Shaggy Dogs & Black Sheep by Albert Jack

October 16th 2005


As Bald as a Badger

To be As Bald as a Badger or As Bald as a Coot are phrases used regularly in both America and Britain respectively, the latter having been in use since around 1430. The aquatic coot is often known as the 'bald coot' because the white plumage on the bird's head is thought to resemble a man's bald pate. The badger simile, on the other hand, has been shortened over time and in fact started life as 'bald as a badger's bum'. The reason for this is that for centuries the bristles on a gentleman's shaving brush were made out of luxurious badger's hair, plucked from the poor creature's backside. In fact, top-of-the-range shaving brushes are still made out of badger's hair to this day (or at least they are claimed to be). Obviously the little fellow would not need to be killed for this and, given that hair could re-grow and then be plucked again, it would seem that thousands of the red-faced creatures would be left to roam the countryside with a bald backside, until the next shaving-brush-plucking season came around (if there was such a thing). I know not whether the badger in question would need to be male or female, or if that matters anyway, but the main question is this: who got the job of plucking it? Or was it even a two-man job? In which case, who did the holding and who did the plucking? I'm off to try and find out right now.