Throw the dolly out of the pram

Posted by Chris on July 04, 2007

In Reply to: Throw the dolly out of the pram posted by Ahmad Ragab on July 04, 2007

: What does the phrase "threw their dolly of the pram" reference and what does it mean exactly? Here is the sentence in which I found this phrase:

: It is hardly surprising, then, that when someone came along and challenged the version of history on which their new-found importance in society was to be based, they threw their dolly out of the pram, as the prison wardens in the prison in which I worked used to put it to describe the actions of a prisoner who had lost his temper.

In my experience "threw their toys out of the pram" is more common. It means they responded to frustration with an irrational and seemingly dispropotionate outburst; like a baby repeatedly throwing away everything it can get its hands on. A less common variation is "spat out their dummy"

• Throw the dolly out of the pram Chris 04/July/07
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