The Origin and Real Meaning of “Risk It For The Biscuit!”
You already heard the phrase “risk it for the biscuit” a few times and got tired of not knowing what exactly it means. You are not sure if you need to eat the biscuit or somebody asks you to give the biscuit to them. If this scene sounds familiar, you are at the right place. Here is the origin and real meaning of “risk it for the biscuit!”
“Risk it for the biscuit” is used in a situation where it means that you will need to take the risk if you want to receive a desirable prize or outcome. This first known origin is a 1966 headline from an Irish newspaper.
There are still online debates about who is the first one to use this phrase. So, continue to read because I will share the most popular theories and, of course, biscuits!
Where Did “Risk It For The Biscuit” Come From?
The first recorded usage of the phrase “risk it for the biscuit” was in the Drogheda Argus and Leinster Journal from 1966. It was a headline above the story about a 16-year-old youngster from Dundalk, Ireland. The newspapers reported that the boy broke into the parked van of Jacobs biscuits while his friend was keeping the watch.
Suddenly, the van started to move, so the boy started to hammer the side of the van to notify the driver to let him out. Instead of stopping, the lorry driver drove him to the Garda Barracks, willing to hand the passenger over.
Realizing that he is not usually the troublemaker and that he comes from a nice family, the case was proclaimed as dismissed. But, the one was clear: he risked it for the biscuit.
It is, however, unclear whether the headline writer was referring to a common phrase or simply felt creative. It is also not clear if the headline encouraged the wider usage of this expression.
There is another early recorded usage of the variant of this phrase. This time, it became widely accepted. In the 1970s, the Swisskit chocolate bar became popular across the UK. Swisskit was a chocolate-covered wheat, nuts and raisins bar. Unfortunately, they are not produced anymore, but you can find similar nuts and fruit chocolate bars in the supermarkets.
Its advertisement slogan went as “I’ll risk it for a Swisskit.” After people became familiar with the phrase, they just said “risk it for the biscuit.”
With time, it entered pop culture in a number of phenomena such as the 2009 comedy flick, “Fired Up!” or the 2010 song from Tiny Tempah, “Frisky.”
What Is the Meaning of “Risk It To Get The Biscuit?”
The expression is a play on the rhymes “risk it” and “biscuit.” You should note that “biscuit” is the word for “cookies” in the UK.
If someone says that you should risk it for the biscuit, they dare you do something for the prize. This challenge would be something you wouldn’t do it otherwise, and biscuit can stand for anything.
Biscuit is a metaphor for monetary reward or some other kind of prize. Replacing the word “biscuit” with “chocolate biscuit” doesn’t change the meaning. The purpose of this phrase is to encourage people and let them know that it’s hard to gain anything without taking a chance.
What Does Biscuit Mean In British Slang?
In British slang, the word “biscuit” can mean something nice, sweet, attractive, or anything else you can’t resist.
List of the Best British Biscuits!
As promised, here are the biscuits! And not just any biscuits, but the top 5 British biscuits that you have to try!
Bourbon Biscuits
If you love sandwich cookies, you will adore the Bourbon biscuits. The biscuit itself has a slightly bitter taste due to dark chocolate. Between two biscuits is a creamy chocolate buttercream filling. Many British would suggest you try it for dunking into tea!
Digestives
Digestive is a semi-sweer type of biscuit. Its base is brown wheat flour and wholemeal. British consume it with every popular hot drink and as a base for cheesecake!
Hobnobs Biscuits
The main ingredients in Hobnobs are rolled oats and jumbo oats. These crunchy cookies are amongst UK’s favorite tea biscuits. Today, you can find it in many variants, including dark chocolate and chocolate orange.
Ginger Nut Biscuits
As you can tell by the name, the most important ingredient in these cookies is ginger. It gives them a recognizable taste, and it is sometimes accompanied by cinnamon and molasses.
Rich Tea Biscuits
Rich tea is a type of sweet cookie and it is known as the most dunkable biscuit ever!
They are very similar to Digestives – when it comes to their appearance and ingredients list. The fact that they are one of the most selling cookies in the UK should say enough about its tastiness!
