People have just found out where the phrase 'paint the town red' comes from

Virgin Radio

16 May 2023, 15:44

If you're planning a night out for next weekend you might be planning to 'paint the town red', but do you know the origins of the phrase?

The term is thought to originate from a night out that took place in 1837.

An article on History.com says 'paint the town red' “most likely owes its origin to one legendary night of drunkenness.”

Imagine having a night out so wild that you change the course of language forever.

So who was it who had the heavy night out?

The Marquis of Waterford, was a known “mischief maker.”

The Marquis was reported to have gone out drinking in Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire.

Things got a bit messy and they ended up toppling over flowerpots, removed the door knockers and even broke some windows.

The painting terminology came about as they painted a tollgate red.

Not only that, but they redecorated the front doors of several homes as well as a swan statue.

The website claims: “The marquis and his pranksters later compensated Melton for the damages, but their drunken escapade is likely the reason that ‘paint the town red’ became shorthand for a wild night out. 

“Still yet another theory suggests the phrase was actually born out of the brothels of the American West, and referred to men behaving as though their whole town were a red-light district.”

It certainly puts some nights out in perspective, doesn't it.