To scarper is British slang for to run off or to run away. It originates from the Italian scappare meaning to escape and was popularised through it's usage in Polari.
Polari is a language, used predominantly by gay men, made up of slang borrowed from various sources such as Italian, Romany, cant, backslang, rhyming slang and Yiddish. Polari's heyday was prior to the legislation in the late 1960s that partially decriminalised homosexuality. Prior to this date, a careless word could mean a gaol sentence, if overheard by the wrong person. Speaking in a slang only understood by likeminded souls was a very real protection against prosecution.
This was hilariously exploited in the Julian & Sandy sketches in the hugely popular 1960s BBC radio show, Round the Horne. Julian and Sandy (played by Hugh Paddick and Kenneth Williams) were out of work actors doing different jobs to get by. Each week would see them try their hand (hopelessly) at a different profession. All of them prefaced with bona, the Polari slang for good: Bona Law, Bona Pets, Bona Estate Agents even Keep Britain Bona where they launch their own political party.
Because of all of the above, the fact I'm gay, that I like to run and that the URL was available, it seemed right to name this blog The Scarperer - escaping into my thoughts when I run. For those interested in finding out a little more; here's the Wikipedia article on Polari, a One Show feature on Polari by Arthur Smith with Paul Baker and even the Bible translated into Polari. For those still not sated, you can get a copy of Paul Baker's excellent Dictionary of Polari and Gay Slang.
Bona nochy!
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