Where does the stereotype of the French man wearing a stripped black and white t-shirt, with beret, garlic round his neck, baguette and on a bike come from?

lanfranco

This is an interesting question. I had the idea that it might have come from a film, but the best answer I found is that it is a British stereotype derived from French farmers and agricultural laborers, originally from Brittany, who used to sell their onions in the U.K. They were called "Onion Johnnies" and were seen most commonly in the 1920's: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onion_Johnny Jul 26 07, 7:45 AM

satguru

As far as the bike is concerned we had an onion man come to our area from the 60s-70s who rode a bike all over London with strings of onions (not garlic admittedly) round his neck looking very much like your description and when he was away his friend did the same. The onion sellers are a common feature there and maybe the shirt was a way to identify them? Yep Frankie, a Breton sweater. That is a local sailor's striped sweater just like the description. http://brittany.networkshosting.com/store/media/meridien.jpg Jul 26 07, 7:48 AM

billythebrit

Actually, I think the stereotype is onions. Think got it wrong. But garlic...French. They go hand-in-hand too. Jul 26 07, 12:40 PM

Baloo55th

I can remember onion sellers on bikes as far north as Birkenhead in the 50s. Back then, the British didn't very often use garlic in normal cooking. Only haute cuisine called for garlic. The origin in Brittany, and the striped shirt and beret were typical costume for the region. Jul 26 07, 2:53 PM