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On 03/04/2012 00:39, Charles Ellson wrote:
On Fri, 30 Mar 2012 18:58:03 -0700 (PDT), wrote:

On Mar 30, 8:02 pm, Graham wrote:

IIRC they were also called cell phones in the UK back when analogue
cellular systems were new, complete with diagrams of hexagonal cells
covering the countryside. Mention of cell or cellular has fallen out
of use in the UK to be replaced by "mobile". But language keeps
moving on and for younger people (say, teens and twenties) mobiles
may just be referred to as "phones" now, as landline phones are
something only their parents will have.

In a Britsh TV show aired in the US, a teen referred to her cellular
phone as her "mobile", pronounced with three distinct syllables (mo bi
al). In the US, the word often comes out as two syllables, as "mo
bowl".

Curiously, some landline phones in the building were rotary--are
rotary sets still used in Britain?

They should still work on most if not all public exchanges but the
telephones (apart from various decorative/"special range" ones) will
be more than 25-30 years old by now.

They also command a premium purchase price, where you can find them,
because they are now "vintage."