Science Fiction Fandom FAQ, by Vicki Rosenzweig vr@panix.com with numerous contributions by others.

38. Why "You are XXX and I claim my five pounds?" (rec.arts.sf.fandom)

This started with publicity campaigns by the British *Westminster
Gazette* (from 1927) and *News Chronicle* (mid-1930s), whose agent "Lobby
Lud" prowled pre-announced seaside resorts. If you recognized him from his
published photo you could win ten pounds by producing the newspaper and
saying, "You are Mr. Lobby Lud, I claim the [name of paper] Prize." When
the postwar *Daily Mirror* imitated the campaign, its phrasing "... and I
claim my five pounds" passed into the language. It's now used for joky
recognitions of "real identity". Thus some r.a.sf.f posting about hideous
personal injuries might be greeted with a nod to our most disaster-prone
regular: "You are James Nicoll and I claim my five pounds!" Abbreviations:
AICMFP or AICM5P. "UR Ralph 124C41+ AICM5P!"
[Explanation by Dave Langford, with help from Eddie Cochrane.]

 

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