Boy's Own

English

Proper noun

Boy's Own

1. (historical) The Boy's Own Paper.

Adjective

Boy's Own (not comparable)

1. (UK) unbelievable or larger than life.
   • 2001 April 23, Simon Hattenstone, “In love and war”, in The Guardian‎^[1]:

     Isn't the sense of selflessness a bit Boy's Own?

   • 2008 January 4, Finlo Rohrer, “What makes a modern hero?”, in BBC‎^[2]:

     Once upon a time Robert Falcon Scott was the epitome of a Boy's Own hero.

   • 2011 February 7, Theo Hooper, “Gary Lineker: "Players are role models whether they like it or not"”, in Big Issue‎^[3]:

     As a lifelong Spurs supporter and a regular MOTD viewer, this is Boy’s Own stuff, and it’s a struggle to retain my journalistic cool.

2. (UK, derogatory) chauvinistic; out of date.
   • 1997, Alice Nutter, “Make Your Own Tea: Women’s Realm and Other Recipes and Patterns”, in Class War, number 73:

     However, a lot of women who agree with Class War's aims and principles, think the organisation is too Boy's Own to become involved with.

   • 2013 January 20, Steve Earles, “Veterans Of The Trenches: A Look Back At Battle Comic”, in The Quietus‎^[4]:

     Look at the Boy’s Own shit of Prince Harry as a hero in an imperialist war. We still live in Victorian times. [spoken by Pat Mills]

See also

• dime novel
• pulp