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The term "'wide boy'" first appeared during the Second World War in the United Kingdom. Some enterprising people took it upon themselves to exploit rationing and do deals with American servicemen to supply locals with much coveted luxuries like chocolate and nylons. Such characters were referred to as ''wide boys''. More recently it has come to mean a working-class male (often a cockney from London) who lives by his wits and his wheelings-and-dealings. The type is sometimes, but not always, associated with various forms of petty criminal behaviour. Del Boy from ''Only Fools and Horses'', Flash Harry from the St Trinian's books and movies, Private Walker from ''Dad's Army'', Arthur Daley from ''Minder'' and Harry Robinson from ''The Ladykillers'' are all fictional examples of the wide boy type.

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See also

See also

★ Black market

★ Underground economy

★ Spiv

★ Teddy Boy